Yikes, Washington. What's the deal with all those sad place names?
Amy Rolph ponders the ubiquity of sad place names in the state of Washington:
Anyone who has road-tripped around Washington state might have noticed a depressing trend: Cape Disappointment. Point No Point. Deception Pass. Foulweather Bluff. Useless Bay. Point Defiance. Obstruction Island. Massacre Bay. Destruction Island. Dismal Nitch.
What is it about Washington that inspires such a gothic theme in its place names, Rolph wonders, digging up the reasons behind four of the dreariest examples from the state's collection: Deception Pass, Cape Disappointment, Point Defiance, and Destruction Island. The history of Destruction Island even includes an equally macabre place name in a different language: Isla de Dolores (Island of Sorrows).
If a collection of sad place names is up your sad little alley, check out earlier Planetizen coverage of an Instagram feed made up entirely of sad place names.
FULL STORY: Cape Disappointment to Deception Pass: What’s up with the depressing names?
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