Towns of America A to Z: The L Towns #atozchallenge

I hope you are Loving these A to Z posts and I hope that they are not too Laughable. I am trying not to be Lazy or Lavish, but want to present some places  worth Learning about.

These posts are Lengthy, but not quite Legendary.   I hope that you find them Likeable. For me, there is nothing like getting Lost in my wanderings.

ENJOY THE READ!  ENJOY THE RIDE!

LOVING, TEXAS

Loving, Texas Post Office

I might as well start out with something upbeat and fun.  On Valentine’s Day 2020, we arrived in Loving, Texas and sent out Valentine’s Days cards to family from there.  Yes indeed, it was planned!!

Loving is located in the northern part of Texas, north of Dallas.  It was founded in 1907 on land that was part of the Lost Valley Loving Ranch, owned by Oliver Loving. It is now home to about 300 residents.

Loving Baptist Church – Loving, Texas
Loving Cafe – Loving, Texas
Loving, Texas Post Office – my grandson Landen has Valentines Day cards to send from Loving.

LAKE JACKSON, TEXAS

Let’s stay in Texas for another one and head south to Lake Jackson, a mid-sized town of 27,000 located south of Houston.  I visited Lake Jackson for one purpose…to find my way!!  All streets coming from the downtown area end in the word “Way.”  There is Center Way, Winding Way, Parking Way and more.  But, the real clincher for me were the two intersecting street named This Way and That Way.  They even have an Any Way, which I didn’t get to.

As you can see, I did find my way to downtown Lake Jackson and even found a plaque commemorating the unusual naming of these streets.

This Way in Lake Jackson, Texas
Plaque explaining the naming of This Way and That Way in Lake Jackson, Texas
This Way and That Way – I am standing on the corner of This Way and That Way

LE CLAIRE, IOWA

Sumoflam at Antique Archaeology

This lovely little town is located on the Mississippi River and has about 5,000 people.  It is filled with many unique shops, a nice museum and a number of Antique shops.  In fact, you may have even heard of one of them…  Antique Archaeology!  No??  Well, you may have heard of the History Channel TV Show “American Pickers?”  This is where it all got started!  I have visited here three times and love the little place and I always enjoy a nice visit to Antique Archaeology. In my visits  in the past I got to meet and chat with Danielle Colby, who now works out their Nashville shop, and I also got a shot with Rob Wolfe, Mike’s brother, who took Frank’s place in 2021.

Visiting with American Pickers star Danielle Colby in LeClaire, Iowa.  Very very friendly soul indeed.
On a different visit got to chat with Rob Wolfe of American Pickers
On one visit the shop was closed for filming
One of the many trinkets in Antique Archaeology
Riverboats on the Mississippi River in LeClaire, IA

LAKE NEBAGAMON, WISCONSIN

James Frank Kotera, the creator of the 20,000 pound twine ball. He claims to be the most famous JFK

There is not much in this very northern Wisconsin town located south US Highway 2 and east of US Highway 53. There are just over 1,000 residents, but one of them has become very famous.  His name is James Frank Kotera, aka JFK.  He claims to be the most famous JFK because of his world renowned giant ball of twine, all hand-made by him over his many years.  I made a trip to visit him in 2007.  Since then his twine ball has grown even larger and he continues to build it.

When we visited him in 2007 the giant twine ball weighed over 19,600 pounds and continued to grow.  JFK brings twine back from the city dump or from donations and adds it manually (after carefully weighing each amount before adding).  He started this giant in 1979,

JFK’s Story in his own handwriting – Lake Nebagamon, WI
The World’s Largest Ball of Twine – Lake Nebagamon, WI
Sumoflam with JFK, the world’s largest twineball and his newer “Junior” twineball in Lake Nebagamon, WI -Taken in 2007

LIZARD LICK, NORTH CAROLINA

Lizard Lick, North Carolina

I refer to another TV show from the past.  Lizard Lick Towing appeared on TRUTV from 2011 to 2014 and stared Ron Shirley, his wife  and a few others. On a trip to North Carolina I had to make a stop there.  The name is unusual and the show was  really something else.  I didn’t meet the Shirleys, but I did get a couple of pictures. Unfortunately, I was in hurry that day, so I just zipped on through.

Welcome to Lizard Lick Towing
Ah heck, let’s throw the Licking Lizard in too. He sits on top of the only gas station in town.

LETHBRIDGE, ALBERTA

How about a quick jaunt into Western Canada and a visit to Lethbridge.  I have friends that live there, so we visited back in 2007.  There are a couple of odd things in town so it is worth a visit.  First off is their famed “World’s Largest Wind Gauge” located up on a hill in town to catch the best wind.  They even provide a plaque to decipher things.  The other is Ric’s Grill – dinner in a Water Tower.  We got to eat up in the Water Tower and it was a great experience.  It closed down for a period, but it has apparently since reopened as the Water Tower Grill & Bar.

World’s Larges Wind Gauge in Lethbridge, Alberta
Wind Gauge Plaque
The Water Tower Grill, formerly known as Ric’s Water Tower Grill. Still in business.  This photo ca. 2007

LEAVENWORTH, WASHINGTON

Welcome to Leavenworth, Washington

High in the cascades of Washington sits a quaint little Bavarian-style town known as Leavenworth.  A very friendly place and definitely focused on attracting tourists.  US Highway 2 runs right through the town so it is easy to stop in for a visit.  The road signs are written in German and there are restaurants that focus on Bavarian and German cuisine.  There are a number of other shoppes in town.    It is really a fun little town (if you can find a place to park!!!)

Downtown Leavenworth, WA
Shoppes of Leavenworth, Washington
Colorful buildings of Leavenworth, WA
Leavenworth street signs
Ride a horse drawn carriage through town
A portion of the many murals and wall art found throughout the town of Leavenworth

Many more L places could be presented, but not much time.  So, here are a few one shots from the road!

Light, Arkansas

Do you see the light?

Light, Arkansas – see the light?

Lindenwald, Ohio

A nice suburb of Hamilton, Ohio with a fantastic mural!

Lindenwald, Ohio

Looney Ridge, Virginia

Looney Creek Baptist Church in Grundy, VA. When they sing the hymns are they Looney Tunes?
I got a kick out of this name.

Lima, Montana

Nestled  in the mountains of southern Montana, this town is still rustic.

Downtown Lima, Montana
Cook your own steak at Peat Hotel & Steakhouse in Lima, Montana
The Weed Patch gift and antique shop in Lima, Montana

Long Beach, Washington

Considered the longest beach in the U.S., its a great tourist destination along the shore of the Pacific Ocean.  The small town offers up plenty of FANTASTIC clam chowder.  And there is plenty of wildlife to be seen.

Long Beach, WA – World’s Longest Beach
A view of part of Long Beach in Washington
The Chowder Stop in Long Beach makes chowder so thick a spoon stands up in it!!
And there are Bald Eagles to be seen along the beach, amongst other birds and wildlife.

Lost Springs, Wyoming

And I will end here in Lost Springs, Wyoming, formerly population 1, but it has grown to 4.  Here I am with both signs taken in different years.

Lost Springs, Wyoming. When I took this back in 2012 its population was 1. Visited again in 2017 and it had jumped 400%!!! Population 4.
Lost Springs – Population 4 in 2017
Lost Springs Store and Post Office. Sadly, they were closed the day we were there.

Well, another long trip is complete.  There will MORE tomorrow with the M Towns!!

Hope you enjoyed the read and the ride! 

If you like what you see, you can check out my books which cover so much more!

LESS BEATEN PATHS OF AMERICA TRAVEL SERIES

You can get my books online!  The series now has five books and I am working on books six and seven. Book Six will be all about murals from all over the country!! Watch for them later this year.

CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT MY AUTHOR PAGE AND BOOKS

4 thoughts on “Towns of America A to Z: The L Towns #atozchallenge

  • Fun post, fun photos. I confess I haven’t been to any of the places you’ve mentioned. Which just means there are plenty for me to visit. A valentine from Loving sounds great, but I’m not sure I’d like to be licked by a lizard so I might skip that trip.

  • Leaping lizards, it’s lizard lick!!! I think that I would levitate to get away from the licking lizards and would then land in Lost Springs, increasing the town’s population to five.

  • That was a fun trip we went on. Did you really send Valentine’s day cards from Loving? I was fascinated by the world’s largest ball of twine.
    Visiting from the A to Z Challenge 🙂

  • This way and That way ! That was amusing and boy ! Building that ball of twine would have needed so much perseverence. Somehow with digitisation, the beauty of handwritten letters and cards seem to be disappearing. Heart warming to see that its not the case everywhere

    Jayashree writes

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