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Despite
odd names all over Lone Star State,
'Top 10' of the U.S. are commonplace
here
by Bill
Bradfield |
When
Russell Ash's book The Top 10 of Everything 2000 was published,
its listing for the ten most common U.S. town names was led by Fairview,
followed in order by Midway, Oak Grove, Franklin and Riverside (tied),
Centerville, Mount Pleasant, Georgetown, Salem, and Greenwood.
Texas has all of these places -- a generous supply, resulting from
the state's large number of towns and villages -- even though there's
also here an abundance of names that are unusual, even unique.
Compilers for the 2002-2003 edition of the Texas Almanac listed
ten populated Fairviews in Texas. There are a dozen or more
locations around the state where places named Fairview ceased to exist.
The largest Fairview in Texas is between Plano and McKinney
in Collin County, where a population of 2,644 was reported in the
2000 Census. The next largest is New Fairview in Wise County, with
877 residents.
The almanac lists 15 populated villages and hamlets named Midway.
More that a dozen Midways have vanished from the Texas road map in
past years. With a population of 288, Midway in Madison County is
the only incorporated town by this name. Unlike others, it didn't
acquire its name because of a location midway between other places.
Joseph Addison Clark, who moved to Madison County in 1855, simply
named the community for his hometown of Midway, Kentucky. Clark later
relocated at Thorp Spring, where with his son, Randolph, he established
Add-Ran College (now Texas Christian University).
In Hidalgo County, Midway North and Midway South are fast-growing
unincorporated towns where populations of 3,946 and 1,711, respectively,
were reported last year.
Texans live in six towns named Oak Grove, but nine other Oak
Groves have disappeared through the years. A town in Kaufman County
with 710 population is the largest of the present-day towns.
Franklin
(pop. 1,470), the county seat of Robertson County, is the only populated
town of its name in Texas unless one counts Ben Franklin, a crossroads
community in Delta County. Two other Franklins are no longer on the
map.
Similarly, the state has a shortage of towns named Riverside.
Two have disappeared, with only the Riverside (pop. 425) north of
Huntsville
in Walker County remaining.
Three more names on the Top 10 list also are counted among the state's
254 county seats: Centerville
(pop. 903) in Leon County, Mount
Pleasant (pop. 13,935) in Titus County, and Georgetown
(pop. 28,339) in Williamson County.
Salem, the ninth most popular name among U.S. towns, is represented
in Texas by only three populated places, each with fewer than 100
residents. Greenwood, number ten on the national list, is represented
by a suburb with two thousand residents on the west side of Midland;
by a Wise County village (pop. 76) with its own post office, and by
even smaller Greenwoods in Hopkins and Red River counties.
© Bill Bradfield
January 2001
See Texas
Towns A to Z
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Texas Town
Names / History - Recommended Books
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