What's in a (street) name?

It’s been nearly 3 years and one thing that still tickles my funny bone is how literal the street names are in this country.  We’ve left behind the world of suburbs with a common theme such as gemstones or African trees, and come to a world where the street names are quite uninspiring but have a real story to tell you.

All the regular names such as Church Street, School Lane, Park Lane and so on, all deliver what they promise.  You’ll find a church, school or park right there.  London road actually leads to London.  Even the London Road in Newcastle…if you follow it on the map (and I did this thanks to Google), it takes you along what would have been the old trade route before motorways were built.  So when the road says London, you are certainly going to end up there if you keep going.

But that’s fairly simple, I’ve seen some really peculiar street names in this country and now it’s become a game to google either the meaning or the history so that I can understand what happened, on that street, at some point in history.  

One of my favourites is Teetotal Street in St Ives, Cornwall, which is evidence of an early marketing campaign by the Methodist Church to try and encourage Cornish locals to drink less.  Clever Methodists, their campaign has now been immortalised in the town’s history and sends a message to this day. 

Outstanding marketing campaign by the Methodists

On my adventures, I’ve learned that:

Hornbeam Pightle, as difficult as it is to pronounce simply means pocket of land enclosed by a hedge.  

I would have just called it a paddock, but maybe that’s just me?

Oddfellows is a still thriving brotherhood of craftsmen or tradesmen, and you’ll usually find this street in close proximity to what would have once been a trade centre in any town.  I’ll guess that very close by you’ll find a Mill Lane or something like that.  

I originally thought this was some sort of reference to a mental hospital but no, it’s an actual career.

Ha-has are not little giggles but actually a landscape design element creating a recessed wall or fence without needing to obstruct the view. You’ll find a Ha-ha Road close to an old manor house or some important residence of a similar nature.  

I do wonder if the ha-ha got it’s name from Victorian landscapers running wildly along their creation laughing gayly at their clever designs?

Cheap Street or Cheapside would once have been central to a thriving market and these streets would have taken their name from independent shops or barrow boys that constantly called out how “cheap” their products were.  

I’ve heard how smelly these streets could have been too, which is ironic considering that most of them now are highly prized and expensive property.

Dick’s Mount is not the site of something porno, or even a red light district – it apparently is a reference to Dick Turpin, the (in)famous highwayman and his horse! 

I do think people will ride this one to death – no pun intended.

Savage Gardens is in no way a reference to wild landscape or any kind of blood-letting, but rather the garden of a well to-do Lord whose last name was Savage.  

That one was a let down for me, I really hoped for some kind of bloody history to relish.

Butthole Lane is not a haven for the a-holes of the world, but rather the site of target practice once upon a time, when archers would aim at a “butt” to hone their skills….which left a hole of course. 

With that last example, I rest my case – no matter how bizarre or how rude a street name in England sounds, it will have a very literal meaning so take the time to look it up or ask a local!