If you live in Middletown, Delaware, you may not know that there are at least 15 other Middletowns, making it a very popular name for a town. Several of them are in the surrounding states and lately I have been getting calls from people in Middletown, New York, and Middletown, New Jersey, in particular. Lots of them are thinking about moving to Delaware. Then I looked in my own database of current clients and found 15 people that I have already been working with.
Whats in a name?
"Middletown" means the average or typical American small city. There are places actually named Middletown in New Jersey, New York, Ohio and elsewhere.
The Middletown studies were sociological case studies of the City of Muncie in Indiana conducted by Robert Staughton Lynd and Helen Merrell Lynd, husband-and-wife sociologists. The Lynds' findings were detailed in Middletown: A Study in Modern American Culture, published in 1929, and Middletown in Transition : A Study in Cultural Conflicts, published in 1937.
The word "middletown" was meant to suggest the average or typical American small city. While there are many places in the U.S. actually named Middletown (in Connecticut, in New Jersey, in New York, in Ohio and elsewhere), the Lynds were interested in an idealized conceptual American type, and concealed the identity of the city by referring to it by this term. Sometime after publication, however, the residents of Muncie began to guess that their town had been the subject of the book. (Read More in Wikipedia)
Middletown, New Jersey
Established in 1664, Middletown, NJ, was voted on of the Top 100 Places to Live in CNN Money in 2006. In the 2010 census, the population was 66522 and the total area is 59.35 square miles.
Boasting the worlds largest all volunteer Fire Department, the median age of residents is 39. Some pretty famous people were born in Middletown, NJ, including Connie Chung in 1946, Brian Williams in 1959, Geraldo Rivera in 1943 lots of Journalists!
Middletown, New York
Located in Orange County, New York, Middletown, NY was settled in 1744 and became a city in 1888. With a population of 28086 in the 2010 census, the median age of this small city is 33. The SUNY Orange Campus is located here.
The downtown business district of Middletown suffered from the growth of the "Miracle Mile" shopping strip and Lloyd's Supermarket in the late 1960s and later two shopping malls, all located at the eastern edge of town along Route 211, near Route 17 and Interstate 84.
Middletown, Delaware
Originally a tavern stop, Middleown, DE, was incorporated in 1864. By the 2010 census, the population had grown to 18871. Located in the fastest growing area of Delaware, the total area is now 64 square miles. With a median age of 31, the growth is expected to continue.
One of 8 Main Street communities in Delaware, Robin Williams filmed Dead Poets Society in 1989 almost entirely on the grounds of St. Andrews School.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middletown_studies
Have you ever lived in more than one town with the same name?