Towns With the Most Unusual Names

A list of towns with some of the most unique names around to inspire your next quirky road trip.
By: Amanda DiGiondomenico

The US is a treasure trove of eccentric places. Here's a list of towns with some of the most unique -- if that's what you'd call it -- names around to inspire your next quirky road trip. We hear you could get quite a few interesting photo ops.

Don't Get Stuck Here
Featured town: Slaughterville, OK
The tiny Oklahoma town of Slaughterville was named after grocery store owner James Slaughter. Despite this fact, the town became the subject of a PETA protest. PETA asked the town to change its name to Veggieville, with the promise of donating $20,000 in veggie burgers to the school district if they did. However, Slaughterville does not have its own school district, so the offer was quickly rejected.

More towns: • Accident, MD • Truth or Consequences, NM • Satans Kingdom, VT • Lost City, WV

 

Punny Towns: "I'm in _____."
Featured town: Hell, MI
According to local folklore, the Michigan town of Hell wasn't named for fire and brimstone. Since it was a town built around a grain mill that quickly became a producer of moonshine, many men would disappear in a drunken state. Often asked where their husbands were, the wives would simply say, "He’s gone to hell." So when it came time to name the town, the owner of the mill George Reeves said, "Call it Hell for all I care, everyone else does."

More towns: • Utopia, FL • Fertile, MN • Love, AZ • Progress, OR

 

Everyone Loves …
Featured town: Sandwich, MA
While it may be true that everyone loves a sandwich, the oldest town on Cape Cod was not named for the gustatory treat. Settled in 1637, it was actually named for the seaport of Sandwich in Kent, England. But surely the people in Massachusetts still love sandwiches.

More towns: • Bacon, TX • Cheddar, SC • Pie, WV • Coke, VA



How Do You Think the Residents Feel?
Featured town: Looneyville, TX
A rural community, Looneyville, TX, was founded during the Civil War and named after John Looney. Looney opened a store here in the 1870s and the population slowly climbed until World War I. Forty people lived here during the Great Depression. Its school closed in 1960, and the town's last store was destroyed by a fire in the '90s.

More towns: • Jerkwater, PA • Idiotville, OR • Hooker, OK • Deadman Crossing, OH



I Want to Go There!
Featured town: Happyland, CT
Happyland is a small town on the banks of the Connecticut River. Nestled in the town of Preston, this community is unincorporated, meaning that it isn't subject to municipal taxes. Maybe that's why they're so happy.

More towns: • Surprise, NY • Welcome, SC • Allgood, AL • Little Heaven, DE

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