If you are watching this video right now, and you are an American, there is a very good chance that you live in Springfield.
Congratulations! You live in the same city as The Simpsons! Or do you?
If you Google “Most Common American City Name,” “Springfield” is what pops up.
But guess what? GOOGLE IS WRONG. What is wrong with you, Google?
The most common American city name is actually “Riverside.”
Only four states- Alaska, Hawaii, Louisiana, and Oklahoma don’t have a city named Riverside.
There’s plenty of other places named “Riverside” in those states, but not cities.
There are 186 cities named “Riverside” in the United States.
Worldwide, Riverside ain’t got nothing on San Jose.
There are 1,716 cities named “San Jose” around the world. Yes way, Jose.
But this video was about Springfield.
Wasn’t it? I honestly forgot.
Ok, I think it was. Yes. Springfield. Springfield is still a popular name for cities and towns.
There are 41 of them in 36 states.
“Washington”, named after that George Washington dude, is the only other name of a city or town other than “Riverside” that outnumbers “Springfield.”
We’re number 3! We’re number 3!
There are three Springfields with more than 100,000 people.
One of them is a state capital.
Wisconsin has four of them.
The awesome person animating this video currently lives in one of them.
It makes sense that there’s a bunch of Riversides because there are a bunch of cities and towns beSIDE RIVERS (and people are generally not that creative with names).
It also makes sense that there are a lot of Washingtons because Washington is probably the most popular American that has ever existed.
But Springfield? It’s a bit more random.
Why are there so many Springfields?
Let’s go back to the beginning.
The oldest Springfield I could find existed at least as far back as the 1500s in Essex County, England.
In 1590, a dude named William Pynchon was born there, and he was mighty proud of that little village.
So proud of it that later on he founded a town in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1636 and named it, you guessed it...Springfield.
This town would end up becoming one of the most important and influential cities in early American history.
It played an early role in the Industrial Revolution, and was known as a center for technological innovation.
Kind of like the Silicone Valley of the early 1800s.
It was known as “The City of Progress,” as lots of stuff was invented there that still exists today.
Today Springfield, Massachusetts is known as The City of Firsts.
Basketball, postcards, dog shows, and the Republican Party all originated in the city.
As Americans moved west, they had the habit of naming new cities after cities they loved or came from back east.
Because Springfield Massachusetts was so well known and loved, it was quite common to see new towns established named after it.
Even Springfield, Illinois? Yep. Even Springfield, Missouri? Yep.
So just as much of American history has been shaped by Anglo-Saxon Protestants, much of American history has also been shaped by Springfield, Massachusetts, a town founded by, um, Anglo-Saxon Protestants.
The Springfield in The Simpsons strangely borders Ohio, Nevada, Maine, and Kentucky.
Matt Groening, the creator of The Simpsons chose the name “Springfield” as the setting for his show because he knew it was one of the most common names for a city in the country.
“Everyone will think it’s their Springfield,” he once said, and he was right.
Springfield seems to be every American’s home town.
If you're wondering why the animations are a lot better than they normally are, it's because I didn't make them.
Loren from Lorenmakesart made them and she did a phenomenal job.
Thank you, Loren, for helping me make this video.
It, made it a lot better.
Check out her channel.I posted some of my favorite videos below.
And fun fact: she used to go to the same high school where I currently teach.
True story!
Hey are you from a Springfield? Do you currently live in a Springfield?
I want to hear from you, man.
Let me know in the comments below. And thanks as always for watching and we'll see you next week!