This anime was originally going to be dubbed in English as part of the original Fox Kids line up, but it wasn't due to the majority of the series containing homicides.
The name that the main character made up after his accident, Conan Edogawa, is derived from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle as well as Edogawa Rampo, both very famous mystery/detective authors.
Kogoro Mori's name came from two mystery-related sources. "Kogoro" came from "Kogoro Akechi", the detective created by Edogawa Rampo, while "Mori" came from part of Maurice Leblanc's first name.
The majority of the series takes place in the Beika District of Tokyo.