# Largest U.S. city you don't know the location of **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 28, 2013, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468 "2013-10-28T18:12:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![installLSC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/54ee81/32.png) [@installLSC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/installLSC)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/1 "2013-10-28T18:12:12Z")
It’s very common for news reports to include the state a city is located in so people unaware of its location. I swear I’ve even seen reports for “Chicago, Illinois”. What’s the largest city you wouldn’t instantly know what state it is located in? Checking [this list](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_cities_by_population), Mesa is the largest I wouldn’t know. (Living in the Northwest, I instantly assume any story with “Portland” involves the city in Oregon). What’s yours? ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/2 "2013-10-28T18:26:07Z")
I made it as far as #97 (Gilbert). I’m pretty sure I never heard of the place before. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/3 "2013-10-28T18:33:53Z")
Are we talking about not knowing what state it’s in, or what general area it’s in? I know San Jose is near San Francisco, and I’m pretty sure it’s south of it - but I’m not absolutely sure - like I know where places like New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, etc. are. Same with Dallas and Austin - they’re both generally in the middle of Texas, but I’d probably be off by several hundred miles if I had to pin the city on the state. If it’s not knowing what state, it’s Stockton (according to your list). ---
**Author:** ![awldune](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c77e96/32.png) [@awldune](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/awldune)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/4 "2013-10-28T18:35:50Z")
I expect that Mesa will be the answer for most people. Apparently it’s a suburb of Phoenix? That said, I would probably have guessed correctly if asked to guess what state Mesa is in. After that I can get to #71 Henderson NV. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/5 "2013-10-28T18:36:02Z")
I was down around the 190s and still pretty sure of most. Some are tricky, like Springfield (a quiz would have to accept any correct state), Aurora (Colorado/Illinois) and Elk Grove (CA/IL). Completely cold, I probably would have stumbled on a few in the 170-180 range. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/6 "2013-10-28T18:37:48Z")
I made it down to Long Beach. I had never heard of that city in California before. Very close to Mesa on that list. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/7 "2013-10-28T18:37:55Z")
> [@installLSC](#): > > … Mesa is the largest I wouldn’t know Your stumble-city was the very same stumble-city of OP [the last time this exact topic came up.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=553959) ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Kobayashi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4af34b/32.png) [@Mr.Kobayashi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Kobayashi)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/8 "2013-10-28T18:43:11Z")
Wouldn’t know Louisville was in Kentucky. I’d just about know it was in the US as I’ve heard of the ‘Louisville slugger’ baseball bat. Beyond Anaheim I get a bit sketchy. How do you even pronounce ‘Hialeah’? ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/9 "2013-10-28T18:50:09Z")
Mesa. Second was Riverside (#59). ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/10 "2013-10-28T19:14:59Z")
The first city on the list that I couldn’t confidently put my finger pretty much spot on confidently on an outline map of the US is 39 Virginia Beach. I know it’s in VA, and on the coast, but I don’t know if the mainland or the Virginia peninsula. The first I did not know the state for was 71 Henderson. ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/11 "2013-10-28T19:16:43Z")
> [@Mr.Kobayashi](#): > > Wouldn’t know Louisville was in Kentucky. I’d just about know it was in the US as I’ve heard of the ‘Louisville slugger’ baseball bat. > > Beyond Anaheim I get a bit sketchy. How do you even pronounce ‘Hialeah’? I’ve heard both High A Lay A and High A Lee A, I think the latter more commonly. ---
**Author:** ![Deegeea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Deegeea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Deegeea)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/12 "2013-10-28T19:18:33Z")
Jacksonville (#12) for me, there are a lot of Jacksonville cities and I wouldn’t be sure which one was intended. I’d even have to think for a while about San Antonio (#7) and San Jose (#10), might have got them wrong. So - I guess I flunk that geography quiz 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/13 "2013-10-28T19:21:43Z")
I’m a bit surprised by Mesa, but maybe that’s because I grew up a Cubs fan, and the spring training games were down in Mesa. For me, it was #58, Aurora, CO. But it depends on how much “slop” you’re allowing. There’s a few, like Jacksonville, that I didn’t quite place correctly in their respective state. Aurora I would have placed more-or-less right, but only at a guess. I had never heard of it before, that I know of. ---
**Author:** ![Moonlitherial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@Moonlitherial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonlitherial)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/14 "2013-10-28T19:22:12Z")
Damn I thought I’d do better - I got stuck on Aurora and it wasn’t as much of an outlier as I would like. There are two more in the next 10 that I’d fail on too - Riverside and Stockton. ---
**Author:** ![Kyrie\_Eleison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kyrie_eleison/32/7682_2.png) [@Kyrie\_Eleison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyrie_Eleison)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/15 "2013-10-28T19:26:06Z")
#71 Henderson for me. Were it not for a certain airing of “The Dark Knight Rises,” though, it might have been Aurora. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/16 "2013-10-28T19:28:47Z")
Chandler AZ was the first to throw me. Some of the others might get me in the wrong state based on smaller cities with the same name. ---
**Author:** ![Gordon\_Urquhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/db5fbb/32.png) [@Gordon\_Urquhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gordon_Urquhart)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/17 "2013-10-28T19:31:38Z")
I’m fairly positive I’ve never heard of Hialeah, FL (#88), and would have said that it was in Hawaii anyway. The next one that tripped me up was Lancaster, CA (#161), which I would have said was in Pennsylvania (that location has 60k residents). ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/18 "2013-10-28T19:34:27Z")
#57 Santa Ana (NOT in Texas - maybe I’m confusing it with San Antonio). I think the only reason I know Mesa is because of the previous thread on this topic. ---
**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:** [October 28, 2013, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/19 "2013-10-28T20:00:43Z")
I cleared the top 100 except for Arlington, TX (#50), Plano, TX (#70), Durham, NC (#83), Garland, TX (#86) and Irving, TX (#93). Bah, Texas shouldn’t be a state anyway. 🆒 It helps having lived in places like California, Arizona, New York and Florida – otherwise I would’ve done much worse. ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468/20 "2013-10-28T20:29:59Z")
Eh, these make me kinda cranky. Because most all large metropolitan areas are made up of many individual cities, some with very large populations. But to the general public, they are not distinct from their surroundings. Everyone knows where Phoenix is, but most people don’t know that it is contiguous with Glendale, and Scottsdale, and Mesa, and Chandler. It’s the same with Los Angeles, with Pasadena, and Glendale, and Burbank, and all of the cities going south and east. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-u-s-city-you-dont-know-the-location-of/672468.md?page=2)