the city of ypsilanti, only 7 miles from ann arbor
home of eastern michigan university
was named for greek patriot, general demetrus ypsilanti,
a heroic figure in the battle the Greeks were fighting against Turkish tyranny
– a struggle for freedom that many Americans likened to our own.
but there has been another long-fought struggle at work here-
as people have endlessly tried to spell the city’s name correctly
the post office has worked tirelessly to decipher and deliver mail in the city
i’ll bet even the general has had his name misspelled more than a few times over the years
“my spelling is wobbly. It’s good spelling but it wobbles,
and the letters get in the wrong places.”
s.s. milne
—
source: washtenaw literacy, the daily times archives, 1904
I didn't have my glasses on.... 
It is a shame you cannot use proper names because this would be a great Scrabble word!
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oh, wouldn’t it though?
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love the story; love the milne quote 🙂
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That certainly is an unusual name for a town. I am presuming there must have been some Greek immigrants there at one time.
Best wishes, Pete.
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there must have been, for that is certainly a relatively obscure name in world history
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I’d never be able to spell it correctly 😅
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it’s really a challenge
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Oh yeah.
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Good piece by the local newspaper, Beth. And that beats the number of ways I’ve seen my last name spelled and have the message still find its way to me!
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Oh, I’ll bet! Thanks to the post office for being innovative
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What a hoot!
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Yes!
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Love that name!
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It’s so interesting
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It’s a good one
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I’ll worry about how to spell it right after I master the correct way to say it!
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Ha!
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some words are just difficult to spell…. as a kindergarten teacher I am sure you have seen some very creative spellings and interesting use of letters to form words. I see it all too often as a sixth grade science teacher and I use those same word construction skills every time I play Wordle. Are you back at school yet? We restart Monday the 9th.
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Exactly right about teachers being master code breakers. We went back yesterday
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We go back Monday. I was in Oxford, MS on Monday and they were back Tuesday. But they were out on Monday 12/19.
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I’ve heard the name, but I don’t know if I could spell it correctly if asked. Being from Oklahoma originally, I’d assumed it was an Indian — er, Native American — name.
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Right, and we do have many names remaining from the tribes who inhabited Michigan
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I see what you did there with the s.s. milne, when it should be a.a. Well-played!
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))
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This reminds me of a recent road trip we took and drove through the town of Why. It was originally called Y because of a Y in the road. I guess people had trouble spelling that town too 😅
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That is hilarious
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Reminds me, a little, of a city under the shadow of Mr. Ranier near Seattle: Puyallup. Locals pronounce it correctly, but it still varies a bit.
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What a fantastic name
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I only know how to spell it because I follow college sports so much, but especially because Eastern Michigan sports a gray football field. The field is unique, just like the city’s name!
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A win- win
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Oh, my, that would be difficult to spell, and pronounce.
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It’s a challenge for everyone
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Life would be such a bore without challenges.
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Absolutely
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The post office should call in some school teachers to crack the code if necessary. We’ve seen it all.
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You are so right!)
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Yup. Helped ? By spell check
Sent from my iPhone
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Lucky for that service
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Oh, I love this! It is not, what one would say, an easy name!
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right!
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I’m not sure I could spell or pronounce this correctly!
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Nor many can
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🙂
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That’s a tricky one! Even though I love to write but spelling has always been a challenge for me and Winnie! Thank God for spell check. Except for that time I was trying to thank someone for a lovely comment and somehow the word spank showed up. And you can’t edit. Mortifying. Great post, hugs, C
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Yes, sometimes words slip through)
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That’s awesome. I had no idea.
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it can be a challenge but the post office has worked hard to make it work –
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That’s a tricky one.
Clever posties.
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yes, they are lucky to have them
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Too funny! And great quote at the end. 😛
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thanks, and it’s an ongoing issue )
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Ha. I’m sure.
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