150 Fun Facts About US Cities

Which US city is nicknamed the Windy City?

It has also been called Second City and City of the Big Shoulders, and it built the world's first steel-skeleton skyscraper in 1885.

Which city's engineers reversed its namesake river so sewage would flow away from Lake Michigan?

The lake was the city's drinking water; the fix sent the waste toward the Mississippi instead. Chicago is also home to the world's first steel-skeleton skyscraper, built in 1885.

Which city is known as the Big Easy?

Its other nickname, Crescent City, comes from the bend of the Mississippi around it.

Which city is called the Motor City?

It also gave the world Motown and techno, and in 2013 became the largest US city ever to file for bankruptcy.

Seattle's Space Needle was built for what 1962 event?

The Century 21 Exposition also gave the city its monorail; Seattle's official nickname changed from Queen City to Emerald City in 1982.

Which city is the Mile High City, its official elevation exactly one mile above sea level?

The Broncos still play at a stadium called Mile High.

What is the oldest continuously inhabited European-founded city in the contiguous United States?

Pedro Menéndez de Avilés founded it in 1565; only San Juan, Puerto Rico, is older on US soil.

Which Alaskan city is the largest in the US by total area?

It was New Archangel under the Russians and was Alaska's capital until 1906.

Which is the largest city by area in the contiguous US, and also Florida's most populous?

Its consolidated city-county government makes it far bigger on the map than Miami.

Which city opened the nation's first subway, the Tremont Street line, in 1897?

It also claims the first public park (Boston Common, 1634) and first public school (Boston Latin, 1635).

What was New York City called under Dutch rule?

The English took it in 1664 and renamed it for the Duke of York, but the name only stuck permanently in 1674.

Which Colorado town is the highest incorporated city in the United States?

It sits above 10,000 feet between Mount Elbert and Mount Massive, the state's two tallest peaks.

Kansas City is famous for having more than 200 working what?

The ones at Kauffman Stadium are the largest privately funded fountains in the world.

Texarkana is a twin city straddling the line between Texas and which state?

The name is a portmanteau of Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana.

Las Vegas was founded in which year, when railroad land was auctioned off downtown?

At the close of the 20th century it was the most populous North American city founded within that century.

Which city served as the first US capital in 1775 and remained the nation's largest until 1790?

William Penn founded it in 1682; its firsts include the nation's first library, hospital, zoo and stock exchange.

Which is the most populous state capital in the United States?

With over 1.6 million people it is the fifth-largest US city and has the hottest summers of any major American city.

Which is the only major US city founded by a woman?

Citrus grower Julia Tuttle owned the land and talked Henry Flagler into extending his railroad there.

Pittsburgh's 446 spans over its three rivers give it what nickname?

That is three more than Venice.

Portland, Oregon got its name after a coin toss. What was the losing name?

Francis Pettygrove, from Portland, Maine, won two out of three tosses against Asa Lovejoy of Boston.

Which word was dropped from Salt Lake City's original name in 1868?

Brigham Young's settlers arrived in July 1847 during the Mexican-American War.

Honolulu has been Hawaii's capital since which year, when Kamehameha III moved it from Lahaina?

It stayed the capital through the overthrow of the kingdom, US annexation and Pearl Harbor.

Anchorage was hit by a magnitude 9.2 earthquake on Good Friday of which year?

It remains the second-largest earthquake ever recorded; the city holds nearly 40 percent of Alaska's population.

Minneapolis and which neighbor make up the Twin Cities?

Minneapolis sits on Saint Anthony Falls, the only natural waterfall on the Mississippi.

Los Angeles was founded in 1781 by 44 settlers known as what?

Spanish governor Felipe de Neve founded it on the village of Yaanga; it is now the second-most populous US city.

Which pair of siblings founded Houston, naming it for the future president of Texas?

They paid $5,000 for the land, only $1,000 of it in cash, and ran their first advertisement four days later.

San Antonio's five Spanish missions, including the Alamo, became UNESCO World Heritage sites in which year?

The city is the second most populous in Texas and the seventh in the country.

Which three breweries made Milwaukee a national leader in beer production?

The city on Lake Michigan is also home to the Harley-Davidson Museum and Summerfest.

Francis Scott Key wrote 'The Star-Spangled Banner' during the bombardment of which Baltimore stronghold?

The poem became the national anthem in 1931; Baltimore has been an independent city, outside any county, since 1851.

Nashville's Centennial Park contains a full-scale replica of which ancient building?

It fits the city's other nickname, the Athens of the South; the Grand Ole Opry made it Music City from 1925.

Before it was Atlanta, the settlement was renamed in 1842 to honor a governor's daughter. What was it called?

It began as Terminus, the end of a rail line; Hartsfield-Jackson has been the world's busiest airport since 1998.

Which Cleveland river caught fire in June 1969, helping launch the environmental movement?

The city, founded near the river's mouth in 1796, is now home to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

San Francisco's first cable cars ran up which hill road in 1873?

Three-quarters of the city was destroyed in the 1906 earthquake and fire; it hosted a world's fair nine years later.

Which French-born engineer designed Washington, D.C. in 1791?

The Residence Act of July 16, 1790 counts as the city's founding date; its quadrants meet at the Capitol.

Which Memphis thoroughfare is central to the birth of the Memphis blues?

The city also has Graceland, Sun Studio and the world's largest pork barbecue contest.

Who won the first Indianapolis 500 in 1911?

The race is the world's largest single-day sporting event; the city's slogan is Crossroads of America.

Boise, Idaho is home to one of the largest US communities of which European ethnic group?

The Basque Block downtown hosts the Jaialdi festival every five years; the city is nicknamed City of Trees.

Which two state capitals cannot be reached by road from the contiguous United States?

Juneau took over from Sitka as Alaska's capital in 1906; the terrain around it is too rugged for a highway.

Which is the oldest state capital in the US and also the highest, at nearly 7,000 feet?

Founded in 1610, it was the earliest European settlement west of the Mississippi.

Buffalo, New York was chosen in 1825 as the western terminus of which waterway?

It made Buffalo the main inland port between the Great Lakes and the Atlantic; the city also gave us Buffalo wings.

Albuquerque hosts the world's largest festival of what?

The International Balloon Fiesta shares the calendar with the Gathering of Nations, North America's largest powwow.

Tucson earned which nickname in 1992 for its telescope and optical-science industry?

About 150 local companies design optics; the city's older nickname is the Old Pueblo.

The first Kentucky Derby was run in Louisville in which year?

The track was later renamed Churchill Downs; the city also produces Louisville Slugger bats and was home to Muhammad Ali.

El Paso sits on the Rio Grande directly across the border from which Mexican city?

Juárez was founded in 1659 as El Paso del Norte, on the south bank.

Charleston, South Carolina was founded in 1670 under what name?

It honored Charles II and became the first comprehensively planned town in the Thirteen Colonies.

Savannah, Georgia's downtown is laid out around how many park-like squares?

James Oglethorpe's 1733 plan largely survives and the historic district is one of the largest National Historic Landmark Districts in the country.

Which explorer claimed San Diego Bay for Spain in 1542, naming it San Miguel?

Balboa Park, with the zoo and museums, was built up for two later expositions.

Oklahoma City was founded during which 1889 event, gaining 10,000 residents within hours?

In 1995 it was the site of the Murrah Federal Building bombing, now marked by a national memorial.

Which Nevada city calls itself 'The Biggest Little City in the World'?

The slogan came from a 1929 contest to put words on the downtown arch left over from a highways exposition.

Providence, Rhode Island was founded in 1636 by which religious exile from Massachusetts?

It also has the oldest enclosed shopping mall in the country, the Westminster Arcade.

Which Kansas city was dubbed the 'Air Capital of the World' in 1929?

Beechcraft, Cessna and Stearman all set up there; Airbus, Boeing suppliers and Textron still build aircraft in the city.

Which Nebraska city is home to Berkshire Hathaway, Union Pacific and Warren Buffett?

Buffett is the 'Oracle of Omaha'; the Union Pacific began building west from the city in 1866.

Which company did George Eastman found in Rochester, New York in 1892?

The George Eastman Museum holds the oldest photography collection in the world.

Which Alaskan city has been the finish line of the Iditarod sled-dog race since 1973?

The route follows the 1925 serum run; Leonhard Seppala ran its longest leg.

What was the northernmost US city, Utqiagvik, called before a 2016 vote changed its name?

The old name came from Point Barrow, itself named for a British Admiralty official in 1825.

Which Californian city was mostly farmland until July 17, 1955, when a theme park opened?

Walt Disney could not afford to buy the land around Disneyland, so the neon motels he wanted to avoid boxed him in.

Which is the only NFL team owned by a publicly held non-profit corporation?

The team takes its name from the Indian Packing Company that sponsored it in 1919.

Which Iowa city was the hub of the caucuses that opened the 2024 Republican primary cycle?

It became the state capital in 1857 after Iowa City, and is a major insurance center.

Fargo, North Dakota was founded in 1871 on the floodplain of which waterway?

The river flows north into Canada's Lake Winnipeg, and its spring floods have repeatedly threatened the city.

Nevada's capital is named after which frontiersman?

It has been Nevada's capital since 1861, when Nevada was still a territory.

Which city's official slogan calls it 'The Live Music Capital of the World'?

It hosts SXSW and the long-running PBS concert series Austin City Limits.

Who established the permanent settlement of Dallas in 1841?

He had surveyed the area three years after Texas won independence.

Which city was California's first state capital?

Founded in 1777 as a pueblo, it later adopted the motto 'Capital of Silicon Valley' in 1988.

Columbus, Ohio was founded in 1812 at the confluence of the Scioto and which other river?

It is the third-most populous state capital, after Phoenix and Austin.

Charlotte, North Carolina is named after the queen consort of which British king?

Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz became queen in 1761, seven years before the town's incorporation.

Charlotte is the second-largest banking centre in the US and headquarters of which lender?

Truist and Honeywell are also headquartered there, and Wells Fargo keeps its East Coast HQ in the city.

Fort Worth was established in 1849 as an army outpost overlooking which waterway?

It was one of a line of seven forts guarding Texas settlers after the Mexican War.

Cecil Calvert, for whom Maryland's largest city is named, held what title?

He was a founding proprietor of the Province of Maryland; the town was established in 1729.

Baltimore's Inner Harbor was the second-leading port of entry for immigrants after which site?

That immigrant flow helped make Baltimore a major manufacturing centre.

Boston was founded in 1630 by Puritans on which peninsula?

They named it after Boston, Lincolnshire; the settlement had earlier been called Tremontaine.

Which landmark, opened in 1634, was the nation's first public park?

Boston Latin School (1635) was the first public school and the Tremont Street subway (1897) the first subway.

Which Swiss-born settler was granted the task of colonising the Sacramento Valley in 1839?

Mexican governor Juan Bautista Alvarado gave him the task of colonising the Sacramento Valley.

Tampa traces its origins to which military post, established in 1824?

Vicente Martinez Ybor's cigar factories later drove rapid growth.

Tampa's Ybor City industry earned it which nickname?

Officially 'Cigar City': immigrants from Cuba, Spain and Italy rolled hundreds of millions of cigars a year for 50 years.

Missouri's Gateway city was named in 1764 for which French king?

French fur traders Pierre Laclède and Auguste Chouteau founded it on February 14 that year.

Cincinnati was originally named what by surveyor John Filson?

The name combined French and Latin syllables meaning 'town opposite the mouth of the Licking'.

Cincinnati's name honours a society named for which Roman figure?

The early Republic's dictator saved Rome and then went back to farming.

Ohio's city on the Cuyahoga was founded in 1796 by which general, whose name it took?

It was part of the Connecticut Western Reserve at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River.

Which Alabama city was nicknamed 'The Pittsburgh of the South' for its steel industry?

Founded in 1871, its rapid growth from 1881 to 1920 also earned it the name 'The Magic City'.

Richmond replaced which city as Virginia's capital in 1780?

Founded in 1737, Richmond later served as the capital of the Confederacy.

Which Native American band settled Tulsa between 1828 and 1836?

Most of Tulsa is still within the Muscogee (Creek) Nation's territory.

Which city was known for most of the 20th century as the 'Oil Capital of the World'?

It has one of the nation's largest concentrations of art deco architecture.

Which Connecticut newspaper is the oldest continuously published in the US?

Hartford also has the oldest continuously operating public art museum, the Wadsworth Atheneum.

Downtown Madison, Wisconsin sits on an isthmus between which two lakes?

The Ho-Chunk name Teejop means 'land of the four lakes'.

Which ancient people occupied the Phoenix area for 2,000 years before abandoning it?

Drought and floods between 1300 and 1450 are thought to have driven them out.

Salt Lake City's street grid uses which corner of Temple Square as its origin?

Brigham Young's settlers founded the city in 1847.

Atlanta was originally founded as what?

Sherman burned it almost to the ground during the March to the Sea.

Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson became the world's busiest airport by passenger traffic in which year?

Two years earlier the city had hosted the Summer Olympics.

Julia Tuttle, who founded Miami, was a citrus grower originally from which city?

Her crops were the only ones in Florida to survive the Great Freeze of 1894–95.

Which resort, opened in 1990, is the only theme park inside Orlando's city limits?

Walt Disney World lies about 21 miles southwest in Bay Lake.

French explorers Cadillac and Tonty founded which post in 1701, the origin of Detroit?

Cadillac envisioned it as the 'Paris of New France'.

Besides Motown, which electronic music genre did Detroit give rise to?

The city also played a key role in jazz, hip-hop, rock and punk.

Hurricane Katrina in 2005 flooded more than what share of New Orleans?

More than 1,300 people died and the population fell by over half.

Seattle is named for a chief of which peoples?

The Denny Party landed at Alki Point in November 1851 before moving to Elliott Bay.

Which British explorer was the first European to visit the Seattle area, in May 1792?

His expedition charted the Pacific Northwest for the Royal Navy.

Oregon's largest city is named after a Maine city, which was itself named after what?

Pettygrove of Portland, Maine, won the coin toss over Lovejoy of Boston.

Which city is known as the 'Birthplace of California'?

The Presidio and Mission San Diego de Alcalá of 1769 were the first European settlement in the state.

Los Angeles was awarded the Summer Olympics for a third time, for which year?

It previously hosted in 1932 and 1984.

Under which Spanish governor was Los Angeles founded on September 4, 1781?

It was built on the village of Yaanga.

After the 1906 earthquake, San Francisco hosted which world's fair nine years later?

Three-quarters of the city had been destroyed by the quake and fire.

Which two 1776 foundations at the Golden Gate were named for Francis of Assisi?

Padre Francisco Palóu led the founding of the mission.

The Great Chicago Fire of 1871 left more than how many people homeless?

The city's population nonetheless kept growing; it had been incorporated in 1837.

Which of these is NOT listed among Chicago's historic nicknames?

Steel City belongs to Pittsburgh; Chicago is also the Windy City.

Modern New York City was formed by the consolidation of its five boroughs in which year?

Each borough is coextensive with a county.

Philadelphia was founded in 1682 by which English Quaker?

Its name is Greek for 'brotherly love'.

How many National Historic Landmarks does Philadelphia contain?

Independence Hall is among them.

The District of Columbia is named for Columbia, who or what is that?

Washington stands on the north-east bank of the Potomac across from Virginia.

Houston was founded on August 30, 1836, at the confluence of two bayous: Buffalo and which other?

The site is now known as Allen's Landing.

Houston's Texas Medical Center holds what distinction?

NASA's Johnson Space Center, home of Mission Control, is also in the city.

Which Mexican trader led the 1829 expedition that named Las Vegas?

'Las vegas' means 'the meadows', describing fertile lowlands near springs on the Old Spanish Trail.

Denver was founded in 1858 at the confluence of Cherry Creek and which river?

It was named for James W. Denver, then governor of the Kansas Territory.

Anchorage began in 1915 as a tent city near the mouth of which stream?

It was a construction port for the Alaska Railroad and incorporated as a city in 1920.

Nashville is named in honour of which Continental Army general?

It was founded in 1779 as Fort Nashborough while the territory was still part of North Carolina.

Which future president was among the three founders of Memphis in 1819?

John Overton and James Winchester were the others; the Chickasaw had ceded the land in 1818.

Which Smithsonian affiliate in Memphis commemorates the site of Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination?

The city's other landmarks include Graceland, Sun Studio and the Memphis Pyramid.

How many colleges and universities does Pittsburgh have?

They include Carnegie Mellon, Duquesne and the University of Pittsburgh.

Buffalo, New York lies at the head of which waterway on the Canada–US border?

It sits on the eastern shore of Lake Erie and was incorporated in 1832.

Indianapolis was established in 1821 for what purpose?

Its slogan is 'Crossroads of America'.

Which motorcycle maker's museum is among Milwaukee's cultural institutions?

Milwaukee also hosts Summerfest, one of the world's largest music festivals.

Under what name was the Missouri city on the Kaw–Missouri confluence incorporated in 1850?

It became 'City of Kansas' in 1853 and 'Kansas City' in 1889.

Omaha's nickname 'Gateway to the West' comes from what?

Speculators from Council Bluffs, Iowa, founded the city in 1854.

Which state capital is the largest by area, ahead of Oklahoma City?

Oklahoma City is second; it was founded in the 1889 Land Run.

Albuquerque was founded in 1706 and named for a duke who was viceroy of what?

Governor Francisco Cuervo y Valdés founded it as an outpost on El Camino Real.

Which national laboratory and Air Force base give the federal government a strong presence in Albuquerque?

Sandia is one of three National Nuclear Security Administration labs.

San Antonio became the first chartered civil settlement in present-day Texas in which year?

A Spanish mission and outpost had been founded there in 1718.

Which Washington city is known as the birthplace of Father's Day?

Nicknamed 'Lilac City', it hosted Expo '74, the first environmentally themed World's Fair.

Which permanently docked ocean liner is a waterfront attraction in Long Beach, California?

The city also hosts an IndyCar Grand Prix and the Aquarium of the Pacific.

How tall is the Gateway Arch in St. Louis?

Clad in stainless steel, it is the world's tallest arch.

Which 1964 bridge overtook the Golden Gate as the world's longest suspension bridge?

The Golden Gate opened on May 27, 1937, with Joseph Strauss as chief engineer.

Chicago's Willis Tower was the world's tallest building for nearly how long after opening in 1973?

Bruce Graham and Fazlur Rahman Khan of SOM designed the 110-storey tower.

How tall is Seattle's Space Needle?

It was once the tallest building west of the Mississippi and can withstand 200 mph winds.

Which two Philadelphia workmen recast the Liberty Bell after it first cracked?

Their surnames appear on the bell, which was commissioned in 1752 from London.

In what year were the letters 'LAND' removed from the Hollywoodland sign?

It had been erected in 1923 as a temporary real-estate advertisement.

The Las Vegas Strip lies mostly in which two unincorporated towns?

It is about 4.2 miles long and sits just south of the city limits.

Nashville's Grand Ole Opry began in 1925 under what name?

George D. Hay founded it; it is the longest-running radio broadcast in US history.

Graceland is the second-most visited home in the US after which residence?

It opened as a museum on June 7, 1982, and draws about 600,000 visitors a year.

Which record executive established the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation in 1983?

Cleveland was chosen as the permanent home in 1986 and the museum was dedicated in 1995.

Boston's Freedom Trail passes how many historic sites along its 2.5 miles?

Journalist William Schofield proposed it in 1951.

Which architect submitted the 1929 plans for the San Antonio River Walk?

A disastrous 1921 flood that killed 51 people had prompted flood-control planning.

Which firm designed the Empire State Building in Art Deco style?

It stands 1,454 feet tall including its antenna and was built between 1930 and 1931.

Olmsted and Vaux won the 1858 competition to design Central Park with which entry?

Construction had begun in 1857, razing the majority-Black Seneca Village.

The Boston Marathon starts in which town?

First held in 1897, it finishes on Boylston Street near Copley Square each Patriots' Day.

Which is the earliest-established of New Orleans's Mardi Gras krewes?

Krewes are the social clubs that organise the parades.

Silicon Valley corresponds roughly to the geographical valley named for which saint?

Sunnyvale, Mountain View, Palo Alto and Menlo Park are often called its birthplace.

Motown was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. in 1959 under what original name?

The name Motown, a blend of motor and town, became a nickname for Detroit itself.

Wrigley Field opened in 1914 under what name?

It was built for the Chicago Whales of the Federal League; the Cubs first played there in 1916.

Which is the oldest active ballpark in Major League Baseball?

Home of the Red Sox since 1912, it features the Green Monster and Pesky's Pole.

Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota was built on the former site of what?

It opened in August 1992 as the largest mall in the Western Hemisphere.

Which frontier commander founded Louisville, Kentucky, on Corn Island in 1778?

The settlement grew at the portage around the Falls of the Ohio, the only major obstruction between the upper Ohio and the Gulf of Mexico.

Louisville, Kentucky, is named in honour of which French king, whose soldiers were aiding the American Revolution?

The Virginia General Assembly approved the town charter in 1780, and early residents lived in forts for protection.