Only 4 states don’t have a town named after this water-side location: data

The most common name for a U.S. town isn't named after anyone at all. It’s more about the geography of the region.

by Addy Bink | Apr. 03, 2023

Menifee Lake and neighborhood, in Riverside County, California, is seen in an aerial photo. (Getty)

Story at a glance

In all but four states, you’ll find a city or town, village or neighborhood named “Riverside.”

Nowhere is it more prevalent than in Georgia, which is home to 10 different communities named Riverside, including two in the same county.

Virginia, home to seven Riverside communities, also has two occurrences within the same county.

(NEXSTAR) – It’s not uncommon to visit another state and learn it has a town bearing the same name as a town in your state.

Take, for example, Springfield, Illinois. If you visit Missouri, you’ll also find a Springfield. If you love Cleveland, Ohio, you may also love the Village of Cleveland in Wisconsin — though it is vastly smaller.

Maybe you’re a history buff and prefer more presidential cities.

Presidents George Washington and James Madison have the most cities named after them at 27, according to the U.S. Postal Service. And though he was never president, Founding Father Benjamin Franklin’s name is the most prevalent as a city at 28.

Yet the most common name for a U.S. town isn’t named after anyone at all. It’s more about the geography of the region.

In all but four states, you’ll find a city or town, village or neighborhood named “Riverside,” data from the U.S. Geological Survey reports. In some states, you’ll find more than one community named for its location along the riverbanks.

Nowhere is it more prevalent than in Georgia, which is home to 10 different communities named Riverside, including two in the same county. Virginia, home to seven Riverside communities, also has two occurrences within the same county.

A handful of states — New Mexico, Tennessee, Utah, and West Virginia — are home to five Riversides.

According to USGS data, these states have more than one populated place named Riverside.

Alabama: 4	Maryland: 4	Oregon: 3
Arkansas: 4	Massachusetts: 4	Pennsylvania: 2
California: 4	Michigan: 2	South Carolina: 2
Colorado: 2	Mississippi: 2	Tennessee: 5
Connecticut: 2	Missouri: 3	Texas: 2
Florida: 3	Montana: 4	Utah: 5
Georgia: 10	New Jersey: 2	Vermont: 2
Idaho: 2	New Mexico: 5	Virginia: 7
Indiana: 3	New York: 4	Washington: 2
Iowa: 2	North Carolina: 4	West Virginia: 5
Kansas: 2	Ohio: 2	Wisconsin: 3

In California (which has four Riverside communities), for example, you’ll find the most populous Riverside along the Santa Ana River 50 miles east of Los Angeles in Riverside County. Further north, you’ll find the Riverside neighborhood near the Sacramento River in Sacramento and Riverside Heights in Modesto. Humboldt County is also home to a Riverside.

Riverside is less popular in these states, where there is only one occurrence reported: Arizona, Delaware, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota, and Wyoming.

Have you caught which states don’t have a Riverside? If not, those are Alaska, Hawaii, Louisiana, and Oklahoma.

USGS lists no populated places with ‘river’ in their names in Hawaii and Oklahoma. In Louisiana, there are more than a dozen communities, like River Oaks (four places bear such a name, not including West River Oaks and South River Oaks), False River, and River Bend. Alaska also has numerous communities paying homage to a nearby river, like Drift River, Funny River, Wood River, and Eagle River.

Using this map from the USGS, you can find your nearest Riverside community — and don’t be surprised if it is, in fact, near a river.