Carolinas

“Shoeless Joe” Jackson House

Allen ForrestLeave a comment
“Shoeless Joe Jackson” Historical Marker outside his former house that is now a museum.

“Shoeless Joe Jackson House”

As lifelong Boston Red Sox baseball fans, Helen and I were excited to go to Greenville, South Carolina, to attend a baseball game at Fluor Field, “Little Fenway Park of the South.” When Greenville became the new home of Red Sox Class ‘A’ affiliate, the “Greenville Drive,” they rebuilt their baseball park to resemble Boston’s Fenway Park.

We went there in 2006 and I wrote about our visit in my earlier post.

“Shoeless Joe” Jackson House, built in 1940, was the last home of “Shoeless Joe” Jackson (1888-1951) one of the greatest natural hitters in the history of baseball. The house currently sits just outside of Fluor Field, Greenville, SC, home of the Greenville Drive (Boston Red Sox Class ‘A’ affiliate)

I went back to Greenville in 2011 and visited the Shoeless Joe Jackson Museum which sits across the street from Fluor Field and shot this photo. The building, which is now the museum, was Joe and Katie’s final home. When they lived there, it was located at 119 E. Wilburn Avenue in Greenville and was later moved to the location across from the ballpark.

A couple of days ago, I was surprised to receive an email from the museum. Apparently, I had included my email address in the visitor log while I was there about nine years ago. Interestingly, they have moved the house again, (but this time only about 100 yards) and are expanding the building to make more room for its contents. The letter mentioned

"The street address became 356 Field Street, which was chosen as a way to honor Joe’s .356 career batting average, the third- highest in baseball history."
Two weeks ago, on Friday, July 31, our museum was moved. Like, the whole building. As you may or may not know, the building that has been our museum since we opened was the actual house Joe and Katie Jackson lived in for over a decade. In 1941, they bought the brick home at 119 E. Wilburn Avenue in Greenville, South Carolina. They lived out the rest of their days in that home, with Joe passing away in 1951, and Katie in 1959.

© 2020 Shoeless Joe Jackson Museum and Baseball Library Unsubscribe P.O. Box 4755, Greenville, SC 29608

If you are a baseball fan and are ever in the Greenville area of “upstate” South Carolina, I think you would enjoy a visit. You can find more info on their website HERE. I know I will be going back soon!

I truly appreciate your interest!  Please Post Your Thoughts, Comments, Corrections, and Remarks in the “Comments” Section below… >>>>>

Lizard Lick, Ty Ty, & Nowthen

Allen Forrest2 Comments
Lizard Lick, North Carolina, ATM
I shot this photo of a lizard statue on top of an ATM while visiting North Carolina earlier this year.
According to Wikipedia:

Lizard Lick is an unincorporated community in Wake County, North Carolina, United States. The community is located at the crossroads of Lizard Lick Road and NC 97. Lizard Lick has frequently been noted on lists of unusual place names.

The community is approximately 20 miles east of the state capital of Raleigh. It is about 3 miles north of Wendell and 3 miles west of Zebulon.

According to NC historian William S. Powell, the town got its name from a “passing observer who saw many lizards sunning and licking themselves on a rail fence.” Regardless of the town name, local community members who are native to the area are proud of their origins, and their economic future in the area. In May 1997, the state installed the first traffic light in Lizard Lick, marking a new period of “increasing property values” and growth.

Seeing Lizard Lick got me interested in other strange city names that we have in this country. Many times while driving around the country I have wondered how towns got their names. Most city and town names are pretty obvious. It is the unusual ones that pique my curiosity. Here are a couple more that are rather strange:

Ty Ty CityHall Photo by By Michael Rivera

I have driven through Ty Ty, Tift County, Georgia, and always wondered about its name.

According to Wikipedia:

The population was 716 at the 2000 census. 

Ty Ty is named from the trees that once lined Ty Ty Creek, which runs through the area. These Ironwood and Buckwheat trees are referred to as white and black titi trees. 

Nowthen, Minnesota

 

Another unusual city name is Nowthen in Anoka County, Minnesota. 

From the Nowthen website:

Nowthen, the first post office of Burns Township started June 5, 1876.  Jim Hare (first postmaster) was credited in naming the Nowthen Post Office.  History says that Hare wrote to Washington requesting a Post Office in Burns Township.  The Post Office Department indicated that they could not approve the Burns Post Office because there was already Burnstown Township Post Office in Southern Minnesota.  The department asked Hare for suggestions for a new name.  Jim Hare sent a letter to the department with several suggested names.  At the end of his letter he stated “nowthen” and signed it.  Not knowing the Hare often started and ended his sentences with “nowthen”, the department thought it was a pretty good name and named Burns Township’s Post Office the Nowthen Post Office.

Even after the Nowthen Post Office closed in July 31, 1894 the residents still referred to the area around the Post Office as Nowthen. 

On December 12, 2007, Burns Township filed a Petition with the Office of Administrative Hearings, Municipal Boundary Adjustments (OAH-MBA) requesting the incorporation of Burns Township to the City of Nowthen.

Nowthen, that’s our story.

MentalFloss website as well as Wikipedia has unusual United States city names. There are many, many more of them!

I Welcome Your Comments!

Please Post Your Thoughts, Comments, and Remarks in the “Comments” Section below… >>>>>