diff --git a/controller/place.js b/controller/place.js
index a4996a11..924292b6 100644
--- a/controller/place.js
+++ b/controller/place.js
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 var service = { mget: require('../service/mget') };
 var logger = require('pelias-logger').get('api:controller:place');
 
-function setup( backend ){
+function setup( config, backend ){
 
   // allow overriding of dependencies
   backend = backend || require('../src/backend');
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ function setup( backend ){
 
     var query = req.clean.ids.map( function(id) {
       return {
-        _index: 'pelias',
+        _index: config.indexName,
         _type: id.layers,
         _id: id.id
       };
diff --git a/controller/search.js b/controller/search.js
index 35a5f0b5..271d2899 100644
--- a/controller/search.js
+++ b/controller/search.js
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ var service = { search: require('../service/search') };
 var logger = require('pelias-logger').get('api:controller:search');
 var logging = require( '../helper/logging' );
 
-function setup( backend, query ){
+function setup( config, backend, query ){
 
   // allow overriding of dependencies
   backend = backend || require('../src/backend');
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ function setup( backend, query ){
 
     // backend command
     var cmd = {
-      index: 'pelias',
+      index: config.indexName,
       searchType: 'dfs_query_then_fetch',
       body: query( req.clean )
     };
diff --git a/routes/v1.js b/routes/v1.js
index c8c88de1..c15f28d7 100644
--- a/routes/v1.js
+++ b/routes/v1.js
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ function addRoutes(app, peliasConfig) {
     search: createRouter([
       sanitisers.search.middleware,
       middleware.calcSize(),
-      controllers.search(),
+      controllers.search(peliasConfig),
       postProc.distances('focus.point.'),
       postProc.confidenceScores(peliasConfig),
       postProc.dedupe(),
@@ -74,7 +74,7 @@ function addRoutes(app, peliasConfig) {
     ]),
     autocomplete: createRouter([
       sanitisers.autocomplete.middleware,
-      controllers.search(null, require('../query/autocomplete')),
+      controllers.search(peliasConfig, null, require('../query/autocomplete')),
       postProc.distances('focus.point.'),
       postProc.confidenceScores(peliasConfig),
       postProc.dedupe(),
@@ -88,7 +88,7 @@ function addRoutes(app, peliasConfig) {
     reverse: createRouter([
       sanitisers.reverse.middleware,
       middleware.calcSize(),
-      controllers.search(undefined, reverseQuery),
+      controllers.search(peliasConfig, undefined, reverseQuery),
       postProc.distances('point.'),
       // reverse confidence scoring depends on distance from origin
       //  so it must be calculated first
diff --git a/test/unit/controller/place.js b/test/unit/controller/place.js
index 977be59e..0376eec6 100644
--- a/test/unit/controller/place.js
+++ b/test/unit/controller/place.js
@@ -11,6 +11,11 @@ module.exports.tests.interface = function(test, common) {
   });
 };
 
+// reminder: this is only the api subsection of the full config
+var fakeDefaultConfig = {
+  indexName: 'pelias'
+};
+
 // functionally test controller (backend success)
 module.exports.tests.functional_success = function(test, common) {
 
@@ -43,7 +48,37 @@ module.exports.tests.functional_success = function(test, common) {
     var backend = mockBackend( 'client/mget/ok/1', function( cmd ){
       t.deepEqual(cmd, { body: { docs: [ { _id: 123, _index: 'pelias', _type: [ 'a' ] } ] } }, 'correct backend command');
     });
-    var controller = setup( backend );
+    var controller = setup( fakeDefaultConfig, backend );
+    var res = {
+      status: function( code ){
+        t.equal(code, 200, 'status set');
+        return res;
+      },
+      json: function( json ){
+        t.equal(typeof json, 'object', 'returns json');
+        t.equal(typeof json.date, 'number', 'date set');
+        t.equal(json.type, 'FeatureCollection', 'valid geojson');
+        t.true(Array.isArray(json.features), 'features is array');
+        t.deepEqual(json.features, expected, 'values correctly mapped');
+      }
+    };
+    var req = { clean: { ids: [ {'id' : 123, layers: [ 'a' ] } ] }, errors: [], warnings: [] };
+    var next = function next() {
+      t.equal(req.errors.length, 0, 'next was called without error');
+      t.end();
+    };
+    controller(req, res, next );
+  });
+
+  test('functional success with custom index name', function(t) {
+    var fakeCustomizedConfig = {
+      indexName: 'alternateindexname'
+    };
+
+    var backend = mockBackend( 'client/mget/ok/1', function( cmd ){
+      t.deepEqual(cmd, { body: { docs: [ { _id: 123, _index: 'alternateindexname', _type: [ 'a' ] } ] } }, 'correct backend command');
+    });
+    var controller = setup( fakeCustomizedConfig, backend );
     var res = {
       status: function( code ){
         t.equal(code, 200, 'status set');
@@ -72,7 +107,7 @@ module.exports.tests.functional_failure = function(test, common) {
     var backend = mockBackend( 'client/mget/fail/1', function( cmd ){
       t.deepEqual(cmd, { body: { docs: [ { _id: 123, _index: 'pelias', _type: ['b'] } ] } }, 'correct backend command');
     });
-    var controller = setup( backend );
+    var controller = setup( fakeDefaultConfig, backend );
     var req = { clean: { ids: [ {'id' : 123, layers: [ 'b' ] } ] }, errors: [], warnings: [] };
     var next = function( message ){
       t.equal(req.errors[0],'a backend error occurred','error passed to errorHandler');
diff --git a/test/unit/controller/search.js b/test/unit/controller/search.js
index 967ba1b9..3e7494ac 100644
--- a/test/unit/controller/search.js
+++ b/test/unit/controller/search.js
@@ -12,6 +12,11 @@ module.exports.tests.interface = function(test, common) {
   });
 };
 
+// reminder: this is only the api subsection of the full config
+var fakeDefaultConfig = {
+  indexName: 'pelias'
+};
+
 // functionally test controller (backend success)
 module.exports.tests.functional_success = function(test, common) {
 
@@ -81,7 +86,7 @@ module.exports.tests.functional_success = function(test, common) {
         searchType: 'dfs_query_then_fetch'
       }, 'correct backend command');
     });
-    var controller = setup(backend, mockQuery());
+    var controller = setup(fakeDefaultConfig, backend, mockQuery());
     var res = {
       status: function (code) {
         t.equal(code, 200, 'status set');
@@ -104,6 +109,33 @@ module.exports.tests.functional_success = function(test, common) {
     };
     controller(req, res, next);
   });
+
+  test('functional success with alternate index name', function(t) {
+    var fakeCustomizedConfig = {
+      indexName: 'alternateindexname'
+    };
+
+    var backend = mockBackend('client/search/ok/1', function (cmd) {
+      t.deepEqual(cmd, {
+        body: {a: 'b'},
+        index: 'alternateindexname',
+        searchType: 'dfs_query_then_fetch'
+      }, 'correct backend command');
+    });
+    var controller = setup(fakeCustomizedConfig, backend, mockQuery());
+    var res = {
+      status: function (code) {
+        t.equal(code, 200, 'status set');
+        return res;
+      }
+    };
+    var req = { clean: { a: 'b' }, errors: [], warnings: [] };
+    var next = function next() {
+      t.equal(req.errors.length, 0, 'next was called without error');
+      t.end();
+    };
+    controller(req, res, next);
+  });
 };
 
 // functionally test controller (backend failure)
@@ -112,7 +144,7 @@ module.exports.tests.functional_failure = function(test, common) {
     var backend = mockBackend( 'client/search/fail/1', function( cmd ){
       t.deepEqual(cmd, { body: { a: 'b' }, index: 'pelias', searchType: 'dfs_query_then_fetch' }, 'correct backend command');
     });
-    var controller = setup( backend, mockQuery() );
+    var controller = setup( fakeDefaultConfig, backend, mockQuery() );
     var req = { clean: { a: 'b' }, errors: [], warnings: [] };
     var next = function(){
       t.equal(req.errors[0],'a backend error occurred');
@@ -127,7 +159,7 @@ module.exports.tests.timeout = function(test, common) {
     var backend = mockBackend( 'client/search/timeout/1', function( cmd ){
       t.deepEqual(cmd, { body: { a: 'b' }, index: 'pelias', searchType: 'dfs_query_then_fetch' }, 'correct backend command');
     });
-    var controller = setup( backend, mockQuery() );
+    var controller = setup( fakeDefaultConfig, backend, mockQuery() );
     var req = { clean: { a: 'b' }, errors: [], warnings: [] };
     var next = function(){
       t.equal(req.errors[0],'Request Timeout after 5000ms');