Originally by Raymond Chen (raymondc@microsoft.com)
Currently maintained by Dave Hall (davehall@cyberspc.mb.ca)
I'm from Springfield, IL, and one of the local papers recently had an interview with MG. In it he was asked about `Springfield' and he replied that he chose it because it is one of the most common city names. [Date 16 Nov 90]
Paul Jeong wrote:
Groening, Nancy Cartwright, and several others involved with the show came to UCLA. When asked about where is Springfield? Groening gave the standard answer about how he picked it because it was a common name. He also said he got the name from "father knows best." [Date 4 Mar 92]
Scene: A train station. Herbert Powell is at the ticket
booth.
Herb: I want a ticket to Springfield.
Ticket Agent: Springfield, Illinois?
Herb: No.
Ticket Agent: Springfield, Massachusetts?
Herb: No, Springfield...
As Herb says the name of the state, a train whistle blows,
preventing us from hearing the answer.
The very real town of Tennant Creek, NT was said to have been founded when a road train (a tractor trailer-trailer-trailer another Outback phenomenon) laden with beer broke down on the road between Darwin and Alice Springs. The drivers made themselves comfortable to enjoy their cargo, found some ore deposits, and thereby founded the town.
Now, Homer J. Simpson of Springfield, NT (a town of 0-20 or so people) was just such a driver, and the beer combined with the dry desert heat made him see all sorts of wonderful messages and dreams, the contents of which he wrote on the backs of over 200 empty beer cases. Matt Groening, on an Australian holiday, found the truck, the corpse, and the messages. And this was the origin of the show.
- Dmitri Brengauz
- Kwik-E-Mart is really Quick Stop.
- Ft. Springfield is really Ft. Bragg.
- the multiculture of Springfield is similar to Fayetteville.
- Springfield's statue is similar to Fayetteville's statue.
- The stupidity of Fayetteville's government is similar to
Springfield's.
- The stinking sewer plant is similar to Fayetteville's.
- The nuclear plant is similar to the power plant located
across the river.
- Kevin Swanson
[7G01] Bart & Lisa watch ``America's Most Armed and
Dangerous''.
[7G02] Bart calls Homer a ``balding North American ape''.
[7G10] Bart joins the ``Future Photographers of America'' club.
[7F06] Lance Murdoch says, ``The United States of America has the
best doctor-to-daredevil ratio in the world.''
[7F07] Pauline M Muggli (pmmuggli@uokmax.ecn.uoknor.edu) observes
that Springfield is in a country that celebrates
Thanksgiving, complete with pilgrims and Indians. Also,
Bart dreams of Uncle Sam.
[7F16] When Herbert Powell asks Homer what country he's from,
Homer proudly announces, ``America!''. (Just goes to show
that Homer doesn't know the name of his own country, I
guess.)
[7F21] Bart says to the bank clerk, ``Americanize this, my good
man.''
[7F22] Monty Burns dictates his epitaph to read, ``Charles
Montgomery Burns, American Patriot''.
[8F01] So much evidence it isn't funny.
[8F04] Homer says, ``Hey, this is the only paper in America
that's not afraid to tell the truth.''
[8F22] Homer takes part in the Fourth of July parade.
[9F02] Troy says, ``Live from beautiful Laughlin, Nevada, it's
the Miss American Girl Pageant!''
[9F06] Marge states you can see the Simpson house in the photo of
TIME's cover story: ``America's Worst City''.
[9F19] Bart says, ``That cute little character could take America
by storm.''
[9F20] Lionel Hutz says, ``If there's one thing America needs,
it's more lawyers.''
[1F01] Homer says, ``Mmmm, sixty four slices of American
cheese.''
[1F04] Neddy Devil says, ``Oh, you Americans with your due
process and fair trials.''
[1F07] Mrs. Krabappel says, ``...and in our American democracy,
everyone is innocent until proven guilty. (Bart replies,
``God bless America.'')
[1F12] Malibu Stacey promotional film: ``Malibu Stacy --
America's favourite 8 1/2 incher.''
[1F13] NASA Scientist says, ``People, we're in danger of losing
our funding. America isn't interested in space exploration
any more.''
Homer frequently chants, ``U-S-A! U-S-A!''
aa588@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Eddie Anthony): After checking my Rand-McNally road Atlas, here are your choices: Colorado Florida Georgia Illinois Kentucky Louisiana Massachusetts Minnesota Missouri Nebraska New Jersey Ohio Oregon Pennsylvania South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Vermont Virginia These are the only states to show a Springfield in the atlas. Many also had a Springvale, or a Springdale, or a Springbrook, but only those 19 had a Springfield. trb@ima.isc.com (Andrew Tannenbaum): According to the geographic database at telnet martini.eecs.umich.edu 3000, the 34 following US states/possesions have at least one Springfield: Alabama Arkansas California Colorado Florida Georgia Idaho Illinois Indiana Kentucky Louisiana Massachusetts Maryland Maine Michigan Minnesota Missouri North Carolina Nebraska New Hampshire New Jersey New York Ohio Oregon Pennsylvania South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Virginia Virgin Islands Vermont Wisconsin West Virginia
Daniel Watts (watd@uhura.cc.rochester.edu): Last week I drove through Scranton, PA. Now that's a town with serious Springfield potential! Bruce Schulman (bruce.schulman@l-byte.com): I have settled upon the State of Franklin. Since it ceased to exist in 1788, it is only a "state of mind" today -- perfect for the Simpsons. Or, maybe they're in a state of mindlessness. Wade George (wade.george@canrem.com): There was a "State of Franklin" set up by a group of disgruntled counties in Northern California and Southern Oregon in 1941 and since I've always thought that Springfield was in a North-western U.S. State., Franklin would be prefect, it could explain everything. Nick Jesdanun (njesdanun@delphi.com): It's got to be Springfield, Pa. First, there's a Springfield Mall in Springfield. Second, this Philadelphia suburb is relatively close to three capital cities -- Harrisburg, Pa.; Trenton, N.J.; and Dover, Del. Well, close meaning within an hour and a half drive. Steve Portigal (stevep@rahul.net): A section of Portland (NW) has street names that are alphabetical. They include: Flanders, Quimby, and Lovejoy. TP Uschanov (uschanov@cc.joensuu.fi): I just noticed that "Bart the Murderer" seems to indicate that the Simpsons' home state (1) has capital punishment and (2) is by electrocution. States that do are Alabama, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Nebraska, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.
Alabama, Minnesota, New York
- Other states which had their own essay competitions. [8F01]
Alabama
- A store in Springfield Mall has things from this state. [7F22]
- One of the frat brothers comes from the Alabama chapter. [8F10]
Alaska
- Krusty's guest brings an Alaskan timberwolf on his show. [9F05]
- The family's free trip to any state didn't include Alaska. [2F08]
California
- Los Angeles is mentioned on the Michelangelo's David
coast-to-coast tour of United States. {see note below} [7F09]
- Homer's little friend, the Shoeshine boy, wants to go there. [2F10]
Florida
- The Top Hat Channel is not available in Florida or Utah. [7F13]
- The Winfields move there. [9F06]
- Abe sent the family a postcard from this state. [2F06]
Georgia
- one of Krusty's students is from this state. [2F12]
Hawaii
- Not within driving distance of Michigan. [7F16]
- Horst informs SNPP drunks they'll spend six weeks at their
drying-out facility in Hawaii. [8F09]
- Homer wants to take the whole family there. [9F17]
- The family's free trip to any state didn't include Hawaii. [2F08]
Illinois
- Springfield is not the state capital [7F01] {dwt}
- Chicago is mentioned on the Michelangelo's David coast-to-coast
tour of United States. {see note below} [7F09]
- The driver's licence agency is not called `DMV' [7F15] {dwt}
- Troy let's a kid in Chicago answer a math question. [2F15]
Iowa
- Bart & Lisa's aptitude tests were graded in this state. [8F15]
Louisiana
- Mt. Splashmore services the tri-county area. [7F18]
- Chief Wiggum located a hole-digger in Shreveport [8F11]
Maryland
- Milhouse has a Krusty trading card showing Krusty visiting
relatives in Annapolis, Maryland. [1F04]
Massachusetts
- Boston is mentioned on the Michelangelo's David coast-to-coast
tour of United States. {see note below} [7F09]
Michigan
- in [7F16], they drive home, passing a sign that says, ``You are
leaving Michigan''.
- The Box factory boxes are not assembled in Springfield, but in
Flint, Michigan. [1F11]
Mississippi
- Krusty started out as a street mime in Tupelo. [7G12]
Missouri
- Marge mentions the bowling museum in ``Saint Looee, Missouri''
[7F15] {dwt}
- Abe mentions his state, [2F06]
Nevada
- Burns asks Homer if he's aware of the state's usury laws.
Nevada has none. [8F06] {sg2}
New Hampshire
- one of Krusty's students is from this state. [2F12]
New Jersey
- Leon says ``I'm a bricklayer from Paterson, New Jersey.'' [7F24]
New York
- New York is mentioned on the Michelangelo's David
coast-to-coast tour of United States. {see note below} [7F09]
- one of Krusty's students is from Brooklyn. [2F12]
Ohio
- There are no Kwik-E-Marts in Ohio. [1F10]
Texas
- Bea says, ``I'm haunting a family in Texas'' [7F17]
- Krusty mentions this state [9F01]
- one of Krusty's students is from this state. [2F12]
Utah
- The Top Hat Channel is not available in Florida or Utah. [7F13]
Washington D.C.
- An executive at the Malibu Stacey factory calls in a favour
from Washington. [1F12]
- Springfield is represented by a Senator. [2F11] {ah}
West Virginia
- Lisa wails for the West Virginia coal-miner. [7G06]
{Note: It could be said that Springfield might be in the same
state is one of the other four cities mentioned by the artist
in [7F09].}
[title sequence] Springfield is hilly. {ls} It is small enough
to have only one elementary school, namely, `Springfield
Elementary School'.
[7G07] Springfield was founded by a bear-fighting woodsman. {ls}
[7G13] Springfield has its own International Airport. {ls}
[7F01] The state flag has three horizontal bands, green above
white above red (maybe orange). The state motto is `Not
just another state'. {kcc} Springfield is north of (or
uphill of) the state capital.
[7F02] Homer's social security number is 568-47-0008, and the
568 prefix is typically issued in California.
[7F03] Springfield is far enough north to get snow (and for the
residents to have plenty of snow-related equipment), but
south enough that six inches of snow will close the
schools.
[7F05] The Springfield Topes faced teams from Shelbyville,
Salem, and Burlington. These would be towns and small
cities from the same area as Springfield. {kcc}
[7F06] Bart attempted to jump Springfield gorge (a la Evel
Knievel) on his skateboard. Typically, gorges are cut
either by glacial action or fast rushing rivers (see the
Grand Canyon). {rd}
[7F08] Springfield is located west of the Mississippi River
since the call letters of the radio station begins with a
`K'. {ck} There are some exceptions to the `K/W' rule,
though.
[7F09] The Springfield television station is big enough to have
affiliates.
[7F12] Artie says, ``Woe unto Shelbyville, should they
underestimate our strength in dramatic interpretation,''
and later Marge says, ``You the city forensics
finals are tomorrow, and you kept me here until 1am
pretending to be stupid?'' What does this mean?
Possible explanations can be found in the capsule for
7F12.
[7F15] Selma was wearing a `Springfield U' sweatshirt. The
agency that distributes driver's licences is called the
`DMV'. The ZIP codes (90701 and 90702) correspond to
Artesia, California.
[7F16] The family drove to Detroit, Michigan within one week.
[7F17] Grampa has to cross the state border to reach a casino,
so Springfield must be in a state that borders Nevada or
New Jersey. But it can't be New Jersey because New Jersey
allows casino gambling only in Atlantic City, which isn't
a border town.
[7F18] The address on the letter is ``Marge Bouvier,
Springfield, USA.'' {rc}
[7F24] Springfield has a garage/shop called `Smog Check' or
something similar. It is the background when Apu is
talking on the phone, finding out about Michael's visit.
So Springfield must be in a state that actually enforces
emissions laws. {sg}
Route 401 passes through the city. (The highway
reappears in [8F17] and [8F21].)
[8F01] Springfield is near the south-east corner of a state that
is landlocked on the South-east corner. Moreover, that
corner is common to three other state corners, and there
is only one Four Corners in the USA, suggesting Utah.
Unfortunately, the borders at the corners are crooked,
whereas in the real USA, they're straight. And {ag}
points out that that region of Utah is VERY desolate.
The state abbreviation on the map was `NT', {cpc}
although the address on the junk mail was `TA'. {rm}
They flew into Dulles.
[8F04] The map on which the TV reporters have marked the
lethality zones clearly shows Springfield to be a city on
the West side of the mouth of a river which flows South.
{dg2}
[8F14] The radio station's call letters are WKxxx. Spanish
conquistadors roamed the Rancho Relaxo area.
[8F17] The state Springfield is in has a lottery, for which the
odds of winning are 1 in 380,000,000. (I.e., choose 6 of
83.) The state also contains Swartzwelder County.
[8F20] Sideshow Bob and Selma walk along an ocean beach.
[8F21] Otto's driver's licence looks a hecukvalot like the
California driver's licence. Complete with the useless
dot in the corner. (Yes, I know it's not useless.)
[8F22] Samantha says they moved from Phoenix, but doesn't say
``Arizona''. So they might be in Arizona...
[8F24] Krusty drives Bart & Lisa to Tijuana.
[9F01] Homer drives his car off a dock in Springfield Harbour,
only to learn the garbage barge he landed on is headed to
Garbage island.
[9F02] Lisa welcomes a boatload of immigrants in Springfield
Harbour, only to learn that they're being deported.
[9F07] Springfield is in a part of the country where snow is
common.
[9F08] Captain McAllister is attacked by a shark on a house
boat.
[9F10] Marge drives to North Haverbrook, a city in the mid-west.
Kent says Springfield's zip code is 90201. TP Uschanov
(uschanov@cc.joensuu.fi) points out that 90201 is also
used for Cerritos, CA, not just Artesia, and that 90701
is Cudahy, Bell and Bell Gardens, CA. All these towns are
in Los Angeles county.
[9F20] when Snake hauls away the Kwik-E-Mart, a highway sign
reads "Mexico City 485" {mk}
[1F06] Homer, Ned, Bart and Todd drift towards an offshore oil
rig. This oil rig is shown on Krusty Burger fun map to
be near NY.
[1F08] Springfield has a boardwalk.
[1F17] In this ep, we saw that OFF's neighbourhood and Martin's
have fenced- in backyards without alleys, endemic to the
southern California suburbs. {th}
[1F18] Springfield is near an ocean.
[2F01] The family drove to Itchy & Scratchy Land.
[2F02] In this episode, Springfield Prison appears to be on an
island that is similar to Alcatraz Island.
Springfield is within driving distant of Archie's
Riverdale.
[2F04] Springfield has a lighthouse commanded by Captain
McAllister.
[2F07] Abe shows Homer the place where he grew up. Sources
place Homer's birthplace in North Carolina, so
Springfield could be in NC. {bw}
[2F08] Homer search for a new watering hole leads him to the
Cheers Bar -- which is in Boston, Massachusetts.
The airplane that Homer and Marge were in crashes into
the ocean on take off.
[2F15] Bart says he went to a strip club. That kind of place is
illegal in many states. {rda}
[2F22] Springfield is within walking distance of Shelbyville.
Springfield Elementary School [title sequence]
Springfield Nuclear Power Plant [title sequence]
Springfield State Prison [title sequence]
Springfield Tire Yard [title sequence]
Springfield Arts [7G06]
Springfield Museum of Natural History [7G06,7F19]
First Church of Springfield [7G07]
Springfield Downs [7G08]
Springfield Primate Institute [7G09]
Springfield Mall [7G11,8F12,8F14]
Springfield International Airport [7G13]
Springfield Kozy Kourt Motel [7F05]
Springfield Savings [7F05]
Springfield War Memorial Stadium [7F05,8F08]
home of the Springfield Isotopes (minor league baseball)
Springfield Center for the Performing Arts [7F06]
Springfield General Hospital [7F06,9F09,1F02]
Springfield Gorge [7F06,9F12]
Springfield Speedway [7F06]
Springfield Plasma Center [7F07]
Springfield Retirement Home (Castle) [7F07]
Springfield High School [7F12,9F16]
Springfield Department of Motor Vehicles [7F15,8F21]
Springfield Revolving Restaurant [7F15]
Springfield Tower [7F15]
Springfield University [7F15,2F06]
Springfield Mystery Spot [7F17,8F13]
Springfield Art Museum (Burns Wing) [7F18]
Springfield Community College [7F18]
Springfield Museum [7F19,1F09]
Springfield Post Office [7F22]
(The painting in the Springfield Post Office suggests that the
post office has been around since at least the Depression.)
Springfield Collection Agency [7F23]
Michael Jackson Expressway [7F24,8F17]
Springfield National Forest [8F01]
Veterans of Popular Wars building [8F01]
Springfield County Courthouse [8F03]
(maybe not in Springfld)
Old Springfield Library [8F05, 8F15]
Springfield Lower East Side [8F05]
Olde Springfield Towne [8F10,9F18]
Mount Springfield [8F12]
Springfield Public Library [8F12]
Fort Springfield [8F13,9F02]
Springfield Heights [8F13]
Springfield Memorial Stadium [8F13]
Springfield Trade Center [8F13]
The Springfield Trade Center had the base of the World Trade
Center and the top of the Empire State Building (or was it the
Chrysler Building?) which proves once and for all that
Springfield is New York City... {sg}
Springfield Animal Hospital [8F17]
Springfield Dog Pound [8F17]
Springfield River [8F17]
Springfield Barber College [8F17,9F03]
Springfield Googolplex Theatres [8F19,8F22]
Springfield Coliseum (hockey rink) [8F21]
Springfield Tire Yard [8F21]
Springfield Civic Center [8F23,9F16]
Springfield Harbour [9F01,9F19]
Springfield Wax Museum [9F02]
Springfield's forbidding Widow's Peak [9F07]
Springfield Medical Library [9F09]
Springfield Escalator to Nowhere {jw} [9F10]
Popsicle Stick Skyscraper {jw} [9F10]
Springfield Sperm Bank [9F11]
Springfield-X theatre [9F13]
Springfield Grapplarium [9F15]
Springfield Hardware [9F17]
Christian fundamentalist school {jw} [9F18]
Springfield Women's Prison [9F20]
Springfield A&M University {jw} [1F02]
Springfield College [1F02]
Springfield Men's Shelter [1F05]
Springfield Lake [1F14]
Springfield Arboretum [1F15]
Springfield Tar Pits [1F15]
Springfield Palace Hotel [1F19]
Springfield Community Center [2F02,2F12]
Springfield Hall of Records [2F02]
Springfield Skating Rink [2F05]
Springfield Youth Center [2F05]
Springfield Psychiatric Center [2F08]
Springfield Armoury [2F11]
Springfield Meadow [2F15]
Jebediah Springfield park [2F21]
That's a lot of stuff for a small suburban town to have...
Things in nearby towns:
Shelbyville Orphanage [7F16]
Mount Splashmore [7F18]
New Bedlam Rest Home for the Emotionally
Interesting [7F24]
Shelbyville Nuclear Power Plant [8F04]
Swartzwelder County [8F17]
Spittle County [8F19]
Duff Gardens [9F11]
North Haverbrook Elementary [1F11]
Shelbyville Elementary [1F11]
Spittle County Elementary [1F11]
Contributors to this list
rda - Robbie De Arras (jrd@Maduin.WestLab.com)
dgb - Dmitri G. Brengauz (dbrngz@freenet.scri.fsu.edu)
cpc - Chuck Collins (cpc@cpc.Eng.Sun.COM)
kcc - Ken Cox (kcc@wucs1.wustl.edu)
rc - Ron Carter (rcarter@nyx.cs.du.edu)
rd - Richard Dale (richard.dale@sound.com)
ag - Andrew Gerber (gerber@solbourne.com)
sg - Sean Graves (sean@cs.tamu.edu)
sg2- Sarang Gupta (sgupta@coral.cs.unm.edu)
ah - Allan Harvey (aharvey@boulder.nist.gov)
th - Tony Hill (tony.hill@msbbs.mn.org)
dh2- David Hyatt (dhyatt@leland.Stanford.EDU)
ck - Chris Krieg (chris@pterodactyl.cis.ohio-state.edu)
mk - Mike Kosenski (kosenski@kinglear.cs.colorado.edu)
rm - Rich McGee (mcgee@nic.csu.net)
ks - Kevin Swanson (kevin@ksmith.com)
ls - Lorenzo Sadun (sadun@acf9.nyu.edu)
dwt - David Tamkin
bw - Breck Witte (witte@hawthorne.cul.columbia.edu)
jw - Jonathan Whatley (Jonathan_Whatley@galaxy.com)
This page is copyrighted © 1995 David Hall /
davehall@cyberspc.mb.ca