gmpullman One I frequently get a chuckle about is the Pennsylvania Dutch area near Lancaster. You won't see very many people in wooden shoes there. These are German descendents, i.e. The Pennsylvania Dutch (Pennsilfaanisch-Deitsch) Now, is it LAN-Caster or LANK-ister? (I prefer the former) Cheers, Ed
One I frequently get a chuckle about is the Pennsylvania Dutch area near Lancaster.
You won't see very many people in wooden shoes there. These are German descendents, i.e. The Pennsylvania Dutch (Pennsilfaanisch-Deitsch)
Now, is it LAN-Caster or LANK-ister? (I prefer the former)
Cheers, Ed
The dormer is a town in England, and also a WWII bomber. The latter is how we actually say it here.
The rivers around here may carry Native American names, but the towns are purely invented by the PA Dutch (when not named after English ones - or Welsh ones when you get just outside Philly). I mean, Bird-in-Hand, really? And the one that starts with Blue (not Blue Bell, that's a different town, and merely a flower).
Amazing how many people want to say "reading" like something you do with a book. It's "redding". Californians apparantly had to spell it phoenetically to pronounce it properly.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
Take a try at Chicago, my hometown.
Rich
Alton Junction
richhotrain Take a try at Chicago, my hometown. Rich
Here in the Mid Atlantic it's a soft "ch" like "su"gar.
Sheldon
richhotrainTake a try at Chicago, my hometown.
My wife and her family are from the Chicago area, and they cannot agree how to pronounce it.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
Isn't it "Shi-COG-ah"? In southern OH the big city is pronounced "Sin-sin-NA-tah" by the locals.
https://tstage9.wixsite.com/nyc-modeling
Time...It marches on...without ever turning around to see if anyone is even keeping in step.
rrinker The rivers around here may carry Native American names, but the towns are purely invented by the PA Dutch (when not named after English ones - or Welsh ones when you get just outside Philly). I mean, Bird-in-Hand, really? And the one that starts with Blue (not Blue Bell, that's a different town, and merely a flower).
(As a former New Jerseyan who grew up in one of the towns mentioned here, I get to mention this song; yes, all the names are real: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpbNdTY0ogQ)
One amusing aside: One of my godfathers was the Episcopal bishop of Philadelphia, and he and I were out in the country talking about the funny names. As we passed an intersection I said "stop, I'll bet there's something licentious about the street names" -- and I walked back to find we were at the intersection of Peters and Leacock Roads...
Best straight place name you can't say without laughing: Nether Providence.
The most accepted pronunciation of Chicago is SHA-CAW-GO. But some diehard south side Chicagoans still pronounce it as CHI-CAH-GO. We elitists scoff at that pronunciation, made with a short I on that first syllable.
richhotrain The most accepted pronunciation of Chicago is SHA-CAW-GO. But some diehard south side Chicagoans still pronounce it as CHI-CAH-GO. We elitists scoff at that pronunciation, made with a short I on that first syllable. Rich
Nice to know I have been saying it correctly, at least within the scope of my Mid Atlantic dialect.
richhotrainThe most accepted pronunciation of Chicago is SHA-CAW-GO. But some diehard south side Chicagoans still pronounce it as CHI-CAH-GO.
Those are the two pronunciations my wife's family argues about.
SeeYou190 richhotrain The most accepted pronunciation of Chicago is SHA-CAW-GO. But some diehard south side Chicagoans still pronounce it as CHI-CAH-GO. Those are the two pronunciations my wife's family argues about. -Kevin
richhotrain The most accepted pronunciation of Chicago is SHA-CAW-GO. But some diehard south side Chicagoans still pronounce it as CHI-CAH-GO.
It is SAW-SUDGE, not SAH-SIDGE.
OvermodThere are so many that you can write a lyric comparable to Dave Van Ronk's Garden State Stomp with ... you know.
Itonically, there's also a Ronks, PA.
The opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of my employer, any other railroad, company, or person.
There is a city in Minnesota named Wayzata. I do not know the origin of the name, but I assume they just took the leftover tiles from a game of Scrabble and threw them against a wall.
The pattern they landed in spelled out the new city's name.
-Keviun
zugmann Overmod There are so many that you can write a lyric comparable to Dave Van Ronk's Garden State Stomp with ... you know. Itonically, there's also a Ronks, PA.
Overmod There are so many that you can write a lyric comparable to Dave Van Ronk's Garden State Stomp with ... you know.
Which is the zip code zone where the Strasburg Rail Road is located.
Strasburg Rail Road
301 Gap Road
Ronks, PA 17572
The railroads station and shops are located just outside of Strasburg and just barely in the Ronks zip code.
And the other end of the line is Paradise.......
Paradise, PA 17562
Both are unincorporated area/ census designated place/whatever with zip codes only. Paradise is in Paradise Township (Twp), and Ronks is in East Lampeter Twp, I believe.
Jsut like there's no official municipality called "Hershey, PA". It's actually Derry Twp.
And don't mix up Ronks with Rancks.
zugmann Both are unincorporated areas with zip codes only. Paradise is in Paradise Twp, and Ronks is in East Lampeter Twp, I believe. Jsut like there's no official municipality called "Hershey, PA". It's actually Derry Twp.
Both are unincorporated areas with zip codes only. Paradise is in Paradise Twp, and Ronks is in East Lampeter Twp, I believe.
Actually the part of the Ronks zip code where the Strasburg Rail Road is in Strasburg Township, but you were close East Lampeter is just north of there, where the center of the Ronks community is.
Here in Maryland we actually have very few incorporated towns, and no local government below the county level outside of the incorporated towns. For example here in Harford County MD, not far real from Strasburg PA, we have three small incoporated towns, Havre de Grace (site of a famous battle in the war of 1812), Aberdeen (birthplace of baseball star Cal Ripken) and Bel Air, the county seat.
I live in the Havre de Grace postal zone, but outside the town limit.
PA has the township local government below the county government.
There is a village with the name Slaithwaite. When spoken say Sloughwit.
Another with the name Appletreewick. Say Aptrick.
We do not want people to get lost do we?
David
To the world you are someone. To someone you are the world
I cannot afford the luxury of a negative thought
Yes, the town in Ohio is pronounced Lye-muh. Not sure about the locomotive manufacturer.
The locals in Louisville (Lew-ee-vill), KY pronounce it LEW-uh-vull. And, you have to speak it from sort of deep in your throat, like Elvis Presley would.
In my high school class, I grew up with and graduated with three unrelated kids (we think) with the same last name. Huebner.
One pronounced it Hewb-ner.
Another, Heeb-ner.
And the third, Hibb-ner.
I guess none of them liked Hebb-ner.
One kid was 6'4"", the other about 5'6", and the third was a girl, so it was easy to keep them straight.
- Douglas
And then there is Hurricane WV.
It is pronounced HER-UH-KIN by the locals.
Never call it HURRICANE!
Doughless I grew up with and graduated with three unrelated kids (we think) with the same last name. Huebner. One pronounced it Hewb-ner. Another, Heeb-ner. And the third, Hibb-ner. I guess none of them liked Hebb-ner.
We had a female engineer that came to work at my location for about a month.
Her last name was Kroch. She told me it was pronounced "Crook". That was the best news I could have heard.
Whew.
richhotrainAnd then there is Hurricane WV. It is pronounced HER-UH-KIN by the locals. Never call it HURRICANE!
That is the same way the farmers in the central-state cities here in Florida pronounce Hurricane, as in the storms.
SeeYou190 richhotrain And then there is Hurricane WV. It is pronounced HER-UH-KIN by the locals. Never call it HURRICANE! That is the same way the farmers in the central-state cities here in Florida pronounce Hurricane, as in the storms. -Kevin
richhotrain And then there is Hurricane WV. It is pronounced HER-UH-KIN by the locals. Never call it HURRICANE!
SeeYou190 There is a city in Minnesota named Wayzata. I do not know the origin of the name, but I assume they just took the leftover tiles from a game of Scrabble and threw them against a wall. The pattern they landed in spelled out the new city's name. -Keviun
wjstix"Wayzata" means "north shore" in the Dakota language; it's located on the north shore of Lake Minnetonka.
Interesting. We have road named Wayzata that runs along the North side of the Caloosahatchee River in North Fort Myers. The name makes pretty good sense now.
According to your post, we are all pronouncing it wrong.
Thank you for the information.
LastspikemikeSt John as a surname, not a place and Cholmondeley also a surname.
For fun, how about the last name of a figure from the early New York Central days, Featherstonhaugh.
I still remember in 7th grade reading Henry V part 2 out loud and coming unprepared upon the list of place names he invokes before battle. It was NOT good for me ...
The whole St John thing is rather interesting. Common use of St is an abbreviation for Saint, and no you aren't going to confuse this Yank - Saint John, New Brunswick is not abbreviated, but St John's Newfoundland is. When used as a person's name, in Commonwealth countries it is usually pronounced "sin-jin" such as the alias Bond use in "A View to a Kill" - James St John Smythe. But American names like that - actress Jill St John, is "saint john"
Most of those New Jersey place names I am familiar with. Been to or through many, others are, if not served by the Reading, served by the CNJ.
It's not just the suggestive names of the PA Dutch towns - but the actual way the roads lead - leaving Virginville (whic is a bit of an outlier being up here near me, and not a half hour to the south where the rest of them are) and heading to Paradise you do indeed pass through Intercourse, unless you make a wrong turn, which will tkae you to BB. Check the map.
Then there are the silly ones in Central PA - made 'famous' by Chuck Yungkirth's model railroad. Gumstump and Snow Shoe are actual place names, not something he made up for model railroad purposes. In the depth of Winter, you probably need snow shoes to get around in Snow Shoe. Some poor sod probably tripped over the stump of a gum tree for the other.
And then there's Jersey Shore.
One of the original inspirations for my layout theme was from this little shortline in SW Indiana.
http://www.duboiscountyrr.com/
And if you don't pronounce Dubois....Doo boys....you obviously ain't from there.
There's a Dubois PA, too. And no one says it the French way around there, either. Usually leave off the 's' though, so just "du-boy". Lot of French names out in north west PA - at the time of the French and Indian War, the French had many outpsts in the area.
Overmod And then there's Jersey Shore.
Easy to avoid being confused though, if you say you are going to jersey shore, it's abvious you mean the town in PA. If you were going to the beaches in New Jersey, you'd say "down the shore"
Speaking of prototype railroading (uh, were we?), the Dubois County Railroad is affiliated with the Indiana Railroad Museum in French Lick IN (interestingly, not in Doobwah County but Orange County). Its nice to see that they have their old RS-1 up and running. Been sitting on the property for probably 20 years. Apparently, slightly modernized for freight service.
Add some ditch lights, she'll be good.
Is that short address 4 or long address 4?