# What Are Some American Cities With Names That Actually Man Something In English? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 22, 2019, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-american-cities-with-names-that-actually-man-something-in-english/830028 "2019-02-22T16:22:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-american-cities-with-names-that-actually-man-something-in-english/830028/101 "2019-02-25T21:46:53Z")
Michigan has Paradise and Climax, but nowhere near each other. I always thought it would make for some great stories “Kids, I was twenty when I first came to Climax.” ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2019, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-american-cities-with-names-that-actually-man-something-in-english/830028/102 "2019-02-26T00:31:39Z")
> [@Sangahyando](#): > > A very long time ago, a lad who came from Buffalo advanced the theory to me, that the name originated – at however many removes – with the French doing their stuff in the area, centuries ago. Linguistically, though, extremely bad French, viz. _Beau Fleur_ – Beautiful Flower (sic.). Others, who I feel were likely in a position to know, have poured scorn on this idea. The name origin may be “beau fleuve” rather than “beau fleur”: “The claim that the name is an Anglicized form of the name _ **Beau Fleuve** _ (beautiful river), which was supposedly an exclamation uttered by Louis Hennepin when he first saw the stream, is a likely explanation” > **[Buffalo River (New York) | Origin of the name](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buffalo_River_(New_York)#Origin_of_the_name)** > > It is believed that the city of Buffalo was named after Buffalo Creek. There are several unsourced theories for the origin of the creek's name. Early French and Moravian explorers reported the abundance of buffalo (meaning American bison) on the south shore of Lake Erie, but their presence on the banks of Buffalo Creek is still a matter of debate. The origin of the name of the creek is still uncertain. Neither the Seneca name (Te-osah-wa, "Place of the Basswoods") or the French name ("R ---
**Author:** ![Sangahyando](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f14d63/32.png) [@Sangahyando](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sangahyando)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2019, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-american-cities-with-names-that-actually-man-something-in-english/830028/103 "2019-02-26T02:42:24Z")
> [@gkster](#): > > The name origin may be “beau fleuve” rather than “beau fleur”: > “The claim that the name is an Anglicized form of the name _ **Beau Fleuve** _ (beautiful river), which was supposedly an exclamation uttered by Louis Hennepin when he first saw the stream, is a likely explanation” > [Buffalo River (New York) - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buffalo_River_(New_York)#Origin_of_the_name) Thanks – seems considerably more believable than the “fleur” option. On reflection – I was very young and naive when I had the conversation to which I referred: it might be that the guy was talking about “fleuve”, not “fleur”, and I misconstrued. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2019, 11:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-american-cities-with-names-that-actually-man-something-in-english/830028/104 "2019-02-26T11:30:34Z")
Bend, Grand Rapids, ~ Falls Offhand, that gives me Oregon, Michigan, and South Dakota (Sioux Falls) Also Snowflake Az ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2019, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-american-cities-with-names-that-actually-man-something-in-english/830028/105 "2019-02-27T02:33:46Z")
> [@Sangahyando](#): > > Thanks – seems considerably more believable than the “fleur” option. On reflection – I was very young and naive when I had the conversation to which I referred: it might be that the guy was talking about “fleuve”, not “fleur”, and I misconstrued. Ignorance fought–it’s often kids who think they have the answers As for the title question of this thread, while New York State has many Native American names downstate (like Manhattan) and many cities named for classical Greek and Roman towns or people (Syracuse, Troy), it still has its share of English names: Upstate: Auburn Fairport Weedsport Parish Old Forge Watertown Fort Drum Downstate: Middletown Highland Cold Spring White Plains Long Island: Queens (not a city or town on its own, one of NYC’s 5 boroughs, but it has a population of 2.4 million) Floral Park Little Neck Great Neck Garden City Valley Stream Freeport Cold Spring Harbor East Meadow Bay Shore Stony Brook Riverhead Greenport Southold Orient ---
**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:** [February 27, 2019, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-american-cities-with-names-that-actually-man-something-in-english/830028/106 "2019-02-27T05:24:05Z")
> [@gkster](#): > > Fort Drum Although the name does mean something in English, Ft. Drum is named after Lt. Gen. Hugh A. Drum. ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2019, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-american-cities-with-names-that-actually-man-something-in-english/830028/107 "2019-02-27T12:38:36Z")
Both Hell and Paradise, Michigan, have been mentioned, and I’d forgotten about Climax, so I’ll contribute “Bad Axe.” We have “Royal Oak,” which, I suppose is kind of low effort, but not as a low effort as mentioning “St. Clair Shores,” which meaning is obvious in English. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2019, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-american-cities-with-names-that-actually-man-something-in-english/830028/108 "2019-02-27T22:21:12Z")
Here in Indiana, several towns have picturesque names. **Gnaw Bone** leaps out. **Aroma** is north of here, as is **Mexico**. **French Lick** was mentioned about 60 posts ago, and I’ll tell you that Lick Creek runs through it, and it was settled by French fur traders. Right near here is the town of **Lapel** , which was named for the shape of the original streets on a map. Closer yet is a little place called **Hardscrabble**. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2019, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-american-cities-with-names-that-actually-man-something-in-english/830028/109 "2019-02-28T04:54:57Z")
Has Horseheads, NY been mentioned yet? There’s nothing catchy about the name. It wasn’t named after an obscure historical figure and it isn’t some non-English phrase that has an unfortunate sound. The city really was named after a pile of horse heads. ---
**Author:** ![mistymage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mistymage/32/459_2.png) [@mistymage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mistymage)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2019, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-american-cities-with-names-that-actually-man-something-in-english/830028/110 "2019-02-28T14:13:02Z")
Oxford … there are 3 (at least) in Iowa and they have nothing to do with the same city in England. They were built on rivers and the name referred to the fact there was a low enough spot to get across with your wagons drawn by castrated bulls. Ox ford. ---
**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:** [February 28, 2019, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-american-cities-with-names-that-actually-man-something-in-english/830028/111 "2019-02-28T16:33:56Z")
A ways east of Quartzite, take the road that goes northeastward (along which I recall seeing a very large propane take that seemed to belong to “Passmore Gas”), go through a small town there and as you continue up the road, you will see a large, fancy sign that says, verbatim, “_Your Now Beyond Hope_”. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2019, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-american-cities-with-names-that-actually-man-something-in-english/830028/112 "2019-02-28T22:41:38Z")
> [@bordelond](#): > > … > > To make myself useful to the thread at large … > > Studio City, CA > … The story I heard (unverified) is that 20th Century Fox sold off their studio lot to pay the exorbitant expenses run up by the production of Cleopatra, at the time the most expensive film ever made. The resulting real estate development became Studio City, CA. (More aptly Used-to-be-A-Studio City, CA). ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2019, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-american-cities-with-names-that-actually-man-something-in-english/830028/113 "2019-03-01T01:37:20Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Has Horseheads, NY been mentioned yet? > > There’s nothing catchy about the name. It wasn’t named after an obscure historical figure and it isn’t some non-English phrase that has an unfortunate sound. The city really was named after a pile of horse heads. Yikes, I had to look it up, and here’s the Horseheads story: [Horseheads, New York - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horseheads,_New_York#History) Looking at it on the map, I see several towns nearby with names that mean something in English: Painted Post Gang Mills Big Flats Pine Valley Millport Beaver Dams Alpine Southport Greenwood West Union South Hill Candor There’s also Cooper’s Plains but I don’t know whether that’s named for a person with the surname Cooper or if it was named for someone who had that occupation. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2019, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-american-cities-with-names-that-actually-man-something-in-english/830028/114 "2019-03-01T04:36:33Z")
I live in **Port Orchard, WA** There’s also **Port Gamble** and a few other "Port"s, as well as **Friday Harbor** , **Gig Harbor** and **Oak Harbor**. Plenty of other generic city names nearby, like **Maple Valley** , **University Place** , and **Mill Creek**. And tons of "Lake"s including **Bonney Lake** , **Medical Lake** , **Mountlake Terrace** , and my favorite, the indecisively named **Lake Forest Park, WA**. There’s **Federal Way, WA** , which is right up there with **Newport News, VA** for eyebrow raising weirdness. One odd coincidence in Washington is a series of towns in a row along the North Cascades Highway. If you drive east from Sedro-Woolley\* you’ll soon pass through **Concrete** , **Rockport** and **Marblemount** (and **Corkindale** if you need something softer). \*: doesn’t quite fit the category, but sounded out it is “seed-row woolly.” It also sounds like a name of a Muppet character. ---
**Author:** ![Greathouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greathouse/32/2992_2.png) [@Greathouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greathouse)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2019, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-american-cities-with-names-that-actually-man-something-in-english/830028/115 "2019-03-01T21:35:56Z")
Cities in TX that I know of: The Colony Blessing Rose Hill Acres Trophy Club Mineral Wells Grapevine Mesquite Big Springs Big Lake Little Elm Sunset Valley ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2019, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-american-cities-with-names-that-actually-man-something-in-english/830028/116 "2019-03-02T00:44:41Z")
Salt Lake City [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-american-cities-with-names-that-actually-man-something-in-english/830028.md?page=5)