# Bizarre city and town names? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 10, 2003, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427 "2003-07-10T07:55:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/21 "2003-07-10T14:24:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Philster \* > \*\*Mars, PA \*\* I was so disappointed to find out that the residents of Mars don’t refer to themselves as “Martians.” Apparently, they call themselves “Marsians.” Talk about a missed opportunity! Pennsylvania has a wealth of truly awful town names. Off the top of my head–Krumsville, Schnecksville, Gobblers Knob. Of course, Jersey has some bad ones, too. Like Hohokus and Mahwah. Until I moved off of Long Island, I didn’t realize there was anything weird about names like Great Neck and Little Neck. And it was funny to find out that people all over the country use the term “Hicksville” as a general term for a country-bumpkin kind of place instead of the name of an actual town! And I don’t know how old I was before I realized that the “Whore of Babylon” wasn’t an actual person that you could visit! ---
**Author:** ![TelcontarStorm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3ab097/32.png) [@TelcontarStorm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TelcontarStorm)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/22 "2003-07-10T14:24:49Z")
My two favorites are, The State park in Kentucky, Big Bone Lick Tifton Ga. (reverse the spelling) ---
**Author:** ![Tabithina](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f04885/32.png) [@Tabithina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tabithina)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/23 "2003-07-10T14:41:30Z")
There’s also an Embarrass, WI, located on the Embarrass River. The name is explained [here.](http://www.novelplaces.com/wi.htm) [Embarrass, MN](http://www.embarrass.org/history.htm) has similar origins. ---
**Author:** ![yoyo3500](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/5daacb/32.png) [@yoyo3500](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yoyo3500)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/24 "2003-07-10T14:44:53Z")
Of course, there’s Larry Bird’s hometown of French Lick, Indiana ---
**Author:** ![bernse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@bernse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bernse)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/25 "2003-07-10T14:49:49Z")
There is a satellite community of my city called “Sexsmith.” A couple of our employees live there. There is also a nearby hamlet named “Valhalla” ---
**Author:** ![ghostrider](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/58f4c7/32.png) [@ghostrider](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ghostrider)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/26 "2003-07-10T16:55:37Z")
I was looking at my NJ map yesterday, planning a little trip. I noticed that there is a town on the border with PA, right on the Delaware, named **Foul Rift**. I gotta make a little side trip when I’m out that way, for some reason I love that name. ---
**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/27 "2003-07-10T17:05:18Z")
Bumpass Humptulips …I run into many funny town names in my line of work. I stop and laugh when I see the names. ---
**Author:** ![fishbicycle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aeb1de/32.png) [@fishbicycle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fishbicycle)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/28 "2003-07-10T17:16:49Z")
I grew up about 10 minutes from a place called Dogsnest, Ontario. It was little more than a store/gas station and a couple of houses. It has long since been incorporated into the township, so the sign isn’t there anymore. ---
**Author:** ![macabresoul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e68b1a/32.png) [@macabresoul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/macabresoul)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/29 "2003-07-10T17:35:19Z")
Ok this isn’t a town but an intersection My friend drove me down this street about 2 weeks ago and pointed it out to me We were driving down **Antonio** st. and it intersects with **Banderas** st. I kid thee not. Also my cable company is called Cox ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/30 "2003-07-10T17:42:36Z")
I was going to post Intercourse and Blue Balls as well, but I see [Bird-In-Hand, PA](http://www.padutch.com/bih.shtml) has not been mentioned. I like the sign in the link: “Named for a picture on Old Hotel’s swinging sign”. That must have been a pretty obscene looking sign. ---
**Author:** ![moejuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@moejuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moejuck)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/31 "2003-07-10T18:01:35Z")
It’s not that bizzarre, but if you get lost going there no one will keep a straight face when you ask “Where’s Waldo, Ohio”. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/32 "2003-07-10T19:25:35Z")
Well, this name isn’t funny, but the derivation is. Chicken, Alaska was so-named because (as the story goes), nobody in the town knew how to spell “ptarmigan”. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/33 "2003-07-10T19:27:04Z")
Oh, almost forgot: Fukuoka, Okinawa ---
**Author:** ![bagkitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7ab992/32.png) [@bagkitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bagkitty)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/34 "2003-07-10T21:00:09Z")
**Alberta place names:** Medicine Hat Vulcan Head-Smashed-In-Buffalo-Jump (seriously, and it is referring to a person’s head, not the bison…) Hillcrest (it’s at the bottom of the valley, the surrounding towns look down and see the roofs…) **British Columbia place names:** Salmon Arm (yes, arm, not fin) Yahk (to pronounce it properly, pretend you are a cat trying to dislodge a furball) Beavermouth and of course there are also a wealth of names derived from First Nation’s languages that are fun to try and pronounce… Ucluelet, Kimsquit, Kiskatinaw, Tashenshini… ---
**Author:** ![Iteki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/eada6e/32.png) [@Iteki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iteki)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/35 "2003-07-10T21:21:31Z")
Loads of dopey ones in Swedish, but they loose a lot in the translation, so I will offer you the previous address of a friend in London. Faggot Yard, Braintree. Swear to god. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/36 "2003-07-10T21:51:29Z")
Across the Ohio River from Cincinnati is [Big Bone Lick Kentucky](http://www.uky.edu/KGS/education/bigbonelick.html) ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/37 "2003-07-10T23:02:48Z")
I lived near [Great Heck](http://www.cairnsplace.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/selby%20rail%20crash.htm), Yorkshire, England. Now, I’m not too far from [Between](http://www.pe.net/~rksnow/gacountybetween.htm), GA. ---
**Author:** ![verbenabeast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/c4cdca/32.png) [@verbenabeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/verbenabeast)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/38 "2003-07-10T23:35:26Z")
Cut and Shoot, Bigfoot, and Goodnight Texas always make me chuckle… There’s an Intercourse in Alabama too… we also got us Slapout, Eclectic, Cuba, Shorter, and Normal… along with the standard American Native place names… But my FAVORITE is Verbena… gotta love a town named after a flower… ---
**Author:** ![verbenabeast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/c4cdca/32.png) [@verbenabeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/verbenabeast)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/39 "2003-07-10T23:38:40Z")
ooo! I forgot Rising Fawn Ga. and Soddy-Daisy Tn.! ---
**Author:** ![Mastema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/94ad74/32.png) [@Mastema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mastema)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427/40 "2003-07-10T23:42:23Z")
Bucksnort, TN. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-city-and-town-names/187427.md?page=3)