# Little-known things about your city or state **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 12, 2016, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723 "2016-03-12T06:35:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Wednesday\_Evening](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b2d939/32.png) [@Wednesday\_Evening](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wednesday_Evening)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2016, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/61 "2016-03-17T19:51:28Z")
San Luis Obispo, CA is home to [the world’s first motel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motel_Inn). Some of the buildings are still there. I hear rumors every couple of years about someone coming in and redeveloping the site (keeping the original buildings of course), but nothing has happened yet. ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2016, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/62 "2016-03-17T19:57:50Z")
> [@Dorjan](#): > > Cleveland, OH was the original Motor City - The automotive capital of the world. In the turn of the 20th century there were 80+ automotive makes including luxury marques such as Peerless Motors. The steering wheel, 8 cylinder motor, modern clutch, and starters were all introduced in Cleveland-made automobiles. Even the term “automobile” originated in Cleveland. The first mail truck in the US was a Cleveland-built Winton, as was the first Presidential auto. Cleveland was also the birthplace of the AAA. Many classic automobile marques were made in Indiana. Auburn, Cord (the first mass produced FWD cars in the U.S.), Studebaker, Marmon, Stutz, and Deusenberg were all Indiana makes. ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2016, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/63 "2016-03-17T20:13:21Z")
On the exact same night of the infamous Great Chicago Fire (Oct. 8, 1871) there was a much larger and deadlier fire going on 250 miles to the north. The Peshtigo Fire in Wisconsin destroyed 2,400 square miles compared to Chicago’s 4 and killed between 1,200-2,400 people compared to Chicago’s 250. Mrs. O’Leary’s cow did not take the blame for this one. ---
**Author:** ![stillownedbysetters](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/41988e/32.png) [@stillownedbysetters](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stillownedbysetters)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2016, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/64 "2016-03-17T20:47:52Z")
> [@california\_jobcase](#): > > Many classic automobile marques were made in Indiana. Auburn, Cord (the first mass produced FWD cars in the U.S.), Studebaker, Marmon, Stutz, and Deusenberg were all Indiana makes. If you are a classic car buff of any sort, there is a really high quality museum of early automobiles in Auburn, IN, and they have a festival yearly on Labor Day to which people bring early models from all over the world, beautifully restored, and parade them through the streets of the little town. ---
**Author:** ![Ignotus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ecc23a/32.png) [@Ignotus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ignotus)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2016, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/65 "2016-03-18T00:53:24Z")
I live about six miles from Pluto/Charon in the world’s largest permanent scale [model of the solar system](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweden_Solar_System). I even used to work just 60 feet from it… ---
**Author:** ![jsquire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ce73a5/32.png) [@jsquire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsquire)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2016, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/66 "2016-03-18T01:11:32Z")
I have no idea how well known the [Toledo War](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toledo_War) is outside of Toledo, but there’s that. Toledo sits on the Maumee River at its terminus in Lake Erie, and the river is the largest tributary to the Great Lakes system. Prior to Bernie Sanders, the last independent in Congress was Toledo’s Frazier Reams in 1951-54. The head football coaches at Ohio State and Michigan, Urban Meyer and Jim Harbaugh, were both born in the same hospital in Toledo and just six months apart. My other hometown is Bowling Green, Ohio, an exceedingly pleasant college town but otherwise completely unremarkable. ---
**Author:** ![Flyer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/flyer/32/7298_2.png) [@Flyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flyer)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2016, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/67 "2016-03-18T01:24:49Z")
> [@Pixel\_Dent](#): > > What disqualifies Mill Mountain Zoo in Roanoke, VA from this, admittedly small, club? Because (regardless of the name) there are no mountains east of the Rockies. 🙂 The internet says that Mill Mountain is 1703 feet high. Even if it rose that high above its surroundings, that’s merely a big hill. ---
**Author:** ![WildBlueYonder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ce7236/32.png) [@WildBlueYonder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildBlueYonder)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2016, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/68 "2016-03-18T11:41:10Z")
> [@Flyer](#): > > Because (regardless of the name) there are no mountains east of the Rockies. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2016, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/69 "2016-03-18T12:43:01Z")
Natty Boh, formerly of Baltimore (bought by Pabst and now brewed in NC and GA, though Baltimore still accounts for 90% of its sales), invented the 6-pack. ---
**Author:** ![Totenfeier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4bbf92/32.png) [@Totenfeier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Totenfeier)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2016, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/70 "2016-03-18T12:55:55Z")
My hometown of Roanoke, VA is the only city in the country that has a mountain, Mill Mountain, located entirely within the city limits. It is also one of only two cities in the U.S. (I forget the other) that boasts a huge neon star. Ours is located on the mountain. Reasonably nearby is Lynchburg, VA, which is, AFAIK, still the largest city in the country which is not located on an Interstate highway. ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2016, 10:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/71 "2016-03-19T10:39:09Z")
Victoria, Texas, is the only US city that has a counterpart with the same name in both Canada and Mexico. Only the one in Canada was named after the queen. The ones in US and Mexico were named for Guadalupe Victoria, the first president of Mexico. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2016, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/72 "2016-03-19T12:16:15Z")
WildBlueYonder: Lake Michigan is a huge feature that dominates the geography of a large area. This explains the important Michigan Avenues of Chicago, Milwaukee, and likely other towns and cities near the lake. Further from there, sometimes it’s by chance – for example, the fourth or fifth most important street in the older part of Lawrence, Kansas is a Michigan Avenue, but it’s surrounded by streets named for other states. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2016, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/73 "2016-03-19T13:19:44Z")
New Jersey has the most Diners of any state and is in fact the place of origin for the classic prefab diner. New Jersey grows about 66 percent of the world’s eggplants. [Yes, seriously](http://www.thedailyjournal.com/story/life/2015/07/28/new-jersey-eggplant-capital-world/30800833/), New Jersey. The most densely populated state in the union is called the Garden State for good reason. Oh, I might as well add: The\*\* New York\*\* Giants and **New York** Jets play in New Jersey of course. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2016, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/74 "2016-03-19T16:14:36Z")
> [@jsquire](#): > > Prior to Bernie Sanders, the last independent in Congress was Toledo’s Frazier Reams in 1951-54. Harry Byrd, senator from VA and noted independent during the seventies and early eighties, came in between. I DO know about the Toledo War. Then again, my best friend moved to Toledo when we were about twelve, so maybe I don’t count. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2016, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/75 "2016-03-19T16:21:59Z")
> [@Totenfeier](#): > > Reasonably nearby is Lynchburg, VA, which is, AFAIK, still the largest city in the country which is not located on an Interstate highway. Fresno, CA, is quite a bit bigger (Lynchburg 78,000, Fresno about half a million). From [Fresno, California - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fresno,_California#Highways), “Fresno is the largest U.S. city not directly linked to an interstate highway.” ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2016, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/76 "2016-03-19T17:43:10Z")
We live just outside the metropolis of Saint Paris, Ohio. 😛 One of the [earliest photos of a “UFO”](http://m.anomaly-doctor.org/UFO-PHOTOS-29.html) was taken in Saint Paris, in 1932. The [Lincoln Funeral Train](http://www.hmdb.org/marker.asp?marker=13790) passed through Saint Paris. The Walborn & Riker Company of Saint Paris was a major manufacturer of pony wagons. The [Monitor House](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monitor_House) is located in Saint Paris. ---
**Author:** ![mascaroni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/dc4da7/32.png) [@mascaroni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mascaroni)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2016, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/77 "2016-03-19T17:48:53Z")
> [@Ignotus](#): > > I live about six miles from Pluto/Charon in the world’s largest permanent scale [model of the solar system](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweden_Solar_System). I even used to work just 60 feet from it… I’ve heard of that. Although it doesn’t mention it in the link, is that the one that’s got a representation of Proxima Centuri in an Australian city? ---
**Author:** ![AppallingGael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9bd4f/32.png) [@AppallingGael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AppallingGael)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2016, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/78 "2016-03-20T04:10:43Z")
(Source–a book I read once) Broccoli was introduced to America on Bleecker Street in Greenwich Village. But should that prove false, the cronut was almost surely born on Spring Street in SoHo. ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2016, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/79 "2016-03-20T06:10:20Z")
Morgan Hill, CA - home of the first store in the Nob Hill supermarket chain. The town is named after Hiram Morgan Hill, not after the big, oddly shaped hill that everyone sees and assumes is called “Morgan Hill”. That landmark is actually called “El Toro.” We are known for mushroom farming. Just south of us is the garlic capital of the planet, Gilroy, CA. You haven’t lived until you’re sitting in the backyard of a summer evening, and the wind blows just right - and you smell both the mushroom farms and garlic being dehydrated. (Mushrooms, of course, being famous for being kept in the dark and fed… Well, you get the idea). We’re not the greatest smelling place on earth. ---
**Author:** ![Palo\_Verde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/65b543/32.png) [@Palo\_Verde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Palo_Verde)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2016, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723/80 "2016-03-20T06:59:36Z")
Just outside Tucson, AZ is the southernmost ski destination in the United States. You can be in this hot desert city, and in less than an hour be at over 9,000 feet skiing in the 180 inches of average annual snow. > **[Mount Lemmon Ski Valley](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Lemmon_Ski_Valley)** > > Mount Lemmon Ski Valley is a recreational ski area in the U.S. state of Arizona, and the southernmost ski destination in the continental United States. Mount Lemmon Ski Valley is located on the slopes of Mount Lemmon in the Santa Catalina Mountains just north of Tucson, Arizona. It is part of the Coronado National Forest, located near the mountaintop village of Summerhaven. The summit is 9,157 feet (2,791 m) above sea level, and receives approximately 180 inches (4.6 m) of snow annually. > Winter... [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-known-things-about-your-city-or-state/748723.md?page=5)