List of city nicknames in Missouri explained

This partial list of city nicknames in Missouri compiles the aliases, sobriquets and slogans that cities in Missouri are known by (or have been known by historically), officially and unofficially, to municipal governments, local people, outsiders or their tourism boards or chambers of commerce. City nicknames can help in establishing a civic identity, helping outsiders recognize a community or attracting people to a community because of its nickname; promote civic pride; and build community unity.^[1] Nicknames and slogans that successfully create a new community "ideology or myth" are also believed to have economic value. Their economic value is difficult to measure, but there are anecdotal reports of cities that have achieved substantial economic benefits by "branding" themselves by adopting new slogans.^[2]

Some unofficial nicknames are positive, while others are derisive. The unofficial nicknames listed here have been in use for a long time or have gained wide currency.

• • • Branson Las Vegas If Ned Flanders Ran It^[3]
• Brunswick – Home of the World's Largest Pecan^[4]
• Carthage – The Maple Leaf City^[5]
• Chillicothe – Home of Sliced Bread^[6]
• Columbia
  • The Havana on the Hinkson
  • The Athens of Missouri ^[7]
  • CoMo^[8]
• Cuba – Mural City^[9]
  • • Hannibal America's Hometown^[10]
  • The Bluff City^[11]
• Independence – Where the Trails Start and the Buck Stops^[12]
• Jefferson City
  • City of Thomas Jefferson^[13]
  • J.C.
  • Jeff
• Kansas City
  • BBQ Capital of the World^[14]
  • City of Fountains^[15]
  • Cowtown^[14]
  • Jazz Capital of the World^[14]
  • K.C. (inspiring the nickname of Casey Stengel, among others)^[14]
  • KCMO^[14]
  • Paris of the Plains^[16]
• King City – The Gem of the Highway^[17]
• Kirkwood – The Green Tree City^[18]
• Lathrop – Mule Capital of the World^[19]
• Marionville – Home of the White Squirrels^[20]
• Moberly – Magic City^[21]
• Neosho – Flower Box City^[22]
• Nixa – Home of Jason Bourne^[23]
• Peculiar – Where the Odds Are with You^[12]
• St. Louis
  • Chess Capital of the World ^[24]
  • Gateway to the West^[25]
  • Lion of the Valley^[26]
  • The Lou^[27]
  • Mound City^{[11] [25]}
  • River City^[28]
  • Rome of the West^[29]
  • There's More Than Meets the Arch^[12]
• Salem – Charcoal Capital of the World^[30]
• Sedalia – The Queen City of the Prairie^[31]
• Springfield
  • Birthplace of Route 66^[32]
  • Queen City of the Ozarks^[33]
• Sumner – Wild Goose Capital of the World^[34]
• Warrensburg – The Burg^[35]
• Washington – Corn Cob Pipe Capital of the World^[22]

See also

• List of city nicknames in the United States

Notes and References

1. Web site: Muench, David . Wisconsin Community Slogans: Their Use and Local Impacts . University of Wisconsin Extension . December 1993 . April 10, 2007 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130309175857/http://www.uwex.edu/ces/cced/economies/communityindicators/communityslogans.pdf . March 9, 2013.
2. Alfredo Andia, Branding the Generic City :), MU.DOT magazine, September 10, 2007
3. News: The Most Dangerous City in Missouri Is ... Branson?. Sarah Fenske. May 21, 2015. Riverfront Times. December 10, 2015. January 17, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180117190719/https://www.riverfronttimes.com/newsblog/2015/05/21/the-most-dangerous-city-in-missouri-is-branson. dead.
4. Web site: Wanda. McKinney. Our Favorite Town Slogans. https://web.archive.org/web/20071107124712/http://www.southernliving.com/southern/features/southerners/article/0%2C28012%2C1044912%2C00.html. 2007-11-07. Southern Living. April 2005.
5. http://www.visit-carthage.com/visitor/index.html Welcome to "America's Maple Leaf City"
6. News: Who Made That Sliced Bread? . Pagan . Kennedy . March 1, 2013 . New York Times Sunday Magazine.
7. Book: Switzler, William. History of Boone County, Missouri. St. Louis Western Historical Company. 1882. 220–221. William Franklin Switzler.
8. Web site: How CoMO does Halloween. The Maneater. July 18, 2008. Alban. Sarah. 30 October 2007. 16 October 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20081016132845/http://www.themaneater.com/stories/2007/10/30/how-como-does-halloween/. dead.
9. Web site: Cuba, Missouri: Mural City. University of Missouri – Convergence Journalism. December 10, 2015. December 22, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20151222111027/http://convergence.journalism.missouri.edu/?p=1985. dead.
10. Web site: Hannibal, MO: "America's Hometown" Amidst Fictional Landscape. Lindsey Marschka. University of Missouri. Artifacts: A Journal of Undergraduate Writing. December 2014. December 10, 2015.
11. Barry Popik, Smoky City, barrypopik.com website, March 27, 2005
12. http://www.taglineguru.com/citymottosmonikers.html Tagline Guru City Branding Survey
13. Web site: Archived copy . 2014-04-15 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140407063540/http://www.jeffcitymo.org/main/historyheritage.html . 2014-04-07 .
14. http://www.aci-na.org/asp/kansas_local.asp Kansas City Background Information
15. http://www.experiencekc.com/fountains.html City of Fountains
16. http://www.infozine.com/news/stories/op/storiesView/sid/23418/ "Kansas City Draws Upon Its Jazz Heritage at Paris Air Show"
17. Web site: 07 NE, IA Run | Travel Blog.
18. http://www.ci.kirkwood.mo.us/finance/CAFR2002LTR.pdf Comprehensive Annual Financial Report
19. http://www.lathropinfo.com/ City of Lathrop, Mo – Mule Capital of the World
20. http://www.roadsideamerica.com/set/squirrels.html White Squirrel Wars
21. http://www.moberlymo.org/ Welcome to Moberly, Missouri
22. http://www.epodunk.com/slogans/index.html Claims to Fame – Favorites
23. Web site: Nixa, Missouri: Home of Jason Bourne. Springfield News-Leader – Convergence Journalism. October 3, 2019.
24. News: Creating the world's new chess capital. BBC News. 11 May 2016.
25. http://www.taglineguru.com/monikerlist.html U.S. City Monikers
26. James Neal Primm, "Lion of the Valley: St. Louis, Missouri, 1764–1980", Saint Louis, MO: Missouri History Museum Press, 1998, p.327
27. Steve Parker, Offended by "The Lou", St. Louis Post-Dispatch editors' blog, 05.01.2008
28. Where is River City, USA? Measuring Community Attachment to the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers . 10.1080/08873630709478215. 2007 . Rice . Glenn . Urban . Michael A. . Journal of Cultural Geography . 24 . 1–35 . 144440166 .
29. Camille Phillips, "Why Is St. Louis Named After A French King Who Was Born 800 Years Ago?, St. Louis Public Radio All Things Considered, 04.22.2014
30. Web site: The World Capital of Whatever. The New York Times. Harold . Faber. 1993-09-12. 2018-11-15.
31. http://sedaliaheritage.com/heritagetrail.htm Whistle Stops 1 – 15
32. http://www.springfieldmo.org/final/newsite/ttd_page_history.asp Springfield sits at the crossroads of history!
33. Billings, Hank. "Historian puts date on origin of 'Queen City'", Springfield News-Leader, June 4, 2007. Accessed June 13, 2007. "Does Springfield's title as Queen City of the Ozarks go back to 1876?"
34. http://www.epodunk.com/slogans/birds.html Claims to Fame – Birds
35. http://www.goburg.com/ goBurg.com