# Without looking it up or someone telling you...could you say where Saginaw is? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 10, 2016, 9:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341 "2016-11-10T09:10:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Kropotkin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kropotkin/32/18045_2.png) [@Kropotkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kropotkin)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2016, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/81 "2016-11-17T02:48:51Z")
It’s about 165 miles from Saugatuck. ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2016, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/82 "2016-11-17T03:10:30Z")
> [@Kropotkin](#): > > It’s about 165 miles from Saugatuck. If only there was a common word that rhymes w/ Saugatuck. ---
**Author:** ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2016, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/83 "2016-11-18T02:14:13Z")
I knew it’s in Michigan, but I had the mental picture of it being in the upper peninsula. What surprised me while looking at the Apple map is that Marquette is in Michigan. For some reason I thought it was in Wisconsin. ---
**Author:** ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2016, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/84 "2016-11-18T02:15:58Z")
Never mind, it looks like there is a city of Marquette in the Michigan upper peninsula and a different university in Wisconsin. ---
**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:** [November 18, 2016, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/85 "2016-11-18T02:23:53Z")
Well, I voted before reading the OP, so I was simply _assuming_ that it was Saginaw, Michigan. I’m glad that there’s not some other Saginaw that’s more prominent that I’d not head of. I’m from Michigan. On the other hand, every time I hear “Bay City” (e.g., Bay City Rollers) I automatically assume it’s Michigan, although I’m usually very wrong. ---
**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:** [November 18, 2016, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/86 "2016-11-18T02:58:40Z")
I am not sure how I came to know where Saginaw is, but I have been basically aware of its location for decades. Been to Michigan four or five times more recently, both yooper and regular, but never found a reason to go to or even particularly near there. As far as the song goes, Yes did a version of _America_ that is ten minutes long. That is just disgraceful. A song is as long as it is: trying to bridge up to more than three times its length is all wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2016, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/87 "2016-11-18T03:35:21Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > As far as the song goes, Yes did a version of _America_ that is ten minutes long. That is just disgraceful. A song is as long as it is: trying to bridge up to more than three times its length is all wrong. See, they could have rewritten it about Mackinac and its ACTUAL bridge to lengthen the song while keeping the Saginaw rhymes. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2016, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/88 "2016-11-18T03:53:41Z")
I shoud have no reason to have bothered learning where it is, but somehow I picked it up somewere along the way by the time I made it to college. > [@eschereal](#): > > As far as the song goes, Yes did a version of _America_ that is ten minutes long. That is just disgraceful. It was the early 70s. Things like that happened. ---
**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:** [November 18, 2016, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/89 "2016-11-18T03:56:03Z")
> [@Nawth\_Chucka](#): > > See, they could have rewritten it about Mackinac and its ACTUAL bridge to lengthen the song while keeping the Saginaw rhymes. I have heard that you can get someone to drive you across the bridge. Some people find it too scary to drive themselves. What the hell. It seemed like just another bridge to me – even when the shores on either side were heavily crusted with huge talons of rime. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2016, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/90 "2016-11-18T04:04:46Z")
No. Thought I’d heard of it, but I was wrong about where it was. ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2016, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/91 "2016-11-18T04:10:07Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > I have heard that you can get someone to drive you across the bridge. Some people find it too scary to drive themselves. What the hell. It seemed like just another bridge to me – even when the shores on either side were heavily crusted with huge talons of rime. It’s a paralyzing phobia for some and you don’t want to try and force yourself when getting stuck could mean blocking an I-75 throughway. So one hires a driver and one can lay in their backseat w/ a blanket over their head if they wish while their car is safely conveyed [26,372 feet to/from St Ignace](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8GYJUauWkk). It’s not cheap but neither is the ticket for freaking out and stopping your car on the bridge so you can go fetal. People w/ fear of heights may not enjoy the final minute of the linked video. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2016, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/92 "2016-11-18T04:42:41Z")
From Michigan, so I knew. ---
**Author:** ![Cardigan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardigan/32/187_2.png) [@Cardigan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardigan)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2016, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/93 "2016-11-18T16:00:33Z")
Yep. Was born 30 minutes from Saginaw. ---
**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:** [November 18, 2016, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/94 "2016-11-18T23:58:20Z")
> [@Nawth\_Chucka](#): > > It’s not cheap but neither is the ticket for freaking out and stopping your car on the bridge so you can go fetal. [It’s free](http://www.mackinacbridge.org/about-the-bridge/frequently-asked-questions/). ---
**Author:** ![Sangahyando](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f14d63/32.png) [@Sangahyando](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sangahyando)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2016, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/95 "2016-11-19T11:40:07Z")
> [@Sangahyando](#): > > Brit responding (before reading the rest of the thread): it’s in the state of Michigan – I think, in the more northerly part of that state’s Lower Peninsula, on the shore of Lake Huron. > [@1iLeft](#): > > Yes, very close, but it’s not on Lake Huron, and it’s more in the middle (north and south wise) of the Lower Peninsula and it’s not even on Saginaw Bay which is a bay within Lake Huron between Michigan’s Thumb and the rest of the Lower Peninsula. > [@Sangahyando](#): > > Ah, well, maybe you folks with detailed local knowledge can cut an ignorant Limey a bit of slack… > [@1iLeft](#): > > I thought saying “yes, very close” was more of a complement than a criticism, and then I went on to try and give a little clarity, as I’m familiar with the area. > > Sorry, I did not mean to criticize. No worries – I was trying to be humorous, at which I’m not always very successful ! ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2016, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/96 "2016-11-19T17:16:21Z")
> [@Balthisar](#): > > [It’s free](http://www.mackinacbridge.org/about-the-bridge/frequently-asked-questions/). From the MBA it’s free, yes. You can also hire a paid driver to do it. ---
**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:** [November 19, 2016, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/97 "2016-11-19T22:26:04Z")
> [@Nawth\_Chucka](#): > > From the MBA it’s free, yes. You can also hire a paid driver to do it. Okay, I get that, but… but… _why_? For all this is wholly holy and/or holey, why pay for this service? ---
**Author:** ![MoodIndigo1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e8c25b/32.png) [@MoodIndigo1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MoodIndigo1)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2016, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/98 "2016-11-19T23:07:28Z")
Oddly enough, I knew it right away, but I don’t remember why or from what source I acquired such info. I’m a bit of a trivia buff, but still… Now I have to figure out that mystery. ---
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2016, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/99 "2016-11-19T23:54:57Z")
For some reason, I thought it was in Wisconsin. ---
**Author:** ![glowacks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/glowacks/32/5548_2.png) [@glowacks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glowacks)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2016, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341/100 "2016-11-20T02:03:10Z")
There are many things about Yes’s cover of “America” to not like. If you’re a fan of Yes, the fact it’s 10 minutes long is not one of them. And if you’re not a fan of them, you’re probably not going to like the song regardless, since it’s much like the rest of their songs - a bunch of musical interludes with a few lines of lyrics every here and there. What I don’t like about it is that Jon Anderson pronounces Michigan wrong. I mean, did they not even listen to S&G’s version? Did they think that Americans pronouncing an American place-name were incorrect? (It’s also missing a line from the original. How did they not have room for it, but room for a repeat of different section at a different time?) And I’m from the northern Detroit suburbs and so I’d know the basic area to look for it on a map - I don’t think I could drive to it right this second with 100% accuracy without help though. It’s such a minor city I was wondering why anyone would care if they knew where it was. I don’t know where random minor cities are in most states other than my own. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/without-looking-it-up-or-someone-telling-you-could-you-say-where-saginaw-is/771341.md?page=6)