Crazy Town Names

I was reading a friend's, Billy Victor, blog the other day and he had been through Toad Suck, Arkansas which I had been through before when I was in college. So it inspired me to remember some of the unusual city names that I have heard of in the five different states I have lived in my 36 year life. We will start with my home state of Texas and progress through the states in the order I have lived in them.

Frognot, Texas--this town, somewhat, in Collin County near my home town of McKinney. I have never been able to find the reason for the name, but I think it is one of the best. It now consists of one unoccupied building.

Earth, Texas--located in the panhandle near the New Mexico border. The name says it all.

West, Texas--Located between Hillsboro and Waco on I-35. It is 669.52 miles from El Paso and according to Mapquest it is 9 hrs 37 min drive time to El Paso.

Cut n Shoot, Texas--Located near Conroe, North of Houston. It was apparently named after a 1912 community confrontation that almost led to violence. According to the different versions of the story, the dispute was either over the design of a new steeple for the town's only church, must of been Baptist. The issue of who should be allowed to preach there, or conflicting land claims among church members. A small boy at the scene reportedly declared, "I'm going to cut around the corner and shoot through the bushes in a minute!" The boy's phrase apparently remained in residents' minds and was eventually adopted as the town's name.

Gun Barrel City, Texas--Located on Cedar Creek Reservoir between Ennis and Canton. Founded when Cedar Creek Reservoir was created. Named after Gun Barrel Lane. The city's motto is, "We Shoot Straight with You."

Uncertain, TX--Located on Caddo Lake, the only natural lake in Texas, near Karnack, yes I should do this one in honor of Johnny. It is northwest of Shreveport, LA. There is no reason found for the name of this little town of 150, but if you know the area you will understand.

Ding Dong, TX--Located 8 miles south of Killeen, which should be on the list but is not because of the way most people in Texas pronounce it...Kuleen. Funny thing about Ding Dong, is that it is found in Bell County. Bell County is name after Peter Hansborough Bell,the third governor of Texas. That has nothing to do with Ding Dong. It was named this after Zulis Bell and his nephew Bert Bell who owned a country store on the Lampasas River between Killeen hired C.C. Hoover to paint the sign for their new store. When Hoover went to get paint Stokes-Blair Hardware Company in Florence Fred Foster told him to be creative. "Why don't you do something original with this sign," he suggested to Hoover. "How about drawing two Bells with the name Zulis in one and Bert in the other. Then print 'Ding Dong' on the sign." The little community around the store took on the name of Ding Dong, and there you have it.

Notrees, TX--Located between Odessa and Kermit, no not named after the frog. Growing up going to West Texas, most of my family is from there, I understand why it is named what is named. It became a town after Shell Oil built a gas plant near there in the 40's. The first store built by Charlie Brown named the town Notrees since there were some many other towns that already existed with Brown, Brownfield and Brownwood to name a few.

For more funny Texas town names go to one of these two websites

Town Names

How Great is Texas

On to the second state of Arkansas. This state and post has inspired a future post about funny mascot names (let me just say, Wampuscats). I lived in this state for four years during college. What do you expect from a state that gives you Ouachita Baptist University (class of 93) on the Ouachita River. Oh, and Ouachita is not pronounced how it looks, it is pronounced Washitah. I digress, onto the cities.

Turkey Scratch, Arkansas--Located in Northeast Arkansas, southwest of Memphis. I could not find a story behind the name.

Smackover, Arkansas--Located in Southeast part of the state between Camden and El Dorado. The name Smackover is an anglicization of the French "Sumac Couvert." Which translates to "covered in sumac."

Toad Suck, Arkansas--Located northwest of Little Rock near Conway, the town Conway Twitty is named after, host a three day festival called "Toad Suck Days." Legend has it, that it was named for the local boatman and gamblers who sucked whiskey like a toad. Suck can also refer to a channel of water.

Possum Grape, Arkansas--Located between Newport and Searcy in the north central part of the state. I could not find a story behind the name.

Greasy Corner, Arkansas--Located southwest of Memphis. I could not find a story behind the name.

Piggott, Arkansas--Located north of Memphis near the Missouri/Arkansas line. It is the home of the Hemingway-Pfeiffer House. Pauline Pfeiffer was Earnest Hemingway's second wife and grew up in Piggott. The family converted the barn into a writing studio. The name was the last married name a sister of the founder.

After a return to Texas for Seminary I then moved to Pagosa Springs, Colorado. Pagosa is the Ute Indian word for bubbling. Which makes sense, because Pagosa has many hot water springs.

No Name, Colorado--Located south of Glenwood Springs, which is on the way to Grand Junction from Denver. The town of Rifle is to the east of Glenwood Springs on I-70. No Name is named after No Name Creek and No Name Canyon which are near there.

Last Chance, Colorado--Located due west of Denver in the plains of Colorado. You guessed it, it gets its name because it was the last chance to get provisions in either direction.

Parachute, Colorado--Located on I-70 between Glenwood Springs and Grand Junction. The name comes from the appearance on a map of several streams converging on the town as do the shroud lines of a parachute combined with the arc of the ridge line above the streams which resembles the canopy of a parachute. The town was previously named Grand Valley.

Purgatory, Colorado--Located north of Durango on the way to Silverton. It is well known for its skiing. They have tried to change the name. In fact what was Purgatory Resort when I was a kid has changed its name to Durango Mountain Resort at Purgatory.

The fourth state I lived in was Pennsylvania. My wife and I lived there from 2000-2005. There are many town names that have sexual connotations in Pennsylvania and I will not deal with those.

Scalp Level, PA--Located near Johnstown, PA. Johnstown is home of the Johnstown Chiefs hockey team that the movie "Slap Shot" is based on. It is also where the film "All the Right Moves" with Tom Cruise. This is a term used by teens of the Johnstown Area for cruising on the strip on Friday and Saturday nights.

Gobbler's Knob, PA--Located near Punxsutawney, northeast of Pittsburgh. Gobbler's Knob is the home of Punxsutawney Phil the groundhog.

We moved to Maryland in 2005.

Frostburg, MD--Located in western Maryland east of Morgantown, WV. Frostburg is the city I live in and is named after its founder Mesach Frost. The crazy irony in the name is that it fits. In the winter it is cold and there is lots of snow.

Assawoman Bay, Maryland--Located between Ocean City and Delmavra. Could not find a story behind the name.

Accident, Maryland--Located in Western Maryland in Garret County near Deep Creek Lake. This little town is speed trap. The town's founder, George Deakins, had been given 600 acres of land by King George II of England. The two surveyors he hired to pick out the best plot of land used the same tree as a starting point, and selected the same plot of land, hence the name Accident.

Crapo, Maryland--Located on the Eastern Shore of Maryland along the Chesapeake Bay across the bay from Solomon's Island a great little place to hang out. Could not find info on the story behind the name.

Cockeysville, Maryland--Located north of Baltimore. Cockeysville was named after the Cockey family which helped establish the town.

That is the end. There are so many other towns that I could have come up with along the way, but those are just a few.