this post was submitted on 18 Nov 2024
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In the United States, I'd probably name Oregon City, the famous end of the Oregon Trail and the first city founded west of the Rocky Mountains during the pioneer era. Its population is only 37,000.

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[–] fjordbasa@lemmy.world 140 points 1 month ago (4 children)

I’m in the US and I can’t say I’d heard of Oregon City before this post…

[–] Notyou@sopuli.xyz 18 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

Oregon City would be my answer to 'what's the capital of Oregon?'

Just a standard, since I never heard of the capital I'll try the state name plus city guess.

[–] CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org 3 points 1 month ago (1 children)
[–] Notyou@sopuli.xyz 5 points 1 month ago

I just looked it up. Salem is the capital. Portland is the largest city.

[–] boyi@lemmy.sdf.org 9 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I am not in the US. Never heard of Oregon City. But Atlantic City sounds really familiar.

[–] Death_Equity@lemmy.world 4 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Fairly big city and a tourist destination if you are too trash to go to Reno, which is where you go if you are too trash to go to Vegas.

[–] dubyakay@lemmy.ca 1 points 1 month ago

Ocean City is the new Atlantic City anyway.

[–] NateNate60@lemmy.world 6 points 1 month ago (8 children)

I thought the Oregon Trail was a pretty standard part of US history curriculum.

[–] GeorgeGR@lemmy.world 73 points 1 month ago (2 children)

From US, played Oregon trail for hundreds of hours, didn't remember Oregon City.

[–] GeorgeGR@lemmy.world 70 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (2 children)

Nantucket Massachusetts 10k

Aspen Colorado 7k

Jackson Hole Wyoming 10k

Key West Florida 25k

Probably all more famous and smaller population.

[–] brygphilomena@lemmy.world 38 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Tombstone, AZ has a population of 1,313.

[–] stringere@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 month ago

Hannibal, MO - 16,838 - back when people read books they'd know this as the birthplace of Samuel Clemens AKA Mark Twain

[–] Montagge@lemmy.zip 7 points 1 month ago

I think the game ended in The Dalles didn't it?

[–] 69420@lemmy.world 17 points 1 month ago

I too have never heard of Oregon City. I can only assume it's in Oregon. The only thing I remember about the Oregon Trail is that I died from dysentery every time I followed the trail.

[–] fjordbasa@lemmy.world 13 points 1 month ago

It was popular, but I think most folks who played it remember dying of dysentery, not the cities πŸ˜†

We were taught about it, but most Americans don't view westward expansion with the same... Reverence? Notoriety?

Like, I remember learning about it across multiple grades, but... Oregon City being the final destination, that's not something I would probably remember a year or two later, nevermind a decade or more.

[–] over_clox@lemmy.world 5 points 1 month ago

Not really, not in our school district anyways. They did allow us to play the game based on that on their ancient computers, but never really gave us historical context, nor were we required to play the game.

I didn't learn shit about it back then, and barely get it today. I'm 42 years old for reference.

Oregon trail, yes, Oregon city, no. I remember learning that it went from independence Missouri to the Willamette Valley. If I had to guess where I thought it ended, I would have said Portland.

[–] sping@lemmy.sdf.org 2 points 1 month ago

But most of the world did not have the US education system. I'd say only some Americans have heard of Oregon City, and very few non Americans.

[–] pixelscript@lemm.ee 1 points 1 month ago

It is. But that's not saying much.

I may have had to keep a few of the waypoints of the trail in my head for, oh, a week or so, just long enough to scribble it on a history test. Then that information was immediately cleared out to make way for whatever other junk we had to temporarily memorize next chapter.

Only a vague, blurry notion that the Oregon Trail A) existed and B) was a trail to (presumably) somewhere in Oregon remains with me today. Oregon City is certainly not a part of that notion.

Not to shit on the Oregon Trail or Oregon City in particular, of course. I would be truly baffled to meet anyone that retained, in significant detail, even a tenth of what any grade school history class purportedly taught them.

[–] ColeSloth@discuss.tchncs.de 3 points 1 month ago

For real. I'd think many more people could name Panama city in Florida. Famous spring break and vacation city every kid who's gone through college or listened to Van Halen knows of. Also has a population of less than 36,000 people.