The Collegian

Issue date: 4/24/07 Section: Detour

Media Credit: Photo Illustration by Zack Farmer/Collegian”

The release of the official The Simpsons Movie trailer has brought up the all-telling question: where is Springfield?

The Simpsons creator Matt Groening has always left subtle clues but has never plainly said where the town of Springfield is, so we getting to the bottom of this.

In the trailer, Ned Flanders brings Bart up to a hilltop in Springfield and says, "Look at that, you can see the four states that border Springfield: Ohio, Nevada, Maine, and Kentucky." If the trailer is any indication (which it may not be because Groening likes to mess with people) the real Springfield is in a state bordering one of the aforementioned states.

There are 28 Springfields in the United States so this is a bit much. But of those bordering states, only seven of them have a Springfield within the border.

Ohio-It is one of the states that Flanders mentions but it does border Kentucky, which makes it a contender. Not only that, in The Simpsons there are three major cities, Springfield, Shelbyville, and Capital City. Ohio also has three major cities, Cincinnati, Cleveland, and the capital Columbus. The state also needs to touch a large body of water due to the accessibility of it in The Simpsons. Lake Erie provides as the large body of water, which Cleveland sits next to.

Kentucky-It borders Ohio but it does not touch a large enough body of water. Not only this, but Kentucky has no major cities to speak of (Louisville doesn't count).

New Hampshire-This borders Maine and touches the Atlantic Ocean. It has mountains which could provide the setting for a Mount Springfield.

Tennessee-This state has the cities to go by but it does not have the body of water to accommodate the Springfield docks. The Mississippi River is not large enough. Also, remember dolphins attacked Springfield at one time. Now upon further review, Ohio falls into the dolphin category as well. Sorry, Buckeyes.

Virginia-The Old Dominion does touch the Atlantic Ocean, as well as Kentucky. It also is home to a portion of the Appalachian Mountains. The issue with Springfield, VA is that Washington, D.C. is close enough to walk there. In an episode of The Simpsons, they flew to D.C.

West Virginia-No water of worth and it's West Virginia.

Oregon-Groening is from Portland, Oregon and Portland has an Evergreen Terrace and Lovejoy Street. There was a nuclear power plant in northern Oregon, which was demolished 20 years ago, about the time of the creation of The Simpsons. Mount Hood, the tallest mountain in Oregon, eerily resembles Mount Springfield. There are three major cities in Oregon (Portland, Eugene, and the capital Salem). It touches the Pacific Ocean. It touches Nevada. Springfield, OR is a short drive from Eugene, which by the way has a place called Max's Tavern, which some say looks like Moe's Tavern in the show.

The cases can be made but we believe that the strongest case is with Oregon. We are on to you Matt Groening.

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