Mistake on the Lake
photo credit: "Cleveland - Downtown from Air (Postcard c.1947) " by Roger W. (CC BY-SA 2.0) Definition: (noun phrase) Cleveland, Ohio
Example: Suzanne loved Bob, but when he told her he was being transferred to an office at the Mistake on the Lake, she decided to stay in Kissimmee.
“Now, all of a sudden, the same city that was once the poster child for urban blight has placed a surprising second in the Places Rated Almanac ranking of recreational options in 354 metropolitan areas. If Cleveland is the nation's second-best spot for recreation, its long-standing ‘Mistake on the Lake’ tag will be forced to follow the buffalo nickel, steam locomotive, and rotary telephone into the dustbin of history..”
There are the nicknames you give yourself, like Rocky, and then there are the ones that other people give you, like Stinky. Cleveland was christened “Mistake on the Lake” in the late 1960s, when the city was struggling with social and economic problems. While the derogatory term is a reference to Cleveland’s proximity to Lake Erie, another body of water was also a source of embarrassment for the city: In 1969, the Cuyahoga River, which flows through it, was so filthy with oil and debris that it caught fire from a spark and caused serious damage.
Cleveland has since improved its image through sports, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and perhaps its prominence in the Drew Carey show. However, "Mistake on the Lake" has become popular enough to be used about things other than Cleveland--like a scathing 2006 review of the film The Lake House in the Toronto Star.
But I would be remiss if I didn’t point out that many cities suffer this fate. On a theme of uncleanliness, Philadelphia has often been dubbed Filthadelphia; Nashua, New Hampshire is sometimes called Trashua; and Sioux City, Iowa earned the moniker Sewer City when it was a major destination for livestock.
Even my own fair city of Somerville, Massachusetts (a.k.a. Taxachusetts), has been called Slummerville, though not as much since it has become increasingly fashionable--and expensive--to live in. (Note that "fashionable" is a relative term. None of our neighbors in swanky Cambridge think it's fashionable to live here.)
On the other hand, some of these insults are nothing compared to the nicknames cities give themselves, like “The Barbecued Mutton Capital of the World” (Owensboro, Kentucky), “Home of the Black Squirrels” (Marysville, Kansas) or “The Clogging Capital of the World” (Maggie Valley, North Carolina). That last one sounds worse than it is, though. Having visited Maggie Valley (population: 607) I can tell you they're talking about folk dancing, not plumbing problems.
A. C. Kemp | December 4, 2008
