# Cities With State Names: Any Others? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 8, 2015, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335 "2015-09-08T14:35:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![mcgato](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac8455/32.png) [@mcgato](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mcgato)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2015, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/81 "2015-09-09T17:50:25Z")
> [@Leo\_Bloom](#): > > But it reminds me of Buena Vista: pronounced Byouna Vista. > > Can’t remember now what state that is. Pretty sure that is Colorado, as my uncle used to live in that town. He may actually have been its mayor for a while too. ---
**Author:** ![5\_time\_champ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/5/278dde/32.png) [@5\_time\_champ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/5_time_champ)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/82 "2015-09-10T01:05:39Z")
Had a room mate in college from Oregon, Illinois. I believe there is a Florida, Missouri. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/83 "2015-09-10T02:49:58Z")
Oh, yeah, Sam Clemens was born in Florida. Not sure if anyone still lives there. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/84 "2015-09-10T03:30:35Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > That’s possible, but by singling out NY, NY as the only example that meets the criteria it would seem unlikely. No harm, no foul. That’s precisely what I was asking, and I don’t get what’s so difficult about the question. And yes, I did read the whole thread first. :mad: > [@Colibri](#): > > As a bit of trivia, although it’s not a US example, the only city I know in which the city name, next highest political unit, and country name are identical is the city of Panama, in the province of Panama, in the Republic of Panama. (The name of the city is actually just “Panama,” rather than Ciudad Panama or other variant.) Interesting. There’s also [Luxembourg, Luxembourg](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luxembourg_%28city%29) and [Quebec, Quebec.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quebec,_Quebec) Plus I just found out the Brazilian cities of [Rio de Janeiro](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rio_de_Janeiro_%28state%29) and [São Paulo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sao_Paulo_State) are in states that share the same name. But as for American states, it would seem that New York, NY is unique (leaving aside cities that end with “City” or “Springs”, etc.) – as a bonus, it shares a county name, too!! ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/85 "2015-09-10T03:45:22Z")
> [@buddha\_david](#): > > Interesting. There’s also [Luxembourg, Luxembourg](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luxembourg_%28city%29) and [Quebec, Quebec.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quebec,_Quebec) Plus I just found out the Brazilian cities of [Rio de Janeiro](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rio_de_Janeiro_%28state%29) and [São Paulo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sao_Paulo_State) are in states that share the same name. There are, I’m sure, quite a few examples in other countries. In Panama, besides Panama City there are eponymous cities or towns in the provinces of Bocas del Toro, Chiriqui, Cocle, Los Santos, and Colon. Likewise the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Tlaxcala, San Luis Potosi, Aguascalientes, Campeche, Colima, Durango, Oaxaca, Puebla, Queretaro, Guanajuato, and Zacatecas. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/86 "2015-09-10T04:40:43Z")
> [@Bullitt](#): > > 27 states without a city / town named after them? In **dtilque** ’s article (here: [http://digitalcommons.butler.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4358&context=wordways](http://digitalcommons.butler.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4358&context=wordways)) he says there are six such states: This discrepancy can be explained by the liberalness of how I counted places as well as a wider range of sources. Basically any place that at any time had the name of a state was included. This meant places that no longer exist were counted if I could find some reference with them. And I checked references going back over 100 years. Also some places have changed their names over the years. If they used to be named the same as a state, I counted them. An example of this that I remember is Appomattox, VA. In between being Appomattox Court House and just plain Appomattox (current name) it was known as Nebraska. So it got counted. One source of rare state names was Indian Territory, now known as Oklahoma. Some states have the same name as Indian tribes. If a tribe was relocated there, there was often a place with the name of the tribe, which I expect was where the Indian Agent for that tribe was located. There were, I believe, at least 3 such places for my list, perhaps more. The only one I can remember for sure was Illinois. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/87 "2015-09-10T04:51:46Z")
Did anyone mention Ontario Oregon? There also appears to be an Alberta Virginia. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/88 "2015-09-10T05:54:02Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > There are, I’m sure, quite a few examples in other countries. In Panama, besides Panama City there are eponymous cities or towns in the provinces of Bocas del Toro, Chiriqui, Cocle, Los Santos, and Colon. Likewise the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Tlaxcala, San Luis Potosi, Aguascalientes, Campeche, Colima, Durango, Oaxaca, Puebla, Queretaro, Guanajuato, and Zacatecas. Interesting. I see the same is true for [Spanish provinces](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Provinces_of_spain) (but not France or Germany). Didn’t we recently discuss how states/provinces of other countries are more analogous to counties within U.S. states? Because many, many state counties have cities with the same name. ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/89 "2015-09-10T06:20:58Z")
A bit of a cheat, but it’s also a three-fer: Texarkana ---
**Author:** ![jimbuff314](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c57346/32.png) [@jimbuff314](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jimbuff314)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/90 "2015-09-10T06:40:22Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > […] One source of rare state names was Indian Territory, now known as Oklahoma. Some states have the same name as Indian tribes. If a tribe was relocated there, there was often a place with the name of the tribe, which I expect was where the Indian Agent for that tribe was located. There were, I believe, at least 3 such places for my list, perhaps more. The only one I can remember for sure was Illinois. There is a Delaware in OK. We (the Delaware) purchased land in Indian Territory in the 1860s from the Cherokee and relocated from the Lawrence, KS area (Kansas became a territory in the 1850s). The tiny town of Delaware formed when a railroad was put through in the 1890s. About 10 miles away, also on the railroad line another small community formed, named Lenapah. Our name for ourselves in our language is Lenape. So, 2 towns, 10 miles apart, named after the same tribe of people in 2 different languages. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 8:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/91 "2015-09-10T08:09:12Z")
> [@jimbuff314](#): > > There is a Delaware in OK. We (the Delaware) purchased land in Indian Territory in the 1860s from the Cherokee and relocated from the Lawrence, KS area (Kansas became a territory in the 1850s). The tiny town of Delaware formed when a railroad was put through in the 1890s. About 10 miles away, also on the railroad line another small community formed, named Lenapah. Our name for ourselves in our language is Lenape. So, 2 towns, 10 miles apart, named after the same tribe of people in 2 different languages. OK, that kind of thing could explain the Indian-state names there. The Indian Agent thing was just a guess on my part and is probably wrong. I think another one was Arkansas, but could be wrong about that. I still have the data I collected for that article, but it’s on an old computer. That computer will output things on floppy disks, but my current computers don’t read those. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/92 "2015-09-10T10:27:52Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > If you’re just looking for a list, go to Wikipedia, type in the state name and go to disambiguation. Good tip, thanks. As I work alphabetically through the 50 states I’m now at Iowa and – _HOLY COW!_ – there’s a whole bunch of them! ‘Iowa Township’ has its own Disambiguation page: > **[Iowa Township](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iowa_Township_(disambiguation))** > > Iowa Township may refer to: There are Iowa Townships in six different states, but what’s curious is that in four states there are duplicate Iowa Townships. Iowa alone has ten of them! Iowa Township, Allamakee County, Iowa Iowa Township, Benton County, Iowa Iowa Township, Cedar County, Iowa Iowa Township, Crawford County, Iowa Iowa Township, Dubuque County, Iowa Iowa Township, Iowa County, Iowa Iowa Township, Jackson County, Iowa Iowa Township, Marshall County, Iowa Iowa Township, Washington County, Iowa Iowa Township, Wright County, Iowa Iowa Township, Doniphan County, Kansas Iowa Township, Sherman County, Kansas Iowa Township, Holt County, Nebraska Iowa Township, Benson County, North Dakota Iowa Township, Lincoln County, Oklahoma Iowa Township, Logan County, Oklahoma Iowa Township, Beadle County, South Dakota Iowa Township, Douglas County, South Dakota ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 10:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/93 "2015-09-10T10:44:09Z")
> [@Tangent](#): > > A bit of a cheat, but it’s also a three-fer: Texarkana I’ve gotta draw the line somewhere, and I’m voting Texarkana off the island. It has to be, or include, exact state names, verbatim. York or Jersey doesn’t count - the New is missing. Jersey City? Belongs with Texarkana, off the island. Also it has to be city or town (or burg, hamlet, unincorporated communitie, census designated place, or similar). It cannot be a county or parish or lake or river, or province or country. That’s pretty much the legalese of it. Did I miss anything, or is that in any way ambiguous? ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 11:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/94 "2015-09-10T11:04:33Z")
> [@Bullitt](#): > > Good tip, thanks. As I work alphabetically through the 50 states I’m now at Iowa and – _HOLY COW!_ – there’s a whole bunch of them! ‘Iowa Township’ has its own Disambiguation page: > [Iowa Township - Wikipedia](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iowa_Township_(disambiguation)) Well, you can count them if you want; it’s your list. But generally townships are not considered to be in the same category as cities, towns and villages. Except in east coast states, a township is a 6x6 collection of sections, where a section is a one square mile of surveyed land. They may have names and may even have some form of government, but generally they’re considered more rural than urban. The east coast has different definitions, but for the most part they are still not considered to be in the same category as towns. (Someone will probably come along and contest this (they usually do), but from every thing I’ve read, this is the way things are.) At any rate, I didn’t count any townships for my article. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/95 "2015-09-10T11:25:28Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > Well, you can count them if you want; it’s your list. But generally townships are not considered to be in the same category as cities, towns and villages. Except in east coast states, a township is a 6x6 collection of sections, where a section is a one square mile of surveyed land. They may have names and may even have some form of government, but generally they’re considered more rural than urban. The east coast has different definitions, but for the most part they are still not considered to be in the same category as towns. (Someone will probably come along and contest this (they usually do), but from every thing I’ve read, this is the way things are.) > > At any rate, I didn’t count any townships for my article. Hmm, interesting, I may not count them after all. Haven’t decided yet. For now I’ll collect them. Changing subjects, I found Missouri Key, FL. It’s a small island, one of the keys. Nobody lives there so I’m not counting it. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/96 "2015-09-10T11:52:42Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > But generally townships are not considered to be in the same category as cities, towns and villages. Studying this for all of six minutes, there are civil townships and survey townships. The township of Upper Darby, PA has some 80,000 people. And yet some of those Iowa Townships are probably sparsely populated. I’m to Missouri now and I’ve found these: Missouri City, a city in Clay County, Missouri, United States Missouri City, Texas, a suburb of Houston Missouri Township, Nevada County, Arkansas Missouri Township, Pike County, Arkansas Missouri Township, Brown County, Illinois Missouri Township, Boone County, Missouri Missouri Township, Burleigh County, North Dakota Missouri Triangle, Kern County, California For completeness I’ll count townships, but I might have to go back and visit all the Wikipedia pages for all townships. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/97 "2015-09-10T21:04:13Z")
See, the problem with Missouri, Ohio, Mississippi, Michigan, Delaware, Colorado, etc, is you get names like Missouri Valley Iowa, which does not really qualify as the state name as such, since it refers to the river. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/98 "2015-09-10T21:18:29Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > Concerning Hawaii: There is an older form of the name “Owyhee” which is the name of a [river](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Owyhee_River) in SE Oregon and a bit in Nevada and Idaho. From that, counties in Oregon and Idaho take their name. And … > > a [town](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Owyhee,_Nevada) in Nevada! Oops. There’s only one Owyhee county. The one in Idaho. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/99 "2015-09-10T22:16:06Z")
> [@Bullitt](#): > > Did I miss anything, or is that in any way ambiguous? What about street names? For instance, there’s a Los Angeles Ave. in Ventura, and a Ventura Blvd. in Los Angeles. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Ignatz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/3be4f8/32.png) [@Ignatz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ignatz)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2015, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335/100 "2015-09-10T23:52:52Z")
Florida, Massachusetts Vertical: https://maps.google.com/maps?ll=42.6667739,-73.0055126&z=15&output=embed&dg=ntvb Horizontal (I have a photo of me beside this sign-not included here) haven’t scanned it yet): https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=%213m2%212sen%214v0%216m8%211m7%211sOkWyGKkOLefz2tGD4tXMcw%212m2%211d42.6336074%212d-72.97418%213f233.11%214f9.092%215f0.253 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cities-with-state-names-any-others/730335.md?page=6)