As many of my followers know, in my travels, among all the things I see, I am always on the lookout for unique town/place names and fun street signs. Last year was no different. In fact, I was even fortunate enough to get to two of my Bucket List locations while traveling. Following are the places I visited in 2024 along with photos and, in some cases, the histories behind the names.
NOWHERE, OKLAHOMA
A long time resident of my Unique Town Names bucket list has been Nowhere, Oklahoma. Who doesn’t want to take a selfie in the middle of Nowhere?
I had a trip to Oklahoma in late November to visit my sister, and during this visit we took a trip to Nowhere. It is a very small (population 3 as of 2000) community in Caddo County at the southeast end of Fort Cobb Reservoir. Technically, it isn’t an officially recognized community by the state, but people still want to say they were somewhere in Nowhere. Really all that is there is Bait Shop (with a Nowhere, Oklahoma sign), a Water Tank with the name on it and a couple of gas tanks. Along with the bait and snacks, there is a variety of apparel items with the name Nowhere on them. I bought a hat from Nowhere.
If you want to get to Nowhere, you can travel west from Oklahoma City area to the intersection of E1280 Road and County Street 2550. Walk into the store and somewhere in there is the exact middle Nowhere!
FATE, TEXAS
I have driven Interstate 30 to and from the DFW metroplex well over 50 times. Each time I drove it I would see an Exit sign pointing to TX Farm Road 551 and a name with Fate on it. For many years I have wanted to make the trek to Fate to see what it was all about.
During a trip to Keller, Texas in April to see the 2024 Solar Eclipse, I finally hade the opportunity to experience Fate. I made my way there on April 12 and was actually quite surprised with what I saw. A few nice murals, a lovely city hall, a splendid Czech bakery and a few Fate-named shops. I got a kick out of the Smokin’ Donuts place – Donuts and BBQ! Fate is apparently not a small town. Back in 2000 the population was estimated to be 602, but by 2022 the town had grown to nearly 23,000. The town name, as unique as it is, most likely was derived in the 1860s from either William Lafayette Brown or GW Lafayette Payton. both were nicknamed “Fate” which was likely how the “Fayette” portion was pronounced. In July 1880 a Post Office was established in the town.
A sweet surprise for me there was the Four Czechs Bakery, famous for their Kolaches and Klobasniks. Having visited many bakeries in Texas (and even our own OMG Donut place in Lexington), I always thought a Kolache was a meat-stuffed sweet yeast dough pastry. But actually, a Kolaches is fruit-filled and the Klobasniks are the meat-filled ones. Nevertheless, most bakeries that carry the meat-filled ones call them Kolaches.
Fate had a couple of fun murals… but I had to get my selfie in front of the “Fate Bound, Fate Found” mural. I had finally made it there.
MANY OTHER PLACES
Along with those Bucket List places, I happened upon many other interesting places in my 2024 travels. There were places like Greasy, Pink, Pinch, Frankenstein, Brushy, Quick, Possum Trot, Possum Grape, Bland, Clever, Bourbon, Koshkonong, Kickapoo and more. I also came across a “Killer Cemetery” and a “ Doom Chapel Cemetery.” Then there was an Okay Road and a couple of roads named after famous people.
FRANKENSTEIN, MISSOURI
Perhaps my favorite place was Frankenstein, Missouri… I actually went out of my way to go there. It is located on Highway C east of Jefferson City, Missouri.
There is not much in this small community other than a large church (Our Lady of Help Catholic Church) and a few houses. I thought maybe the church would have Frankenstein in its name, but, alas, that wasn’t the case. As for the town name, legend has it that the place was named after a Gottfried Franken who donated a hill (maybe like “stein” in German) in 1890. By 1893 there was a Frankenstein Post Office created that operated until 1921.
WELCOME, TEXAS
There are probably 12 or 13 places in the United States named Welcome. Welcome, Texas has a Welcome sign and even a Welcome Texas General Store. Though quite small (maybe 150 welcoming folks), it has a welcome feel.
It was named Welcome by a German immigrant named J.F. Schmidt. In 1871 a Post Office was established, but when I was there I didn’t see one.
HAPPY VALLEY, TENNESSEE
In June I made my way to Cades Cove in Tennessee. On the way I got to drive through Happy Valley, Tennessee…always happy to drive through a place with Happy in the name. The small community of 529 is near the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and almost sits on the Virginia border. The community is situated in a narrow valley on Happy Valley Road which connects with U.S Route 129. Though there had been some folk living there in the early 1820s, the place, once known as Rhea’s Valley (named after early settler Robert Rhea). Shortly after the Civil War, a large number of settlers arrived in Rhea Valley. Soon there after the area was renamed to Happy Valley.
PINCH, WEST VIRGINIA
The town of Pinch, West Virginia is a community with nearly 3,300 residents. It was named after the nearby Pinch Creek.
FAIRDEALING, MISSOURI
This is a small place in southeastern Missouri, not too far from the Arkansas border and just northwest of the Missouri Boot Heel. It is on U.S. 160 west of U.S. 67. A Post Office was established there in 1883 and is still in operation.
Though the origin of the name now lives in legend, it seems that a guy back in 1880s traded a saddle here and left telling people it was a fair dealing place.
All that is really there are a few homes, the Post Office and a Dollar General Store.
GREASY, OKLAHOMA
Greasy is a small community (just over 250 people) in Adair County, Oklahoma. It is also part of the Cherokee Nation and most of the population is Cherokee. It is now home to one of two Cherokee Language Immersion schools.
As for the name, the only reference I can find says it is named after greasy grass, a term used by the Lakota Sioux to describe the Little Bighorn River. But that’s a long ways from Greasy.
POSSUM TROT, KENTUCKY
I have been all over Kentucky, but until 2024 I had never been to Possum Trot. Actually, there is really not much to this little place in Ballard County, which is in far western Kentucky near Calvert City. Legend has it that the old Calvert City road that ran through the area was then a dirt road and was often covered with so many possum tracks that it came to be known as “the possum trot,” which sparked other stories. We may not know the real story, but we do have the name and the sign.
DIMPLE, TEXAS
Dimple is just a dot on the map with a sign. It is about six miles north of Clarksville, Texas on FM120 and is about 31 miles East of Paris. It has a population of about sixty smiling dimpled folks. It did have a Post Office from 1901 to 1921. According to Texas Escapes website, the unusual name was that of a little girl named Dimple, who died in infancy. Store owner W.W. Crockett applied for a Post Office and named it Dimple in her honor. The name was accepted, but it seems that Crockett moved on shortly thereafter.
PINK, OKLAHOMA
I came across the name of this place early last year while looking at a map of back roads around Oklahoma City. It led me to a Facebook page for the Pink Fire Department. So, I decided I would try to find the place.
The small community is located southeast of OKC near Lake Thunderbird State Park. I took Oklahoma Highway 9 east and then had to turn south on Okay Road to get there.
Not only is there a Pink Fire Department, but there is also a Pink Town Hall and a Pink Community Center. The town is supposedly the only Pink in the United States. It sits within the boundaries of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation and has about 2100 people.
A Post Office was established in 1894 with the name Pink but closed in 1906. Legend has it that the town was named Pink since there was a nearby place named Brown.
POETRY, TEXAS
On the day I visited Fate (see above), I also happened upon the small community of Poetry. This community of about 2100 not too far north of Terrell on FM 986 and FM 1565 got its name in 1876 when then local merchant Mason Ussery suggested the name because the area in springtime reminded him of a poem.
The Poetry Post Office closed in 1905. Today there are a few shops, a dispersed rural community and a Poetry Water Tower.
BEAVER, ARKANSAS
There are many towns with Beaver in the name across the country. But I’m including this particular Beaver because of its unique character.
The community of about 70 residents sits along the shores of the White River deep in the Ozarks. It’s very scenic and is regionally well known for its old two-panel single lane suspension bridge, locally known as the Little Golden Gate. The 554 foot long Beaver Bridge carries Arkansas 187 across the river to Arkansas 227. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990. interesting tidbit is that the bridge is included in a scene from the 2005 movie Elizabethtown.
There is still a Post Office in Beaver, despite the small population.
BLAND, MISSOURI
What can I say? The town of Bland isn’t quite bland, but there isn’t much to this town of about 500 people on Missouri County Highway 28. It does have a post office that has been in operation since 1877. It was named in honor of then U.S. Congressman Richard Park’s Bland.
There is also a Bland Water Tower.
WAYNE AND PAYNE, OKLAHOMA
I didn’t visit either community but got a chuckle from the sign. Wayne, Oklahoma has about 625 people and is located east of Interstate 35. On the other side of the interstate is Payne, a small unincorporated community. Like Wayne, the community is in McClain County.
BELLE, MISSOURI
Just a few miles west of Bland on Highway 28 is the town of Belle. Though not really a “unique town name,” I am including it herein because, as of 2024, it became the home of the World’s Largest Cowbell. The Post Office here has been in operation since 1895.
Created as a world record by Jimmy Zumwalk in 2024, the rusty-red cowbell hangs from a scaffold topped with a longhorn steer head. The cowbell is 15 feet tall and 12 feet across. It weighs 6300 pounds.
CLEVER, MISSOURI
Yet another town to show up on multiple trip as a surprise, the town of Clever was not on my radar until I saw a sign for it. The area it is in had Civil War History and then became an intersection for travel between Billings, Missouri and Springfield, Missouri. In the 1890s a drug store had been opened there and a Post Office was established in 1896. The first name was rejected by the postal service, the store’s proprietor, Frank Netzer, suggested the name Clever because the community’s residents were “friendly and wise.”
Today this clever town has a population of over 2,900 people with lots of Clever businesses and churches. The post office is also in operation. They even have a Clever Police Department!!
HEAVENER, OKLAHOMA
Well, you can’t be a hellion and a heavener at the same time. Heavener, Oklahoma. Situated on Oklahoma HWY 128 and U.S. Routes 59 and 270 inside the Choctaw Nation. The town is actually named for Joseph H. Heavener, who arrived in 1877 and was one of the area’s earliest white settlers. Its big claim to fame is the Heavener Runestone which seems to give evidence that Vikings may have visited the area long ago. I was not able to visit due to schedule, but I found it an interesting side story. There is a large sandstone rock with 8 markings believed to have been a boundary marker created by Vikings between 600 AD and 8 AD.
POSSUM GRAPE, ARKANSAS
I already noted Possum Trot, Kentucky above, but I have always been fascinated by the place known as Possum Grape in Arkansas. Not really an old town, the town was named in 1954. Seems like the citizens couldn’t decide if the town should be named “Possum” or “Grape” but they eventually made the compromise and named it Possum Grape.
BRUSHY, OKLAHOMA
Clear on the eastern end of Oklahoma, near Arkansas on U.S. Route 59 is the community of Brushy, Oklahoma. It has a little under 1000 residents. The community sits in the foothills of the Brushy Mountains a few miles south of Greasy, Oklahoma (see above) and a few miles north of Sallisaw. I couldn’t find any information on how it got the name. There wasn’t much to the community that I could see, but I was able to get a shot of the Brushy School, home of the Mountaineers.
ZALESKI, OHIO
Though Zaleski, as a name, is really not strange, it is unique. But it is also unique for its cultural history. It is home to six Native American mounds that were built by the prehistoric Adena culture. In the 1850s the town was also laid out as a mining community and was named after Peter F. Zaleski, a Polish-American official with the mining company. More recently it became a terminus for the Rails to Trails Moonville Rail Trail, a 10-mile trail that traverses the woodlands of southeast Ohio, goes through the Zaleski State Forest and passes through two tunnels – the King’s Hollow Tunnel and the Moonville Tunnel, which is famed as a haunted tunnel.
BOURBON, MISSOURI
Once again, not necessarily an uncommon name for a place in the United States, but it is the only town in the United States named for bourbon whiskey. That said, there is a Bourbon County in Kentucky. I found it interesting to get photos of the water towers, which say Bourbon on them. Maybe they actually are filled with Bourbon?
The town of Bourbon started when the Missouri Pacific Railroad tracks began through the are in the 1850s. The town now is a stop along U.S. Route 66 which was first aligned through the town in 1926. A Post Office was established in 1853 and is still functioning, There are about 1600 people in this town that has unique shops and a pleasant ambiance.
HERCULANEUM, MISSOURI
On the way west I had gone through both Cairo, Illinois and Thebes, Illinois, both named after ancient Egyptian cities. I got to Herculaneum, Missouri early in the morning of August 4 and was able to get a splendid sunrise over the Mississippi River, which flows right alongside the town. Like the early Roman city which was the chief supplier of lead for the Roman Empire, the Missouri town had a lead smelter and at one time manufactured lead ammunition.
I have written about these places in the past, but revisited them in 2024. Just a couple of photos
WISDOM, KENTUCKY
DEVIL’S ELBOW, MISSOURI
RABBIT HASH, KENTUCKY
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