# West 98 1/2 Street? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 13, 2015, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/west-98-1-2-street/737441 "2015-11-13T04:04:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/west-98-1-2-street/737441/41 "2015-11-18T20:09:01Z")
> [@cornflakes](#): > > The avenues in Galveston Tx were originally platted as Avenue A, B, C… up to Avenue M. The next avenue is Avenue M 1/2, then Avenue N, N 1/2, O …and so on until the last one, Avenue U. I’ve heard a claim that this was done because the lots were originally twice as deep as they are now, but looking at a map it’s pretty clear that they had to do this or else they would have run out of letters before reaching the beach side of the island. Not quite- basically the original city was A through M, and 6th through 57th. Anything south of M (toward the Gulf) was then an “out lot” which was more of a suburban thing, and were twice as large. > **[therealgalveston.com](http://www.therealgalveston.com/neighborhoods.html)** > > This domain may be for sale! So Ave N was twice as far from M as M was from L, since the lots in between M and N were out-lots, not normal sized lots. Eventually to even everything out as these out-lots became subdivided more and more, they put “M 1/2” through the middle. You can kind of see it on this map: > **["Schmidt's Garden" and a Boy Named "Quarantine"](http://civilwarmed.blogspot.com/2012/11/schmidts-garden-and-boy-named-quarantine.html)** > > "He was so-named by his father, according to family legend, because he was born In 1867 during the yellow fever epidemic here and the ensuin... About 3 streets south of Broadway, you start seeing the bigger blocks. (in a bit of odd trivia, I’m actually one Frederick Schmidt’s great-great-something grandsons from one of his other sons besides Quarantine ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/west-98-1-2-street/737441/42 "2015-11-18T20:50:07Z")
Interesting about “mother in law house” or “granny house” (neither of which I’ve heard before). Calling what is in almost all respects a separate room–although no doubt the mechanics of the home, let alone the legal definitions may differ–remind me of something I only recently observed at a funeral home in a very Orthodox Jewish neighborhood in Brooklyn. (So presumably it exists in others): In the room where the memorial service is held, the men and women are in separate pews facing the coffin and speakers. Ok, got it. Then I saw angling away and behind, facing us, more or less, a row of chairs and some men looking in through a glass window. These men are Cohens (and I bet you I could guess their names), descendants of the High Priest and potential members of a future appointment to the job, and as such are forbidden to be under the same roof as a corpse. Hence the out-cropped building, which–although religious law in this case need not accede to secular law–probably has a unique legal address and would be a perfect place for a “1/2.” How many wives or husbands have said “Your mother? Not under _my_ roof!”? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/west-98-1-2-street/737441/43 "2015-11-18T21:16:02Z")
Are there any cities in the US which _don’t_ have numbered streets? Here in the UK numbers rather than names are rare because our cities grew gradually rather than being laid out in advance. But surely some older American cities grew that way too? ---
**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:** [November 19, 2015, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/west-98-1-2-street/737441/44 "2015-11-19T00:01:29Z")
> [@aldiboronti](#): > > Are there any cities in the US which _don’t_ have numbered streets? Here in the UK numbers rather than names are rare because our cities grew gradually rather than being laid out in advance. But surely some older American cities grew that way too? From what I can tell, it appears that New Orleans doesn’t have numbered streets. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2015, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/west-98-1-2-street/737441/45 "2015-11-19T00:08:40Z")
> [@aldiboronti](#): > > Are there any cities in the US which _don’t_ have numbered streets? Here in the UK numbers rather than names are rare because our cities grew gradually rather than being laid out in advance. But surely some older American cities grew that way too? You’d think that, having started in the 1600s, that NYC would be an example of this, but in fact it’s the diametrical opposite. It’s the very poster child of numbered streets. I’d be interested to know what the biggest city is that has a Main Street. I believe it must be L.A., but I’m not sure how to verify that. ---
**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:** [November 19, 2015, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/west-98-1-2-street/737441/46 "2015-11-19T01:02:57Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > You’d think that, having started in the 1600s, that NYC would be an example of this, but in fact it’s the diametrical opposite. It’s the very poster child of numbered streets. > > I’d be interested to know what the biggest city is that has a Main Street. I believe it must be L.A., but I’m not sure how to verify that. All five boroughs of New York have a Main Street, [according to this](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Street), with it being an arterial road in Queens. Does that count? ---
**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:** [November 19, 2015, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/west-98-1-2-street/737441/47 "2015-11-19T01:04:51Z")
Mumbai apparently [has a Main Street](https://www.google.com/maps/place/Main+St,+Powai,+Mumbai,+Maharashtra,+India/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x3be7c7eede7901fd:0x24cea821a9350a56?sa=X&ved=0CBsQ8gEwAGoVChMI2qLX4aWbyQIVhloeCh2R-wVT), too. Actually, so does [Manila](https://www.google.com/maps/place/Main+St,+Manila,+Metro+Manila,+Philippines/@14.4672959,121.0145675,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m2!3m1!1s0x3397ce4474a53c3b:0x13ceed2f82865b1f), which is very slightly higher in population, according to at least one source I checked. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2015, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/west-98-1-2-street/737441/48 "2015-11-19T02:40:53Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > All five boroughs of New York have a Main Street, [according to this](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Street), with it being an arterial road in Queens. Does that count? IIRC none of the Boroughs, by itself, is as big as L.A., population-wise, but still I’m mildly astonished to learn of this. Regarding the Main Street in Manhattan, I see it’s on Roosevelt Island, which seems to be stretching a point, even if geographically accurate. ---
**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:** [November 19, 2015, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/west-98-1-2-street/737441/49 "2015-11-19T03:08:01Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > IIRC none of the Boroughs, by itself, is as big as L.A., population-wise, but still I’m mildly astonished to learn of this. > > Regarding the Main Street in Manhattan, I see it’s on Roosevelt Island, which seems to be stretching a point, even if geographically accurate. Is there a reason you wouldn’t count the boroughs? It’s part of New York City. In fact, Queens has more people than Manhattan (but not more than LA proper.) ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Feldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lord_feldon/32/341_2.png) [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2015, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/west-98-1-2-street/737441/50 "2015-11-19T04:30:41Z")
> [@aldiboronti](#): > > Are there any cities in the US which _don’t_ have numbered streets? Here in the UK numbers rather than names are rare because our cities grew gradually rather than being laid out in advance. But surely some older American cities grew that way too? It would be hard to find one that doesn’t have numbered streets _at all_. Lots don’t have an organized grid over the whole city, but still have a neighborhood that was planned in advance and was given numbers. For example, Boston is mostly a crazy quilt but [South Boston](https://goo.gl/maps/NetAPL2K7d22) was built on a grid pattern and has numbered and lettered streets. ---
**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:** [November 19, 2015, 7:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/west-98-1-2-street/737441/51 "2015-11-19T07:19:27Z")
> [@Lord\_Feldon](#): > > It would be hard to find one that doesn’t have numbered streets _at all_. Yeah, I double checked New Orleans, and it looks like there are a handful of streets with numbers in the name (First, Second, Third, and Fourth as far as I can find in New Orleans proper. The suburbs go a bit higher.) ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2015, 8:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/west-98-1-2-street/737441/52 "2015-11-19T08:35:10Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Is there a reason you wouldn’t count the boroughs? It’s part of New York City. In fact, Queens has more people than Manhattan (but not more than LA proper.) Certainly I count the boroughs as part of NYC, but it somehow doesn’t seem quite the same thing in this context. It’s basically the same way in which outlying parts of L.A., especially in the SFV, are legally within the city limits, but they don’t really seem to be _of_ the city. People still use the old city names like Van Nuys, Canoga Park, and Woodland Hills when addressing mail, just as people do with Queens, Brooklyn, etc. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2015, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/west-98-1-2-street/737441/53 "2015-11-19T19:33:56Z")
> [@Lord\_Feldon](#): > > It would be hard to find one that doesn’t have numbered streets _at all_. Lots don’t have an organized grid over the whole city, but still have a neighborhood that was planned in advance and was given numbers. For example, Boston is mostly a crazy quilt but [South Boston](https://goo.gl/maps/NetAPL2K7d22) was built on a grid pattern and has numbered and lettered streets. Pretty sure Houston has never had any sort of organized numbered street system, at least not Houston proper. The Heights does, but that was actually annexed in 1919, after the numbered streets were already in place, so I’m not sure that actually counts. In other words, if you go to 4th street in Houston, you’re at least a couple of miles from the central business district and old part of the city. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/west-98-1-2-street/737441.md?page=2)