Best And Worst Located State Capitals - Page 9

sopas ej · #**161** Posted **Apr 12, 2021, 4:08 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Buckeye Native 001

Fun fact: Pasadena's city hall was used for establishing shots of Pawnee, IN's city hall in "Parks and Recreation"

It's been used in plenty of films and other TV shows, too...

Some examples, it's in an episode of "Green Acres" as an unnamed state's capitol, I think it was used as the supposed embassy of a fictitious country in the spy TV series "It Takes a Thief,"

It substituted for somewhere in Spain in "American Pie II," and it was used (through rear projection) as the dictator's palace in Charlie Chaplin's "The Great Dictator."

(four 0 four) · #**162** Posted **Apr 12, 2021, 6:08 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

Love San Fran's city hall. Gorgeous. I toured it when I visited SF in 2017

It really is stunning. I had a picture I took blown up into a photo mural for my bedroom wall.

Cirrus · #**163** Posted **Apr 12, 2021, 6:46 PM**

Late to the party here, but what the hell.

IMO if a state has a clear and unchallenged Alpha city, that city should be its capital. Denver, Atlanta, Boston, Indianapolis. These are perfect no matter where they're located in the state. Even Cheyenne I would say fits this description, small as it is.

When there's not a clear Alpha city, then you want centrality to the state's population distribution (not necessarily geography). Annapolis is good for Maryland despite it being irrelevant economically.

Let's make a list! I love lists!

A grade indicates a perfect capital.
B indicates it's good enough to remain but not ideal.
C indicates it's bad and I want to move it, but it could be worse.
F indicates it's truly a terrible choice.

Code:

STATE	CAPITAL		GRADE	BETTER CAPITAL
AL	Montgomery	C	Birmingham
AK	Juneau		F	Anchorage
AZ	Phoenix		A
AR	Little Rock	A	
CA	Sacto		B	(No better choices)
CO	Denver		A
CT	Hartford	A
DE	Dover		B	Wilmington
FL	Tallahassee	F	Orlando
GA	Atlanta		A
HI	Honolulu	A
ID	Boise		A
IL	Springfield	C	Chicago
ID	Indianapolis	A
IA	Des Moines	A
KS	Topeka		A
KY	Frankfort	A	(Between the population centers)
LA	Baton Rouge	B	New Orleans
ME	Augusta		B	Portland
MD	Annapolis	A	(Between the population centers)
MA	Boston		A
MI	Lansing		C	Detroit
MN	St Paul		B	Minneapolis
MS	Jackson		A
MO	Jefferson City	C	Columbia
MT	Helena		B  	(No better choices)
NE	Lincoln		B	Omaha
NV	Carson City	C	Las Vegas
NH	Concord		B	Manchester
NJ	Trenton		A	(Between the population centers)
NM	Santa Fe	B	Albuquerque
NY	Albany		C	NY
NC	Raleigh		C	Greensboro
ND	Bismarck	A	
OH	Columbus	A
OK	OK City		A
OR	Salem		C	Portland
PA	Harrisburg	A	(Between the population centers)
RI	Providence	A
SC	Columbia	A
SD 	Pierre		B	(No better choices)
TN	Nashville	A
TX	Austin		A	(Between the population centers)
UT	SLC		A
VT	Montpelier	C	Burlington or Rutland
VA	Richmond	A
WA	Olympia		C	Seattle
WV	Charleston	A	
WI	Madison		C	Milwaukee
WY	Cheyenne	A

Manitopiaaa · #**164** Posted **Apr 12, 2021, 6:58 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boisebro

if you were to replace your current capital city with a new one, where would it be?

for Wisconsin, Wausau makes sense geographically, but the population center of the state is in Markesan in the SE part of the state, and not far from Madison. so Madison seems to be a decent location.

for Idaho, the geographic center of the state would be Challis. while technically centrally located, Challis would be far from the larger population centers in the state and not easy to get to.

the current population center of the state is somewhere in this valley in the Sawtooth mountains:

would be a nice scenic location for a state capital, but even worse than Challis when it comes to convenient access. and the population center keeps drifting southwest of here towards Boise, so it would eventually be even deeper within the Sawtooth range.

thus, Boise is probably a decent location for the capital.

so for Wisconsin and Idaho, congrats: you can keep your capitals where they are.

The population center only keeps drifting SW because that's where Boise is. If Boise were not state capital, it'd be another Pocatello and the population center wouldn't be drifting SW.

Manitopiaaa · #**165** Posted **Apr 12, 2021, 7:02 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cirrus

Late to the party here, but what the hell.

IMO if a state has a clear and unchallenged Alpha city, that city should be its capital. Denver, Atlanta, Boston, Indianapolis. These are perfect no matter where they're located in the state. Even Cheyenne I would say fits this description, small as it is.

When there's not a clear Alpha city, then you want centrality to the state's population distribution (not necessarily geography). Annapolis is good for Maryland despite it being irrelevant economically.

Let's make a list! I love lists!

A grade indicates a perfect capital.
B indicates it's good enough to remain but not ideal.
C indicates it's bad and I want to move it, but it could be worse.
F indicates it's truly a terrible choice.

Code:

STATE	CAPITAL		GRADE	BETTER CAPITAL
AL	Montgomery	C	Birmingham
AK	Juneau		F	Anchorage
AZ	Phoenix		A
AR	Little Rock	A	
CA	Sacto		B	(No better choices)
CO	Denver		A
CT	Hartford	A
DE	Dover		B	Wilmington
FL	Tallahassee	F	Orlando
GA	Atlanta		A
HI	Honolulu	A
ID	Boise		A
IL	Springfield	C	Chicago
ID	Indianapolis	A
IA	Des Moines	A
KS	Topeka		A
KY	Frankfort	A	(Between the population centers)
LA	Baton Rouge	B	New Orleans
ME	Augusta		B	Portland
MD	Annapolis	A	(Between the population centers)
MA	Boston		A
MI	Lansing		C	Detroit
MN	St Paul		B	Minneapolis
MS	Jackson		A
MO	Jefferson City	C	Columbia
MT	Helena		B  	(No better choices)
NE	Lincoln		B	Omaha
NV	Carson City	C	Las Vegas
NH	Concord		B	Manchester
NJ	Trenton		A	(Between the population centers)
NM	Santa Fe	B	Albuquerque
NY	Albany		C	NY
NC	Raleigh		C	Greensboro
ND	Bismarck	A	
OH	Columbus	A
OK	OK City		A
OR	Salem		C	Portland
PA	Harrisburg	A	(Between the population centers)
RI	Providence	A
SC	Columbia	A
SD 	Pierre		B	(No better choices)
TN	Nashville	A
TX	Austin		A	(Between the population centers)
UT	SLC		A
VT	Montpelier	C	Burlington or Rutland
VA	Richmond	A
WA	Olympia		C	Seattle
WV	Charleston	A	
WI	Madison		C	Milwaukee
WY	Cheyenne	A

I think any metropolitan area that hits 5 million should become a state capital by virtue of its achievement. I care less about centrality in an era where you can remote work from 2,000 miles away. I think State Capitol should be a token of accomplishment. Nobody is horseback riding for 2 days to visit their State capital anymore. So if there are more than one metro areas that qualify, it's time to chop the state in half.

By my count, these should be State Capitals:

Atlanta (is)
Boston (is)
Chicago (is not)
Dallas (is not/North Texas new state)
Detroit (is not)
Houston (is not/South Texas new state)
Los Angeles (is not/Socal new state)
Miami (is not/South Florida new state)
New York (is not)
Philadelphia (is not)
Phoenix (is)
San Francisco (is not, relocate from Sacramento)
Washington (is not...yet)

JManc · #**166** Posted **Apr 12, 2021, 8:24 PM**

Agreed about San Francisco's city hall. Amazing architecture.

SFCH by jmancuso, on Flickr

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cirrus

Late to the party here, but what the hell.

IMO if a state has a clear and unchallenged Alpha city, that city should be its capital. Denver, Atlanta, Boston, Indianapolis. These are perfect no matter where they're located in the state. Even Cheyenne I would say fits this description, small as it is.

When there's not a clear Alpha city, then you want centrality to the state's population distribution (not necessarily geography). Annapolis is good for Maryland despite it being irrelevant economically.

Let's make a list! I love lists!

A grade indicates a perfect capital.
B indicates it's good enough to remain but not ideal.
C indicates it's bad and I want to move it, but it could be worse.
F indicates it's truly a terrible choice.

Code:

STATE	CAPITAL		GRADE	BETTER CAPITAL

NY	Albany		C	NY

NYC as NYS's capitol would not be good for the rest of the state. The state political machine is already dominated by downstate and if capital moved down there, it would be 300+ miles away from WNY. Plus, much of the state's agencies are duplicated in NYC; e.g., my marriage license was issued by NYC.

BnaBreaker · #**167** Posted **Apr 12, 2021, 11:20 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by (four 0 four)

It really is stunning. I had a picture I took blown up into a photo mural for my bedroom wall.

Damn, that looks phenomenal! Well done! I've never seen something like that before.

bossabreezes · #**168** Posted **Apr 12, 2021, 11:21 PM**

SF city hall is indeed beautiful. Unfortunately it's right in the middle of a post-apocalyptic heroin/fentanyl Zombie zone, but still a beautiful building.

craigs · #**169** Posted **Apr 13, 2021, 1:15 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by BnaBreaker

Damn, that looks phenomenal! Well done! I've never seen something like that before.

Marriott's boutique hotel brands sometimes do the walls like that. That said, it's a very cool look for a bedroom!

SFBruin · #**170** Posted **Apr 13, 2021, 3:24 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Manitopiaaa

By my count, these should be State Capitals:

Atlanta (is)
Boston (is)

Chicago (is not)
Dallas (is not/North Texas new state)
Detroit (is not)
Houston (is not/South Texas new state)
Los Angeles (is not/Socal new state)
Miami (is not/South Florida new state)
New York (is not)
Philadelphia (is not)
Phoenix (is)
San Francisco (is not, relocate from Sacramento)
Washington (is not...yet)

I think that the 32% of Illinois residents who live downstate would actually flee to Canada if Chicago became the state capital.

Steely Dan · #**171** Posted **Apr 13, 2021, 3:41 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by SFBruin

I think that the 32% of Illinois residents who live downstate would actually flee to Canada if Chicago became the state capital.

Nah, they'd just petition to be annexed by indiana.

Not that it matters.

State capitals don't move anymore (hasn't happened in over a century).

Illinois is stuck with springfield as its capital forever, for better or worse.

CaliNative · #**172** Posted **Apr 13, 2021, 4:29 AM**

May be pretty but very remote from Alaskan population centers. Also wedged in by high mountains so not much room for growth. Also, roads are scarce. Need to fly in. Anchorage, Talkeetna or Willow or even Fairbanks, all with good roads and airports, should be the capitol.

Burlington should be the cap. of VT., not tiny Montpelier.

Baltimore should be the cap. of MD., not Annapolis which has its hands full with the Naval Academy.

SFBruin · #**173** Posted **Apr 13, 2021, 4:37 AM**

Short of putting in it Nome, Barrow or on an Aleutian Island, Juneau seems like just about the worst place that Alaska could have selected for its capital.

CaliNative · #**174** Posted **Apr 13, 2021, 5:23 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by sopas ej

It's been used in plenty of films and other TV shows, too...

Some examples, it's in an episode of "Green Acres" as an unnamed state's capitol, I think it was used as the supposed embassy of a fictitious country in the spy TV series "It Takes a Thief,"

It substituted for somewhere in Spain in "American Pie II," and it was used (through rear projection) as the dictator's palace in Charlie Chaplin's "The Great Dictator."

I always get the Pasadena and Beverly Hills city halls confused. They kind of look similar.

CaliNative · #**175** Posted **Apr 13, 2021, 5:25 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by SFBruin

Short of putting in it Nome, Barrow or on an Aleutian Island, Juneau seems like just about the worst place that Alaska could have selected for its capital.

Maybe the legislators and governor like being isolated from bothersome citizens that get nosy about where the money goes.

hauntedheadnc · #**176** Posted **Apr 13, 2021, 10:46 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cirrus

Let's make a list! I love lists!

A grade indicates a perfect capital.
B indicates it's good enough to remain but not ideal.
C indicates it's bad and I want to move it, but it could be worse.
F indicates it's truly a terrible choice.

Code:

STATE	CAPITAL		GRADE	BETTER CAPITAL

NC	Raleigh		C	Greensboro

I spit on your Greensboro which, as any native of NC can tell you, already wields influence far beyond its size. Actually, pretty much all of the state's resources are devoted to the Triangle and the Triad, and also toward ensuring pig farmers east all the way to the coast have nice, smooth, multi-lane roads on which to drive their tractors -- or whatever it is pig farmers drive. Meanwhile, the state is openly hostile toward Charlotte, and has to be reminded frequently that the state extends any farther west than Hickory.

That being said, Charlotte would probably be the better choice for a capital if you wanted to be as central as possible.

Fun fact: I used to write fiction set in an alternate universe where there was an enormous port city on the northeasternmost tip of North Carolina. The Hampton Roads area was its primary suburban sprawl depository, while Charlotte was the capital city of that version of North Carolina.

Funner fact: Raleigh is the capital city, but the only reason Raleigh is where it is, is because a tavern owner who wanted the city established by his establishment got the surveyors drunk and changed their maps after they passed out. Hence, Raleigh is where it is, and not five, ten, fifteen miles away in one direction or another.

deja vu · #**177** Posted **Apr 13, 2021, 3:21 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by hauntedheadnc

Funner fact: Raleigh is the capital city, but the only reason Raleigh is where it is, is because a tavern owner who wanted the city established by his establishment got the surveyors drunk and changed their maps after they passed out. Hence, Raleigh is where it is, and not five, ten, fifteen miles away in one direction or another.

Wow - if this is true, it has to be the best capital city-founding story I've ever read.

Ant131531 · #**178** Posted **Apr 13, 2021, 3:28 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by (four 0 four)

It really is stunning. I had a picture I took blown up into a photo mural for my bedroom wall.

You have a stunning set up. Absolutely gorgeous bedroom. I think the mural matches with everything flawlessly.

Cirrus · #**179** Posted **Apr 13, 2021, 3:30 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by JManc

NYC as NYS's capitol would not be good for the rest of the state.

So? Most of the state's population lives in and around NYC. Why should the majority of the population suffer worse representation so a minority can get special treatment? Should France move its capital away from Paris? Should the UK move its capital away from London?

We can disagree on this point, but when I say a state's Alpha city should always be its capital, I say that fully understanding that many capitals were selected specifically to avoid that outcome, and I don't care for perpetuating that anti-urban bias in our governance.

Quote:

Originally Posted by hauntedheadnc

I spit on your Greensboro

:-D

My thinking is simply that Greensboro is roughly the geographic center of the urbanized Charlotte-to-Raleigh crescent, and that Charlotte isn't dominant enough to clearly deserve it over Raleigh.

Whatever Greensboro hate the rest of NC has... I'm ignorant.

iheartthed · #**180** Posted **Apr 13, 2021, 3:38 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cirrus

Late to the party here, but what the hell.

IMO if a state has a clear and unchallenged Alpha city, that city should be its capital. Denver, Atlanta, Boston, Indianapolis. These are perfect no matter where they're located in the state. Even Cheyenne I would say fits this description, small as it is.

When there's not a clear Alpha city, then you want centrality to the state's population distribution (not necessarily geography). Annapolis is good for Maryland despite it being irrelevant economically.

Let's make a list! I love lists!

A grade indicates a perfect capital.
B indicates it's good enough to remain but not ideal.
C indicates it's bad and I want to move it, but it could be worse.
F indicates it's truly a terrible choice.

Code:

STATE	CAPITAL		GRADE	BETTER CAPITAL
AL	Montgomery	C	Birmingham
AK	Juneau		F	Anchorage
AZ	Phoenix		A
AR	Little Rock	A	
CA	Sacto		B	(No better choices)
CO	Denver		A
CT	Hartford	A
DE	Dover		B	Wilmington
FL	Tallahassee	F	Orlando
GA	Atlanta		A
HI	Honolulu	A
ID	Boise		A
IL	Springfield	C	Chicago
ID	Indianapolis	A
IA	Des Moines	A
KS	Topeka		A
KY	Frankfort	A	(Between the population centers)
LA	Baton Rouge	B	New Orleans
ME	Augusta		B	Portland
MD	Annapolis	A	(Between the population centers)
MA	Boston		A
MI	Lansing		C	Detroit
MN	St Paul		B	Minneapolis
MS	Jackson		A
MO	Jefferson City	C	Columbia
MT	Helena		B  	(No better choices)
NE	Lincoln		B	Omaha
NV	Carson City	C	Las Vegas
NH	Concord		B	Manchester
NJ	Trenton		A	(Between the population centers)
NM	Santa Fe	B	Albuquerque
NY	Albany		C	NY
NC	Raleigh		C	Greensboro
ND	Bismarck	A	
OH	Columbus	A
OK	OK City		A
OR	Salem		C	Portland
PA	Harrisburg	A	(Between the population centers)
RI	Providence	A
SC	Columbia	A
SD 	Pierre		B	(No better choices)
TN	Nashville	A
TX	Austin		A	(Between the population centers)
UT	SLC		A
VT	Montpelier	C	Burlington or Rutland
VA	Richmond	A
WA	Olympia		C	Seattle
WV	Charleston	A	
WI	Madison		C	Milwaukee
WY	Cheyenne	A

Based on this criteria, I think Bakersfield, Fresno, or San Luis Obispo all make sense for capital of California.