Country roads and streets are assigned numerical route numbers and formal names. Country people rarely use the formal names but instead reference landmarks when giving directions. For example, you might be told “head east toward the Baptist church, turn left where the Taste-E-Freez used to be and its right next to the Johnson’s garage” when asking a country person how to get to 423 Henderson Street. When country people do reference streets the informal names they use are based on landmarks. County highways are named for either the distance of the highway (The Six Mile), the destination of the highway (Elmwood Blacktop) or for a landmark on the road (Grain Bin Road). Streets in town are named for people who used to live on them. Obviously, this can prove challenging for visitors. If you plan to visit a country town familiarize yourself with the following landmarks to ensure that your travel goes smoothly: schools, former schools, churches, former churches, the bank, city hall, the fire station, where Mr. Roberts parks his truck, “the four-way stop” and the cemetery.
This has got to be my favorite one! ……just go past the Graffiti Barn until you get to Wilkinson’s curve. But there are both North and South Wilkinson’s curves, so make sure you know your directions!