# Interesting Subdivision Street Name Themes **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 28, 2009, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256 "2009-11-28T17:54:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harriet_the_Spry)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/41 "2009-11-29T18:49:04Z")
To give Minnesota credit where it’s due, Minneapolis frequently names its streets in alphabetical order. Since the streets are on a grid, this is very helpful for navigation, unlike the mess out in the 'burbs: [The ABCs Of Minneapolis Streets](http://www.johnweeks.com/highway/citysigns-abc/index.html) As a kid growing up, I thought this was the norm - streets on a grid with a rational naming scheme. LOL. ---
**Author:** ![\_Undecided\_Adrian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/_/eada6e/32.png) [@\_Undecided\_Adrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/_Undecided_Adrian)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/42 "2009-11-29T18:58:34Z")
In Germany you don’t get names that fanciful, but in some areas the streets are named after flowers, for example. In my class there were two girls with the exact same name. The short one lived in Violet Way and the tall one in Gladiola Way, so we called them (Name) Violet and (Name) Gladiola, even some of the teachers. Our German teacher didn’t know where they lived, however, and was terribly impressed by how poetic we were being… ---
**Author:** ![Flip\_Pancake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f1d935/32.png) [@Flip\_Pancake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flip_Pancake)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/43 "2009-11-29T19:02:38Z")
Growing up in Singapore I lived near a place called [**Opera Estate**](http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=opera+estate+singapore&sll=1.318307,103.928647&sspn=0.010619,0.01929&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Opera+Estate+Primary+School,+Bedok,+Singapore&ll=1.318222,103.927188&spn=0.01137,0.01929&z=16). ---
**Author:** ![It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/it_s_not_rocket_surgery/32/312_2.png) [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/It_s_Not_Rocket_Surgery)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/44 "2009-11-29T19:51:22Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > Would any of you let street name dictate where you will or won’t buy a house? > > I honestly cannot see myself wanting to live on Miss Muffet Lane…ever. Now, Crusher or Picard - definitely. And I’m not even a Trekkie! 😃 There were some interesting road names in New Hampshire, home of the overly honest: Dump Road, Poverty Plains Road (some homeowners just called it Plains Road). When we were looking for houses up there, my wife refused to look at any houses on Church Road (we’re Jewish). ---
**Author:** ![tumbleddown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@tumbleddown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tumbleddown)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/45 "2009-11-29T20:01:19Z")
> [@chappachula](#): > > Anybody for the Robin Hood legend? There’s a Robin Hood themed subdivision in a moneyed suburb south of Pittsburgh called Peters Township. I would be very wary of living in a ~$1 million, 3,000 sq. ft. home on a street that reminds people of a guy who stole from the rich. One of my favorite subdivisions is Boxer Heights, [where all the streets are dog names.](http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Boxer+Drive+Bethel+Park+PA+15102&sll=40.301054,-80.03512&sspn=0.015939,0.037422&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Boxer+Dr,+Bethel+Park,+Allegheny,+Pennsylvania+15102&ll=40.300525,-80.034606&spn=0.00797,0.018711&t=h&z=16) I’ve had friends who lived on Cairn, Airedale and Beagle, and friends who moved from Fox Terrier to Maid Marian in the aforementioned Robin Hood subdivision when they got a sizable inheritance and wanted to move up in the world. ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Onimous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ea5d25/32.png) [@Ann\_Onimous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Onimous)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/46 "2009-11-29T20:24:21Z")
> [@NinetyWt](#): > > We have a [bunch of Queens](http://maps.google.com/maps?q=32.338817,-90.266075&num=1&t=h&sll=32.43257,-90.085028&sspn=0.006295,0.006295&hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=32.339288,-90.262878&spn=0.00863,0.012038&z=16). > > Here’s some [native American named streets](http://maps.google.com/maps?q=32.338817,-90.266075&num=1&t=h&sll=32.43257,-90.085028&sspn=0.006295,0.006295&hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=32.362128,-90.316501&spn=0.008627,0.02017&z=16). I think that’s called Indian Trails. > > This one has a [Christian theme.](http://maps.google.com/maps?q=32.338817,-90.266075&num=1&t=h&sll=32.43257,-90.085028&sspn=0.006295,0.006295&hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=32.299458,-89.985194&spn=0.004317,0.010085&z=17) That’s Cornerstone Subdivision. How about [Presidential Hills](http://maps.google.com/maps?q=32.338817,-90.266075&num=1&t=h&sll=32.43257,-90.085028&sspn=0.006295,0.006295&hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=32.362128,-90.316501&spn=0.008627,0.02017&z=16)? And at the centerpiece of Indian Trails: Arrow Drive. Home of the Mighty Arrows. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/47 "2009-11-29T20:24:57Z")
> [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](#): > > I’m looking for subdivisions that have interesting themes. I’ve heard there are “Lord Of The Rings” themes, for example. In Doperville, of course. Check out the [street names in Prospect New Town](http://maps.google.com/maps?q=longmont+colorado&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=Longmont,+CO&gl=us&ei=NdYSS4iNEsqYlAfIn4GeBA&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=image&resnum=1&ved=0CBQQ8gEwAA), a New Urbanism subdivison in Longmont, Colorado. Urban planners occasionally speak of “developer’s daughers subdivisons” - small developments in semi-rural areas where all the streets are named after the developer’s female family members, Usually, developer’s daugheters subdivisions have names that sound “country”: “Tammi Lu Drive”, “Kristi Lynn Lane”, “Tiffani Circle”, and so on. Developer’s daughters subdivisons are a very old phenomenon. There’s a 1920s-era DD development in Buffalo, New York, with a series of streets locals call “the old ladies” because … well, they’re all old lady names. Millicent, Phyllis, Ethel, Phyllis, Martha, Gail, and Kay. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/48 "2009-11-29T20:32:50Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > Would any of you let street name dictate where you will or won’t buy a house? Absolutely. I wouldn’t buy on a street with a kountry kitschy developer’s daughter name, an unpleasant or difficult-to-spell ethnic name (very common in Rust Belt cities), a long memorial name, or, even though I’m not homophobic, any of the Gay Streets that were common in the 1920s through the 1950s. The most “subdivision-ish” street name I’ve ever lived on was “Majestic Ridge”. Otherwise, it’s been boring names; Quitman, Bernadino, Edsal, Dill, A.W. Grimes, and the like. ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Onimous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ea5d25/32.png) [@Ann\_Onimous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Onimous)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/49 "2009-11-29T20:33:56Z")
> [@elmwood](#): > > Check out the [street names in Prospect New Town](http://maps.google.com/maps?q=longmont+colorado&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=Longmont,+CO&gl=us&ei=NdYSS4iNEsqYlAfIn4GeBA&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=image&resnum=1&ved=0CBQQ8gEwAA), a New Urbanism subdivison in Longmont, Colorado. Yike! First time I’ve ever seen an intersection of Gay Street and Hygiene Road. What exactly are they trying to say here? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Onimous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ea5d25/32.png) [@Ann\_Onimous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Onimous)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/50 "2009-11-29T20:39:36Z")
> [@Juliana](#): > > How about [Presidential Hills](http://maps.google.com/maps?q=32.338817,-90.266075&num=1&t=h&sll=32.43257,-90.085028&sspn=0.006295,0.006295&hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=32.362128,-90.316501&spn=0.008627,0.02017&z=16)? > > And at the centerpiece of Indian Trails: Arrow Drive. Home of the Mighty Arrows. 😃 Wrong link. Let me try this again. [Presidential Hills.](http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Presidential+Hills,+MS&sll=32.360261,-90.314677&sspn=0.008211,0.013754&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Presidential+Hills,+Hinds,+Mississippi&t=h&z=14) ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/51 "2009-11-29T20:44:03Z")
I forgot about [this subdivision](http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&hs=k2q&q=ammunition+drive,+austin+texas&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=Ammunition+Dr,+Austin,+TX+78748&gl=us&ei=AtwSS4LSJNPNlAfRtpyxAg&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=image&resnum=1&ved=0CAkQ8gEwAA) in Austin, Texas with some very un-Austin-ish names. I don’t own a gun, but I would so live on [Ammunition Drive](http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&hs=k2q&q=ammunition+drive,+austin+texas&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=Ammunition+Dr,+Austin,+TX+78748&gl=us&ei=AtwSS4LSJNPNlAfRtpyxAg&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=image&resnum=1&ved=0CAkQ8gEwAA). ---
**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:** [November 29, 2009, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/52 "2009-11-29T20:52:44Z")
On Montreal’s South Shore, there are entire (large) subdivisions where all the streets start with the same letter. People will speak of living in the P’s, the M’s or whatever. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/53 "2009-11-29T21:04:41Z")
Nobody has mentioned Columbia Maryland? A planned community of several neighborhoods, it includes an area themed with Hobbit?Lord of the Rings names. In Washington DC, everyone knows the streets are named alphabetically (A B C streets, omitting J of course). After that, we have named streets. But the named streets (with some exceptions) are in order too. The innermost streets are one-syllable, then 26 streets with two syllables, then 26 streets in order with three syllables. Finally in Northwest (only) we have some four-syllabled street names. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/54 "2009-11-29T21:38:03Z")
> [@janeslogin](#): > > My favorite was an area outside some city that was about to be incorporated against the owners wishes so they named all the streets with name like “Keepa Way”, “Goa Way”, “Staya Way” etc. I was in Nevada when I heard about it but I don’t remember where the situation was nor did I ever lean if they were allowed to keep their names. There are a number of areas scattered throughout northern Toronto that must all have been developed by the same developer. And that developer must have drunk a similar brand of koolaid. Near Leslie and Sheppard, we have [a cluster of streets that end in ‘Shepway’](http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Toronto,+ON&sll=49.891235,-97.15369&sspn=49.064754,62.753906&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Toronto,+Toronto+Division,+Ontario&ll=43.77269,-79.362606&spn=0.006663,0.00766&t=h&z=17), such as 'Tyson Shepway". Just up Leslie street, there are streets [ending in ‘Willoway’ and ‘Villaway’](http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Toronto,+ON&sll=49.891235,-97.15369&sspn=49.064754,62.753906&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Toronto,+Toronto+Division,+Ontario&ll=43.777725,-79.364666&spn=0.006662,0.00766&t=h&z=17): Black Willoway and Adra Villaway. Near Steeles and Don Mills, there are streets [ending in Wrenway, Sageway and Mossway](http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Toronto,+ON&sll=49.891235,-97.15369&sspn=49.064754,62.753906&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Toronto,+Toronto+Division,+Ontario&ll=43.809029,-79.365653&spn=0.006659,0.00766&t=h&z=17): Jenny Wrenway, Purple Sageway, and Rock Mossway. As well as a Water Wheelway. These streets are shown a little inconsistently in Google Maps, but trust me… the ‘way’ part is joined to the last worn of the name. We also have several sectors of [alphabetical names](http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Toronto,+ON&sll=49.891235,-97.15369&sspn=49.064754,62.753906&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Toronto,+Toronto+Division,+Ontario&ll=43.71845,-79.706326&spn=0.026674,0.030642&t=h&z=15) in Bramalea. For a time, I lived in the F section. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/55 "2009-11-29T21:49:02Z")
The neighborhood where I grew up was full of tree names: Oak, Red Oak, Pin Oak, Willow Oak, Water Oak, Redwood… I lived on Amuskai. No idea how it got in there, nor do I know what it means. If you google it, the only results are my childhood street. Weird. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/56 "2009-11-29T22:19:05Z")
> [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](#): > > In Washington DC, everyone knows the streets are named alphabetically (A B C streets, omitting J of course). I wasn’t aware of this and looked up the reason. Interesting! There also are no X, Y, or Z streets. From Wiki: > [@](#): > > There is no J Street in any quadrant; they were omitted due to fears over confusion between the letters I and J.[6] (In a nod to this, the food court at The George Washington University is named J Street; J Street is also the name of a Jewish lobbying organization.) There is a legend that J Street was omitted as a deliberate slight to John Jay, but this is not true.[7] North of the Mall, the road that was once B Street NE and NW is now named Constitution Avenue; south of the Mall, the corresponding street is named Independence Avenue. There are also no X, Y, or Z streets. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/57 "2009-11-29T22:24:20Z")
Someone posted a link to an area where all of the streets were named almost the same thing - it was something like (but not exactly) Almond road, Almond close, Almond hill, Almond Rise, Almond Tree Road, Almond Blossom Road, etc. - a real postal misdelivery nightmare. I can’t remember enough of the details to be able to find the thread or link though. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/58 "2009-11-29T22:58:47Z")
My usual take on this is that subdivisions are generally named for what isn’t there any more. Deer Run Meadows - no deer, running or otherwise, and no meadow. Tall Pines – not a one to be seen. Ocean Vista - well, the ocean may still be there, but the vista? Not so much. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/59 "2009-11-29T22:59:38Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Someone posted a link to an area where all of the streets were named almost the same thing - it was something like (but not exactly) Almond road, Almond close, Almond hill, Almond Rise, Almond Tree Road, Almond Blossom Road, etc. - a real postal misdelivery nightmare. Although it’s not one subdivision, the Atlanta area is infamous for it’s hundreds of Peachtree Streets and variants scattered around the metro area. Houston has a lot of subdivisions where all the streets will include a certain word; e.g. every street name in a subdivision with 30 or more streets will include “ridge”, “meadow”, “Preston” and so on. ---
**Author:** ![pipperroo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7feea3/32.png) [@pipperroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pipperroo)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2009, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256/60 "2009-11-29T23:11:10Z")
> [@elmwood](#): > > Although it’s not one subdivision, the Atlanta area is infamous for it’s hundreds of Peachtree Streets and variants scattered around the metro area. > > Houston has a lot of subdivisions where all the streets will include a certain word; e.g. every street name in a subdivision with 30 or more streets will include “ridge”, “meadow”, “Preston” and so on. I remember one area near Houston where everything had Sage in the street name. Very confusing to navigate [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-subdivision-street-name-themes/519256.md?page=4)