Cities with multiple planned grids

[Bruce]

Seattle has three in downtown due to a dispute between the founding families: cardinal north in Pioneer Square and most of the city (Maynard's claim); 32 degrees west of north following Elliott Bay in the Denny claim; and 49 degrees west of north following a different part of the bay in the Boren claim. There's also several more due to annexing existing communities (e.g. Ballard) with their own grids.



Wonder how many you can get in one city? Older cities with cow paths need not apply.

[Rothman]

Wasn't this a thread already?

[kphoger]

Wasn't this a thread already?

I remember a thread about multiple numbering systems conflicting, but those were typically the result of two towns' systems coming into contact, or else a town and a county numbering scheme coming into contact.  I don't remember a thread about multiple numbering systems employed by the same entity.

[GaryV]

I'm pretty sure there was another thread about grid directions (not numbering).  Because I pointed out Grand Rapids.

[Scott5114]

Downtown Norman is skewed to follow the rail line. Most of the rest of the city uses a cardinal north grid.

[Takumi]

Wasn't this a thread already?

I remember a thread about multiple numbering systems conflicting, but those were typically the result of two towns' systems coming into contact, or else a town and a county numbering scheme coming into contact.  I don't remember a thread about multiple numbering systems employed by the same entity.

Richmond would be an example of the former, having two sets of numbered streets on each side of the James River, due to the south side being the former city of Manchester.

[hobsini2]

Well I know a bit about the history of Oshkosh, Wisconsin due to my grandmother being at one time the historian at the Oshkosh Public Museum. As it pertains specifically to the city's makeup, the city was once made of 2 separate towns. Athens (north and east of the Fox River) and Brooklyn (south and west of the Fox River). The towns merged in 1839. Parts of the township of Algoma (west of the Fox River to where WIS 21 and I-41/US 41 meet and south to WIS 91)  have been annexed by the city of Oshkosh. Here is a map from 1878 showing the village of Algoma with the city. https://www.mapsofthepast.com/oshkosh-wisconsin-winnebago-county-1878.html
I-41/US 41 is well off the west edge of the map. The township today continues 3 miles west of 41.
https://www.google.com/maps/@44.0185882,-88.5602002,14.75z?hl=en

Anyway, when that part by what is today Oshkosh Ave and Sawyer St got added into the city in the 1890s, that left a big problem. Many of the streets that were already in Oshkosh had the same names as those that came from Algoma. Main St. Jackson St. Water St. Oak St. Winnebago St. Obviously, these had to change to not confuse the post offices when this part became part of the 5th Ward of Oshkosh.
- Main St in Algoma became Oshkosh Ave.
- Jackson St became Buchanan Ave.
- Oak St became Maple Ave.
- Water St and Shomin St became Rainbow Dr.
- Winnebago St became Eagle St.
- Ann St became Repp Ave.
- Butte de Mortes St became part of the Veterans Trail.

The streets that were already in Oshkosh maintained their names for the most part.
2nd St by Oregon St doesn't exist anymore. And 1st St became Witzel Ave. Witzel became the dividing line between North and South as the city grew out west.
One other change that happened is that the numbered streets became numbered avenues.

South of the river (what had been Brooklyn), the north-south streets were named after states and the east-west streets were numbers. Today, Utah St is gone and Kansas St became South Main St.
North of the river (what had been Athens), for the most part, a lot of the original names are the same.
This is why when the streets reach the Fox River, if they have a bridge, the name changes except for Main St.
West/South to East/North, Oshkosh Ave is Congress St., Ohio St is Wisconsin St, Oregon St is Jackson St.

There are some exceptions north/east of the river especially in the 5th Ward. And there was a 5th St north of the river near Downtown that is now School Ave.