# Cities named 'X City' that aren’t the capital of X **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 28, 2001, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754 "2001-05-28T06:24:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2001, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/1 "2001-05-28T06:24:48Z")
A lot of countries (and one U.S. state and one Canadian province) have as their capital (in English) the name of the country or state followed by the word “city”, such as Oklahoma City, Quebec City, Panama City (Panama), or Mexico City. But how many cities are there with such names that aren’t the capitals of the like-named jurisdictions? The city doesn’t have to be in the jurisdiction it shares its name with, and it can be a former capital. It doesn’t count unless “city” is part of the name (so not Greece, New York, or Poland, Maine). Cities in the U.S. that share their name with their own state Alabama City, Alabama Arizona City, Arizona Arkansas City, Arkansas California City, California Colorado City, Colorado Delaware City, Delaware Florida City, Florida Idaho City, Idaho Illinois City, Illinois Iowa City, Iowa Kansas City, Kansas Maryland City, Maryland Minnesota City, Minnesota Mississippi City, Mississippi Missouri City, Missouri Montana City, Montana Nebraska City, Nebraska Nevada City, Nevada New York City, New York Ohio City, Ohio (Cuyahoga County) Ohio City, Ohio (Van Wert County) Oregon City, Oregon Texas City, Texas Virginia City, Virginia Cities in the U.S. that share their name with a different state Arkansas City, Kansas Arkansas City, Texas Colorado City, Arizona Colorado City, Texas Georgia City, Missouri Iowa City, California Iowa City, Florida Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City, Tennessee Michigan City, Indiana Michigan City, Mississippi Michigan City, North Dakota Missouri City, Texas Nevada City, California Nevada City, Montana Ohio City, Missouri Oregon City, California Texas City, Illinois Virginia City, Montana Virginia City, Nevada Virginia City, New Mexico Virginia City, Washington Washington City, Missouri Wyoming City, West Virginia Cities in the U.S. that share their name with another country Mexico City, New Mexico Panama City, Florida Georgia City, Missouri (I counted this one twice) Cuba City, Wisconsin Cities outside the U.S. Belize City, Belize (the one that started it all for me) If I knew how many of them there were in the U.S. I never would have started this. I can’t believe how much time I’ve wasted tracking these down. I thought there must be more Cities named after foreign countries in the U.S., but I couldn’t think of any more. There are a couple of places called “Columbia City”, but the country is Colombia. I didn’t even look for cities in Canada that might fit the bill, but that’s only because I’m getting sick of this game. ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2001, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/2 "2001-05-28T06:29:28Z")
Well, there’s a lesson learned. I used alt+0147 and alt+0148 instead of regular quotation marks in the word processor, but vBulletin still truncated it when I pasted it into the subject line (I foolishly previewed). I will eternally be in the debt of any mod who would be so kind as to make the title say **Cities named “X City” that aren’t the capital of X** ---
**Author:** ![waterj2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/858c86/32.png) [@waterj2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/waterj2)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2001, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/3 "2001-05-28T06:41:57Z")
I’m pretty sure that New York is just New York, the name New York City just be an unofficial one to distinguish it from the state. ---
**Author:** ![Greg\_Charles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2001, 6:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/4 "2001-05-28T06:47:59Z")
There’s a Lebanon, MO. They don’t pronounce it like the country, but I thought it took its name from there. ---
**Author:** ![AndYrAStar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8edcca/32.png) [@AndYrAStar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndYrAStar)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2001, 8:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/5 "2001-05-28T08:20:36Z")
There’s a Jersey City, NJ. Also, create another list for “cities in the US that share their name with another planet”… Neptune City, NJ. ---
**Author:** ![Protesilaus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Protesilaus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Protesilaus)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2001, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/6 "2001-05-28T08:47:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by bibliophage \* > **Well, there’s a lesson learned. I used alt+0147 and alt+0148 instead of regular quotation marks in the word processor, but vBulletin still truncated it when I pasted it into the subject line (I foolishly previewed).** I’ve recently discovered that there’s [another way](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=71993) around that problem which still allows you to preview. ---
**Author:** ![mongrel\_8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e274bd/32.png) [@mongrel\_8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mongrel_8)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2001, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/7 "2001-05-28T15:12:46Z")
I am writing this from **Mexico, Missouri**. I know it doesn’t meet the “X City” but it should be close enough. BTW there is also a Cuba, Missouri. In counties Scotland County and Texas County, Missouri. ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2001, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/8 "2001-05-28T17:26:48Z")
Carson City, NV Jefferson City, MO Johnson City, TN ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2001, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/9 "2001-05-28T17:33:57Z")
TO my knowledge, Carson, Jefferson, and Johnson are not political entities. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2001, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/10 "2001-05-28T18:06:04Z")
Belize City used to be the capital of Belize. The city was pretty much wiped out by a hurricane several years ago. After that, the government moved the Capital to Belmopan which is inland, and slightly less at risk from hurricanes. ---
**Author:** ![Crunchy\_Frog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ebca7d/32.png) [@Crunchy\_Frog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crunchy_Frog)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2001, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/11 "2001-05-28T21:30:43Z")
There’s also a **Cairo, Illinois** , most commonly pronounced there as KAY-ro. I have no idea if it has anything to do with the one in Egypt or not. ---
**Author:** ![stuyguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@stuyguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stuyguy)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2001, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/12 "2001-05-28T23:54:14Z")
**waterj2** wrote: “I’m pretty sure that New York is just New York, the name New York City just be an unofficial one to distinguish it from the state.” Nuh-uh, **wj2.** But to be absolutely techical it’s _The City of New York._ (Yup, capital “C” – and capital “T”!). Sez so right in the charter. ---
**Author:** ![Hometownboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/5e9695/32.png) [@Hometownboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hometownboy)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2001, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/13 "2001-05-29T05:22:27Z")
Just to confuse the issue, Oregon City, “the first incorporated city west of the Mississippi” was incorporated in 1829 and was named as the capital of the Oregon Territory. Somewhere in there the capital shifted to Salem (though Portland and other cities certainly wanted those juicy state jobs as well). Check out [this site](http://www.ci.oregon-city.or.us/general/history.htm), Hometownboy whose hometown is not Oregon City, but is definitely in Oregon P.S. We also have in Oregon a town of Wasco which is not only not the county seat of Wasco County, it’s not even _in_ Wasco County but in the adjacent Sherman County, For a fun look at strange Oregon place names, cruise down the page [here](http://www.webtrail.com/applegate/oregon.html) ---
**Author:** ![Greg\_Charles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2001, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/14 "2001-05-29T05:32:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Crunchy Frog \* > \*\*There’s also a **Cairo, Illinois** , most commonly pronounced there as KAY-ro. I have no idea if it has anything to do with the one in Egypt or not. > \*\* Yeah, but we haven’t started a category for American cities named after foreign cities … just foreign _countries_. There must be hundreds of examples of the former. Some famous ones: Athens, GA, Paris, TX, St. Petersburg, FL … ---
**Author:** ![Scribble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scribble/32/3317_2.png) [@Scribble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scribble)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2001, 10:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/15 "2001-05-29T10:13:51Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by Greg Charles in [this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=72285#newpost):_ > > ``` > Yeah, but we haven't started a category for American cities named > after foreign cities ... just foreign countries. There must be hundreds of > examples of the former. Some famous ones: Athens, GA, Paris, TX, > St. Petersburg, FL ... > > ``` There’s an Odessa, Texas, a Versailles (pronounced “Ver- **sales** ”)Indiana, and a London, Ohio. What others do you know of? OK. I’m getting back to work now. ---
**Author:** ![Scribble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scribble/32/3317_2.png) [@Scribble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scribble)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2001, 10:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/16 "2001-05-29T10:15:29Z")
I meant to start a new thread with that last post. Sorry for the hijack. ---
**Author:** ![mongrel\_8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e274bd/32.png) [@mongrel\_8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mongrel_8)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2001, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/17 "2001-05-29T14:13:05Z")
I forgot this one tell I saw it today **Kuwait City, Kuwait**. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2001, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/18 "2001-05-29T14:59:04Z")
How about Lima, Ohio? ---
**Author:** ![Balance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@Balance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balance)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2001, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/19 "2001-05-29T15:50:40Z")
Well, I’ve been through Yazoo City, Mississippi a few times. It’s in Yazoo County, but it’s not the county seat (that being Water Valley). ---
**Author:** ![screech-owl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@screech-owl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/screech-owl)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2001, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754/20 "2001-05-29T18:51:22Z")
**Dade City** is nowhere near Dade County - it’s actually in Pasco County, above Tampa. **De Soto City** is actually in Highlands County, which borders De Soto County. **Lake City** is not in Lake County (central Florida), but Columbia County, bordering Georgia. **Orange City** is actually in Volusia County, notheast of Orange County **Polk City** is actually in Polk County, but it’s not the county seat - Bartow is. **Everglades City** , however, is in the Everglades (but in Collier County, not near Glades County, which in itself is not near the Everglades). [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-named-x-city-that-aren-t-the-capital-of-x/66754.md?page=2)