It never fails to amuse me the odd names people give places. I grew up in a rather remote corner of Cow Hampshire, and whoever came up with the town names around us had a severe case of Ruralitis. We had a Bath, a Littleton, a Warren, an East Ryegate (in Vermont, but real close by), a Woodsville, and (my personal favorite) Swiftwater. I once noticed a mountain in upstate New York, near Vermont, called (I kid you not) "Nellie's Nipple." (And people say I need to get a life -- what about that guy?)
But listening to a Boston radio station, I was reminded of one of the oddest places I've ever heard of, one that conjures up the silliest and grossest images I've ever envisioned whenever I hear the name.
Can you imagine trying to explain to someone that you're from the town of Braintree? Ick...
J.
Permalink | Linking Blogs | Sphere: Related Content | Digg this! | FARK It!
Filed under:
Odd News
Comments (36)
Try explaining Intercourse,... (Below threshold)1. Posted by DKay | December 31, 2004 12:58 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Try explaining Intercourse, P.A.
1. Posted by DKay | December 31, 2004 12:58 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 00:58
2. Posted by Jay Tea | December 31, 2004 1:03 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
DKay, "intercourse" has a meaning apart from sex. That's why the customary full phrase is "sexual intercourse," which implies there's other types.
And the old dirty joke is true -- I've checked it on a map. You have to follow a rather circuitous route, but you can go from Blue Ball, PA, through Intercourse, PA, and arrive at Paradise, PA.
Hey, who just yelled "naked road trip!?"
J.
2. Posted by Jay Tea | December 31, 2004 1:03 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 01:03
3. Posted by Paul | December 31, 2004 1:16 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
No Jay... It could be worse... MUCH worse.
3. Posted by Paul | December 31, 2004 1:16 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 01:16
4. Posted by Jay Tea | December 31, 2004 1:19 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
And let's not forget Jackass Hole, Wyoming (since renamed to "Jackson Hole."
This is bad, Paul. First thing I thought of when I saw that name you found was the mountain named "Nellie's Nipple" I mentioned, and thinking we'd be breaking the laws of Man and God if we combined the two places...
And can ANYONE tell me what a Brain Tree is? It sounds so disgusting...
J.
4. Posted by Jay Tea | December 31, 2004 1:19 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 01:19
5. Posted by julie | December 31, 2004 1:30 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
A Braintree is connected to the brain stem.
5. Posted by julie | December 31, 2004 1:30 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 01:30
6. Posted by Jay Tea | December 31, 2004 1:33 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Julie, I believe Braintree was one of the bluest parts of MA during the last election. I don't think ANY part or resident of Braintree is connected to a Brain Stem, or any other part of a brain.
(sorry, got a bit partisan there... but I'll do anything for a good cheap shot.)
J.
6. Posted by Jay Tea | December 31, 2004 1:33 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 01:33
7. Posted by MojoMark | December 31, 2004 1:41 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Don't forget Boring, Oregon
7. Posted by MojoMark | December 31, 2004 1:41 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 01:41
8. Posted by Kathleen | December 31, 2004 1:46 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
And let's never forget the fabulous Frozen Head State Park. Only in Tennessee. :-)
8. Posted by Kathleen | December 31, 2004 1:46 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 01:46
9. Posted by julie | December 31, 2004 1:49 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Oh, great, J. Finally got them to take a binky and settle down and now you go and do something to make them cry again!
9. Posted by julie | December 31, 2004 1:49 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 01:49
10. Posted by IR | December 31, 2004 2:01 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Excuse the topicality...but "Phuket" kind of, well,...ahem...you know.
10. Posted by IR | December 31, 2004 2:01 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 02:01
11. Posted by blackbird4739 | December 31, 2004 2:46 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Well, our second and sixth(?) Presidents were from Braintree.
Oh, and how about all of you just go to Hell? Hell, MI, that is. (Zoom in all the way, it's a pretty small town.)
11. Posted by blackbird4739 | December 31, 2004 2:46 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 02:46
12. Posted by McGehee | December 31, 2004 8:02 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Hell, MI
I guess pigs must fly every winter in that neck of the woods...
12. Posted by McGehee | December 31, 2004 8:02 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 08:02
13. Posted by McGehee | December 31, 2004 8:04 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
As for Braintree, it's obviously named after a mythical plant that people living in that state could benefit from finding.
Forget Braintree, where's Moneytree?
13. Posted by McGehee | December 31, 2004 8:04 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 08:04
14. Posted by Jay Tea | December 31, 2004 8:05 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
McGehee, it's right here.
J.
14. Posted by Jay Tea | December 31, 2004 8:05 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 08:05
15. Posted by Steve L. | December 31, 2004 8:11 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Dime Box, TX
Oil Trough, AR
These are two of my favorites.
15. Posted by Steve L. | December 31, 2004 8:11 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 08:11
16. Posted by Josh Cohen | December 31, 2004 8:45 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Braintree is weird, yes. But what about Brainerd? The town from Fargo. I'm pretty sure it exists. You can pick a new brain from a brain tree, but if you're called a brainerd at school, watch out.
16. Posted by Josh Cohen | December 31, 2004 8:45 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 08:45
17. Posted by AFSister | December 31, 2004 9:21 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
What about Big Bone Lick State Park in Kentucky? Or French Lick Springs in Indiana?
Or Seaman, Ohio?
Gee, what d'ya do this weekend, Joe?
Well, I took my girlfriend from French Lick to Big Bone Lick and stopped by Seaman on the way home. Jealous, aren't ya?
17. Posted by AFSister | December 31, 2004 9:21 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 09:21
18. Posted by Boyd | December 31, 2004 10:54 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
When I visited Braintree in Essex, England, nobody there knew why the town was so named. But I'll bet any Braintrees in the US were named after the one in Essex. And a visit to England will quickly show you that municipality naming is an incomprehensible art over there.
My favorite town name is Bucksnort, Tennessee.
18. Posted by Boyd | December 31, 2004 10:54 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 10:54
19. Posted by biker babe | December 31, 2004 11:00 AM | Score: 1 (1 votes cast)
I'm from SE MN myself, but I do know that there are a few strange city names "up nord", like Fertile, MN, which isn't too far from Climax. You could get directions, if needed, in Moorhead.
19. Posted by biker babe | December 31, 2004 11:00 AM |
Score: 1 (1 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 11:00
20. Posted by songstress7 | December 31, 2004 11:51 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
OK, I could regret sharing this, but some of these comments remind me of a trip my friend Pablo and I took on secondary roads through Iowa about 7 years ago... We were on our way to a friend's wedding rehearsal but turned up late. We had had giggle fits commenting on the names of the little towns we passed through along the way, so for some reason we thought it would be clever to tell the groom when we arrived, "Sorry we're late... we got past Tingley and were very close to Cumming when we decided to take a break."
Ahem.
20. Posted by songstress7 | December 31, 2004 11:51 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 11:51
21. Posted by Jinx McHue | December 31, 2004 12:24 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Ah, crud. Beat to the punch by biker babe. She didn't beat me to this, though: there's a rumor that some years ago, there was a newspaper headline in northern Minnesota that read, "Fertile woman dies in Climax."
21. Posted by Jinx McHue | December 31, 2004 12:24 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 12:24
22. Posted by Jon | December 31, 2004 1:40 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Feh, can you imagine going to "Belchertown" High School? Every time I pass the sign for that town, I get the giggles.
22. Posted by Jon | December 31, 2004 1:40 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 13:40
23. Posted by Rodney Dill | December 31, 2004 4:10 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
There's also Climax, MI besides Hell
23. Posted by Rodney Dill | December 31, 2004 4:10 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 16:10
24. Posted by Axeman | December 31, 2004 4:52 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Well, if we're playing the stange name game, I'm afraid us Canajun fer'ners have you licked big time. I've been everywhere man, I've been everywhere. Including, but not limited to,
Elbow, Saskatchewan
Climax, Saskatchewan
Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan.
What the hell, Saskatchewan itself rates mention.
Eekum Seekum, Nova Scotia
Joe Batts Arm, Nfld.
Hearts Desire, Nfld.
Hearts Content, Nfld.
Hearts Delight, Nfld.
Flin Flon, Man.
Shubenacadie, NS
Chibougamau, Quebec.
But wouldn't you really like an NFL team in the Phillipines, so you could sit back opn Sunday and watch Grren Bay take on the Manila Envelopes?
24. Posted by Axeman | December 31, 2004 4:52 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 16:52
25. Posted by Paul Zrimsek | December 31, 2004 5:48 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
You'll find no braintrees in Braintree today. The ones along the coast were swept out to sea by the great brainwave of 1697, while the remainder were lost to brainstorms in 1804 and 1811.
25. Posted by Paul Zrimsek | December 31, 2004 5:48 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 17:48
26. Posted by cj | December 31, 2004 6:39 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Tightwad, MO.
26. Posted by cj | December 31, 2004 6:39 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 18:39
27. Posted by julie | December 31, 2004 7:56 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
And who are the favorite son(s) of Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan? Quick!
27. Posted by julie | December 31, 2004 7:56 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 19:56
28. Posted by Triplmilo | December 31, 2004 8:12 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
How about Smackover, Arkansas!?!
28. Posted by Triplmilo | December 31, 2004 8:12 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 20:12
29. Posted by SMSgtMac | December 31, 2004 8:12 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Nellie's Nipple must have an irresistible ring to lonely explorers. Or, they know what they like and what that mountain looks like. There is at least one in California visible from I-15 between Vegas and LA. There is one up by Bakersfield as well I think. There is one off Nellie's Trail in Colorado, and goodness knows how many others there are out there.
If you want sheer creativity, get a "Milepost". It is the atlas/guide that covers all of the Alaskan roads and highways by, you guessed it, mile markers. I drove all over the Alaskan wilderness for 2 years with my sweetie. Now she just slugs me when we pass someplace like "Moosebutt Ravine" and I ask her "Wanna know how it got its name?
29. Posted by SMSgtMac | December 31, 2004 8:12 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 31, 2004 20:12
30. Posted by Cybrludite | January 1, 2005 2:07 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Here's one for y'all... Dry Prong, Louisiana! I'm guessing it's what you end up with if you're not careful on Bourbon St...
30. Posted by Cybrludite | January 1, 2005 2:07 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on January 1, 2005 02:07
31. Posted by Steel Turman | January 1, 2005 3:07 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I was zooming through Kansas, is there any other
way, and out of the corner of my eye caught a sign
that read 'Drunkard Kansas, home of the Drunkard
Brothers'.
Now I was in a hurry, had long given up hope of
anything to eat until KC at best.
But when that flashed across my field of vision,
well I just had to to take the next exit and back up.
My kinda town doncha know?
Got back and got into to town and it turned out
it was 'Dunkard' Kansas.
I cannot tell you how disappointed I was.
31. Posted by Steel Turman | January 1, 2005 3:07 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on January 1, 2005 03:07
32. Posted by Jeffrey Boulier | January 1, 2005 5:02 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Steel Turman: that town's almost certainly named after the Dunkards, an offshoot of Baptists. (To join the church, you get dunked underwater).
Bible readers get a laugh out of Onancock, a small town on Virginia's Eastern Shore.
I've always thought Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania was wonderfully poetic.
32. Posted by Jeffrey Boulier | January 1, 2005 5:02 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on January 1, 2005 05:02
33. Posted by Purr | January 2, 2005 9:57 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I got one for you...I live in Tulsa Oklahoma. In the great land of the Bible belt. Spell Tulsa backwards :o)
33. Posted by Purr | January 2, 2005 9:57 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on January 2, 2005 09:57
34. Posted by player of blues | January 3, 2005 3:59 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Try these Tennessee towns:
Bucksnort, TN Which is southeast of Polecat, TN
or
Bugscuffle, TN
34. Posted by player of blues | January 3, 2005 3:59 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on January 3, 2005 15:59
35. Posted by somerandomperson... | February 28, 2005 11:33 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I just wante to say, I was taking notes on an old newspaper article today, and I saw this entry about Fertile, Mn. And it said in the article that once there was a newspaper report about this lady from Fertile thta died in a nearby town. anyone, as you may guess, the newspaper headline that day read, "Fertile women dies in Climax". For anyone that cares, Climax (the town name) is from a word from the ancient greek langueage meaning Ladder or stairway.
35. Posted by somerandomperson... | February 28, 2005 11:33 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on February 28, 2005 23:33
36. Posted by hotpaws | January 4, 2007 2:40 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
There's a Dildo in Newfoundland.
36. Posted by hotpaws | January 4, 2007 2:40 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on January 4, 2007 02:40