Getting lost in maps and geography

Rick Dawson, Guest Columnist

I’m a real nerd for geography. If my bookshelf had nothing but atlases, I could be a very happy reader. I don’t want to brag but I can usually sweep the category when Geography pops up on Jeopardy. If Hannah Montana or Miley Cyrus pops up, I’m as lost as a golf ball in a wheat field.

One of my favorite reference books is called “From Needmore to Prosperity: Hoosier Place Names in Folklore and History.” Written by Ronald L. Baker, it tells the stories of how every big or little burg across the state got its name. My other favorite kind of geographic reference is the official Indiana State Map. It only comes out every two years in a cost-cutting move by a guy whose picture is right there on the back. Governor Mitchell E. Daniels, Junior. (On Jeopardy, in the Category “E” the correct response to the middle name of Indiana’s Governor would be “What is Elias?”)

So when I got desperate for a column topic just minutes away from my deadline, I grabbed my trusty dog-eared map. I saw a whole bunch of place names in the list of cities and towns. (About 2,400 names, I’d guess. And my column needed 700 words or so. I was in luck.)

Let’s begin a tour of Indiana that stretches from Aberdeen to Zulu.

We’ll get started with a few place names that describe a typical day for me; Alert, Bright, Fickle, Free, Moody and Noble. By the end of the day I “Hope” to have a little “Leisure” time.

The 13 shortest place names in Indiana all have three letters; Amo, Bud, Ege, Fox, Gem, Guy, Iva, Lee, Leo, Max, Ora, Rye (also known as Toto) and Tab.

Twenty-four Saints go marching in Indiana. Everyone from St. Anthony to St. Wendel.

While there are a lot of North, South, East and West names, there aren’t too many that incorporate a number. Still, I was able to spot Twelve Mile, Nine Mile and Six Points.

Some names defy proper categorization. Sleeth, Buddha, Cope, Domestic, Story, Cyclone, Economy and Speed. By the way, do you think they put the name Speed on a sign at the edge of town? Let’s hope as a welcome greeting only and not an invitation to mash down on the accelerator.

Our agriculture heritage is evident in a half dozen place names; Farmers (There are two, one is in Rush County), Farmersburg, Farmers Retreat, Farmersville and Farmland.

Sniff your map and you can find both Aroma and Bacon. There’s also a Lamb, a Bass, a Birdseye and a Carp.

Chili could be both a food and a country. And there are plenty of names that remind us of international places: Brazil, Cairo, China, Cuba (two), Denmark, Dublin, Florence, Geneva (two), Ireland, Klondike, Mexico, Moscow (right here in Rush County of course,) Peru and Syria. There’s even a Universal.

While there’s actually a town named Flat, you wouldn’t know it by all the names referencing mountains. There are 25 in all, ranging from Mt. Auburn to Mt. Zion. In the middle of the list there are a total of five Mt. Pleasants.

And clearly the most popular first name of Indiana towns is the word “new.” Clearly Hoosier settlers were establishing new communities intended to remind them of their old ones.

U.S. cities and states are well represented. There’s Cleveland, Denver, Philadelphia, Florida, Manhattan, Memphis, Miami and Nebraska.

And there are a few names that just sound good rolling off the tongue. Names like Bogle Corner, Mongo, Disko, Yeddo, Yenne and Bippus. (As you read this, I’m certain many of you will now be saying the word Bippus out loud. You just can’t help yourself, can you?)

Finally, I’ll end with a little something that sounds like something I grew on my last vacation; Loogootee.



Rick Dawson is a Rush County resident, a reporter for WISH-TV Channel 8 and a regular columnist for the Rushville Republican. You can reach him at rdawson@wishtv.com or rdawson@lightbound.com

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