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Discover facts about travel. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
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Experiment, Georgia, owes its name to agricultural research
The community developed around the Georgia Experiment Station near Griffin. Its unusual name marks the research work attached to the place, rather than a joke…
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A town named Peculiar took a suggestion literally
According to local legend, a postmaster general told the town's founders to choose a “peculiar” name, so they adopted the word itself.
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North Pole, Alaska celebrates Christmas all year
The town leans into its name with candy-cane-shaped streetlights and businesses that keep Christmas decor up all year.
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Gibsonton made room for lives on the carnival circuit
Florida's Gibsonton became an off-season base for carnival workers, drawn by its climate and an existing show-business community. Residential business zoning…
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Why Oregon's Idiotville disappeared
Residents of the isolated camp said only an idiot would work there, giving it the name Idiotville. The camp was eventually abandoned.
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Dull Ohio completely lowers your expectations upon arrival
Its name sounds less like a place name than a warning about what to expect.
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Zzyzx was a desert health resort run by a self-styled doctor
Curtis Springer built the resort in California's Mojave Desert and promoted products through a widely broadcast radio show. The National Park Service records…
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Yanjin grows along a river because there is little room beside it
The Chinese town occupies a narrow valley squeezed between the river and steep slopes. Buildings line the corridor rather than spreading across a broad plain.…
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Liberty Island is New York land in New Jersey waters
The Statue of Liberty stands on an island under New York jurisdiction, while New Jersey has jurisdiction over the surrounding waters. The border follows a…
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Dull, Boring and Bland decided to promote one another
Dull in Scotland paired with Boring, Oregon, in 2012; Australia's Bland Shire joined the following year. They called themselves the League of Extraordinary…
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A farmer's leftover twine became a town's ongoing project
Frank Stoeber began rolling discarded farm twine into a ball in 1953. It grew too large for his barn and became an attraction in Cawker City, Kansas, where…
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Unalaska's name comes from an Indigenous place name, not 'not Alaska'
The name is a Russian-era rendering of an Unangan name, Ounalashka. English speakers can read the opening letters as a negative prefix, but that is not how…
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Arizona has a town called Nothing
The settlement is now abandoned, leaving its name as its main claim to fame.
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Earth, Texas, has several competing stories about how it got its name
The town began in 1924 under another name. Local accounts credit either blowing soil, fertile ground or an exchange with postal authorities for the change.…
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Eighty Four, Pennsylvania, has a name with competing origin stories
A common explanation connects the name with the post office's establishment in 1884. Other stories accumulated around the number, including political and…
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A real town called Metropolis built itself a Superman identity
Metropolis, Illinois, has a fifteen-foot bronze Superman statue, a museum and an annual celebration. Sharing a name with the fictional city gave it a…
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Cut and Shoot, Texas, got its name from a disputed story
Local accounts trace the name to a near-violent community confrontation in 1912. Versions disagree about the quarrel, but repeat a boy's plan to cut around a…
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The Texas town with the most stereotypical name
Its official motto is “We shoot straight with you,” leaning so hard into the Texan stereotype that it becomes a joke.
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Santa Claus gets his mail in Indiana
Volunteers in Santa Claus, Indiana, answer thousands of children's letters, including letters from abroad. The town's name helps bring the mail; people still…
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Why turbulence usually can't bring down a modern jet
Modern commercial jets are designed to withstand the turbulence encountered in normal flight, so ordinary rough air won’t snap their wings off. Severe…
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The zipline that crosses from Spain to Portugal
The Limite Zero zipline links Sanlúcar de Guadiana, Spain, with Alcoutim, Portugal, across the Guadiana River. The ride lasts about 60 seconds at 50 miles per…
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Disney replaced a fireworks launch explosion with compressed air
An aerial firework normally needs a charge to send it skyward before the main display opens. Disney developed launchers that use air pressure for that first…
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Why Bavarians drink wheat beer with breakfast
In southern Germany, wheat beer is traditionally paired with white sausage at breakfast; the combination is a local ritual, not an unusual drinking stunt.
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A drink's ice level can be a cultural expectation
In the US, a glass packed with ice often signals a properly cold drink; in many European settings, drinks are commonly served with less. A traveler asking for…
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