Exploring America’s Strangest Street Names

If your town is full of boring street names like Shaw Road or Smith Street, count yourself lucky that you don’t have to explain something like Houston’s This Ain’t It Blvd or No Name Street in Denver, CO. Depending on where you are in America, it seems that a few city planning meetings got out of hand when it comes to street names.

Is Pleasant Hill Really Pleasant?

You’ll find Pleasant Hill in Harrisonburg, VA, but it might not be as pleasant as advertised. It’s also not really a hill. Neighborhoods in this area are described as flat and grassy. If you’re just driving through, you might need to turn around as there’s no through traffic allowed. Another funny Pleasant Street can be found in Massachusetts. The street intersects with Roach Street and Downer Avenue.

How Did No Name Get Its Name?

No Name Street in Denver, CO actually came by its name rather accidentally. It’s also a rest stop near Glenwood Springs. The area allegedly got its name when residents responded to a census by listing their town as No Name. Most streets in Denver have fairly normal names and many are named after famous politicians. There are other No Name streets around the country as well, and they likely got their name in a similar way.

Horrifying Bucket of Blood Street

You’ll find this street in Arizona, in the town of Holbrook to be specific. It’s not the most famous street, that obviously belongs to Route 66 that goes through the town. However, according to local lore, Bucket of Blood Street got its name from a gunfight in a saloon. Someone walked by and remarked that it looked like someone tossed a bucket of blood into the saloon. In other horror-themed streets, someone with a punny sense of humor clearly named Psycho Path in Michigan.

A Road That Might Make You Hungry

There’s nothing worse than being hungry on a road trip with miles to go before the next town. Hopefully, you don’t run across Idaho’s Chicken Dinner Road while your stomach is growling. According to local lore, this road got its name from a woman named Laura Lamb’s famous chicken dinner. The family lived down a poorly maintained road and when it was upgraded by the governor of the time, it was named Chicken Dinner Road. If you want some gravy with your chicken, you’ll have to go all the way to Gravy Train Lane in Kansas.

Sarcasm Central

Some street names are just plain sarcastic. Take Dull Drive in Sterling, VA, or Lacking Street in Bluefield, WV for example. However, one of the most sarcastic street names just might be Whinery Street in North Dakota. It’s not clear how this street got its name, but it runs right through the center of the town of Binford. Oklahoma also clocks in with None Such Road, but it’s not the only state with a street like this. There’s also a None Such Street in Helena, Montana. Then there’s also Ocean View Drive in West Virginia, a state that’s landlocked.

These are only a sample of all the strange and funny street names you’ll find in America. Bonus points if you get to hear your car’s GPS read them aloud.