Hi i am 14 and i am tring to find out the History on how the Street Bleeker Street got its name and i can not find out anything can u plz help me u can email me if u haev anything queenmichelle14@hotmail.com

I lived in Japan for a (too) short time. The bit about not naming streets is something that still brings a fond smile to my face (I drive by landmark anyway, so I fit right in.), but the best bit, imho, is the numbering system on any given street. Buildings in many areas are numbered according to when they were built, not where they are located on the street. There are small police boxes *everywhere* and each one comes equipped with a huge map book to aid confused folks trying to find a specific building.

Larry ... thanks for the updated books on street naming in different cities. This has always been an interest of mine.

I thought you might like to have a look at this online exhibit from the Austin History Center, featuring Austin streets.

http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/library/ahc/streets/

Has anyone counted how many streets in the USA are named after trees? I would like this information for an article in an article in a global forestry journal.

There are databases of street and address information from which answers to this could be derived.

Note that there are not only simple species name streets (Oak Street, Maple Street, Elm Street), but combination names that include tree species (Oak Harbor Drive, Charter Oak Avenue, Beechlawn Crescent, Maple Hill Court).

Does anyone know where the tradition of using numbers to name streets within a city grid first originated (e.g. 1st St., 2nd St., etc.)? Is New York City the first such example or are there earlier numerically-coded grids? I've searched through the secondary literature and haven't had any luck. Any suggestions would be most appreciated. Thanks. (I can be reached at rsr158@psu.edu) --The Gridman

I heard a rumor recently that many new developments had street names like "Patriot Way" and "Security Drive." A quick google search of the first one seems to corroborate this theory, but I was wondering if anyone knew a way to check it out for sure? Is there anybody keeping track of the popularity of new street names?

Rob
GoodspeedUpdate.com

Does anyone know where I can find a list of NYC streets named after famous writers, authors, etc.?

im doing this research paper on street-naming, but i cant seem to find any sources, theoretical background and stuff like that...is there even a book or site about how streets are named generally?
If ever you have some info, pls email me at teng_an_ni@yahoo.com thanks

I'd like to know why Randolph Streeet was named Randolph Street in Detroit, MI. Was it because he was a Virginian Statesman in the 18th century. What is the process of naming a street? Please email me at
thanhasia@yahoo.com

how did we get the street names in wayne county,mi
I found about the street in detroit, but I what to know about the suburbs

I working on a project on a gentleman name haas that a street was named after in oakland county...if anyone can help please feel free to email me at squeezablemiss@msn.com or her on the board thank so much

i would like to know how come...Thurston Avenue in Milwaukee...was named...who named it and why...what are the ethnic groups in this location... is Thurston Avenue in Milwaukee have a different name before and who was it named after...i really need this information for my project...please email me at xyoxwb@yahoo.com

please e-mail kmacdonald@clamsnet.org if you have any idea how "Snail Road" in Provincetown, MA came to be named. Thank you.

Has anyone ever heard of a Kristen Street, Kooler Street, or Ethan Allen Street?

There is a major street in Kansas City, Kansas, called Black Bob Road. I am very curious about the origin of this road name. Could you please help me?

Marc A. Jensen

I too. like many other of you am doing a project on New Orleans Street names....
if anyone knows any other books besides the two listed here, please let me know!!!
sglorio@tulane.edu

Hi! I am hungarian man. See you my homesite: http://w3.cablenet.hu/baloghl (streetname of Debrecen city in Hungaria)

Who names the streets in Los Angeles, California?

To erin. there is a kristen street in cypress california

can somebode help mi to answer on this question,is this avenue , maybe in Washington

This always fascinating avenue was cleverly named by the so-called flower children culture of the last century. It's situated just south of a noteworthy square, one filled with religious significance.
marko_ljubicic_2000@yahoo.com

dOES ANYONE KNOW WHY ROADS ARE NAMED ROADS, STREETS NAMED STREET, AVENUES NAMED AVENUE, LANE, BLVD., WAY, ETC.

Many streets in developments are named for family members of the construction crew. A former boyfriend told me this. We once took a ride in his hometown of Manchester, CT, and he pointed out "David Drive," which his dad had named for him, and other streets named after kids, wives, etc. of the workers.

Good generalization, but many roads have a historical reference like "Witchduck Rd", Va Beach, which was a country road where witches were dunked (or "Ducked into")in water to make them confess their crimes. I live four blocks north of there on a street named for the developer of my subdivision. K2

I wrote a book on the street names of St. Paul, Minnesota in 1975 which I am in the process of updating and expanding. I have a good introduction on how streets are named (at least in the midwest) which I will share as my time allows. don@empson.com. BTW, my perceptions of the different stages of street names do not agree with those of Lawrence. For example, I find lots of English names in the 1880's.

Does anyone know the story behind how "Wall Street" (New York) got its name? More detail than there are walls located on the street..........Why were there walls there? Did it have to do with hearding livestock?

I'm pretty sure it was because because there was once a wall
there to keep the Indians out. Only the south part of Manhattan
was inhabited by the Dutch at that time. The Bowery, which was
north of the wall, had some farmers, and got its name from the
Dutch/German word "Bauer," which means "farmer."

QT - JR <qtopic+16-neCV4PDKqpD@quicktopic.com> wrote:

  
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In NYC - Is Houston Street named after Sam Houston? And why is it pronounced House-ton?

Does anyone know the origins of Werris Creek Lane in San Diego

Does anyone know the origins of "Main" street and "State" street?

Thanks!

What's the history behind "Christiana Avenue" in Chicago? I've been named after it and am really curious about what my name means..

If I remember right, in the 19th Century Christiania was the name of the city in Norway which is now named "Oslo"
and is now Norway's capital. I'll ask my friend Phil Froiland about it, because he knows a lot of Norwegian history.

My friend Phil Froiland, who is somewhat an authority on the subject of things Norwegian, says this:

I have no idea as to the exact history of Christiana Avenue in Chicago but I can take a guess at it. Oslo, Norway used to be called Christiana and it is quite possible that immigrants from that area who settled in Chicago brought the name with them and applied it to one of the streets in their neighborhood. The root of the word is, of course, Christ.

Phil Froiland

Can anyone tell me how to look up a certain street name and how it got its name in a small community? I've heard hear say on how it got it but I can not prove it. Some members of the community are wanting to change the name of a street that means alot to me because of the hear say history I would like to pass down to my children that are only 1 AND 4. Before I take a stand on this I would like to know the truth on how this street got its name.

Im looking for a list of cities that have a residential street named PARK AVENUE ? Doesnt matter what size the city/town might be.

Or, if anyone has a suggestion as to how I could find such a list, Id appreciate it. Thanks.

I would like to find out the names of the streets that divide north and south east and west in Chicago. I know that state street is the line between east and west but I'm not too sure about nrth and south.

The street that divides north and south in Chicago is Madison. East West, as you correctly stated is State St.

The address for a house is determined by which street the front door faces, correct? If this is true, what happens if a corner house is demolished and rebuilt with the front door facing the street opposite the one it used to face?

That really depends on local practice and local house numbering rules.

I know of many corner houses with the front door on one street, and the house number on the other. I have also seen cases where the owner of the property chooses to change the address to the other street.

For example, in East Lansing, Michigan, there's a small apartment building situated at the corner of Abbott Road (a major street leading from the middle of town) and Northlawn (a small residential street). The front door faces Northlawn; no doors at all face Abbott. But a few years ago, a new owner got the address changed from Northlawn to Abbott Road. I believe his reasoning was that its location would be more obvious to potential tenants.

That's very helpful. Thank you Mr. Kestenbaum!

Is there any federal prohibition on the use of names of former US presidents in naming streets in foreign countries? There is a city in the country in which I work that would like to rename a street after Woodrow Wilson. The city officials involved want to know first whether there would be any US objection to using the name. I suspect the name is in the public domain and could be used, but would be interested in your view on the matter.

I can't imagine that the U.S. would have any objection, or even any jurisdiction to object.

Dear Lawrence Kestenbaum: Your website is wonderful and performs an extraordinary public service. Thank you for it. I write here because my wife and I have a book to be published later this month called Brooklyn by Name: How the Neighborhoods, Streets, Parks, Bridges, And More Got Their Names. It is the first of its kind for NYC's most populous borough. It is being published by New York University Press and we would be honored if it can be added to your rollcall for NY street name books (though ours is probably 75% street, 25% other place-names). Many thanks, Leonard Benardo

I'm happy to add another resource on street naming to the list.

Spanish street names in Los Angeles

A friend of mine (Tony McQuilkin) observed that if a street here had a Spanish name, there were probably no Spanish-speaking people living on it. And if a street was populated mostly by Spanish-speakers, it probably did not have a Spanish name. This is because the Spanish street names are mostly in newer areas that Anglos moved to in the 60's and later. Ironically they moved partly because so many Spanish speakers were moving into their old areas.

i hate streets

Edited by author 03-22-2007 07:56 PM
dear mr. tenenbaum, first off id like to let you know how deeply i appreciate your website and limited knowledge of streets. but the reason i am writing is to get your advice on a local issue.. recently i have been petitioning for a street name change; from "old glory st." to "erection road". suprisingly we have a few people who think the new suggestion is somewhat offensive. might you have any ideas on how to persuade these renegades to conform?

Currently, our street is under going a name change, I needed information concerning street naming.

I am interested in the origins of the name of Pearl Street in the historic heart of Grand Rapids, Michigan, which was settled largely by Yankees from Vermont, New Hampshir and New York States. The street name was in place by the 1830s. I've noticed that many New England towns have Paerl Streets and wondered if there is a common origin for this convention.

I've often thought it would be neat to have a job as someone who names streets. Being part of a Naming Streets Committee, does such a job exsist is it in high demand?

Thanks for the great list... Since I'm a librarian in NYC, I checked the NYC books and found out that "A Landmark History of New York" is by Albert Ulmann (not Ullman). It's available in its entirety on Google Books at
http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&id=mhA...pt7_EVszs#PPA281,M1

Maybe some of the other old books are on Google Books, too.

I wonder if anyone has any comments about Michael Harrison's book "The London That Was Rome," which was published 3 decades ago. Harrison's thesis was that the names of streets and other places in modern London are derived from the Latin names of landmarks that were there, in Roman times.

Just a "thanks". I needed a street-naming primer. Your site helped gain a national perspective. I'm working on Seattle streets in the early 1880s. It is interesting to understand the importance of the Post Office's Rural Free Delivery service (inaugerated 1891)on pioneer town streets. Hey: is there a source for learning about the advent of street signage? (particularly in Seattle?)

Cool

That was a great topic. I always wondered how names of streets came about. I wasn't sure but now I am and I'm going to check out a few of those books to get mmore knowledge on it.

Nice Job! Nice to tie in the architecture, etc. The "Surname Additions" will be fun to look out for. thanks.