Weslayan’s Cruel Twist Slays

WESLAYAN’S CRUEL TWIST SLAYS Reader Adam Goss, who identifies himself as a Houstonian — and a graduate of Wesleyan University in Connecticut — writes that it “drives him insane” that “the street named after our alma mater is misspelled. All the surrounding streets are named after similar universities and colleges (Amherst, Oberlin, Georgetown), yet for some reason the largest of all, Weslayan, is spelled incorrectly. How would Rice grads like it if a major thoroughfare in Chicago was named after the famed Houston university, Rize Avenue. Or if Boston named a major street Longhornes, after a famed UT alum?” Photo of street sign at the corner of Weslayan and W. Alabama St.: Jeremy Hughes

21 Comment

  • Or maybe, New Yorkers who don’t know how to pronounce “Houston”??

  • Adam,

    It appears the longest troll in history worked. That letter “a” was put into the name knowing 60 years later you’ll be irked.

  • Um, try going to New York City and ask somewhere where HOUSTON street is?

  • Golly Gosh Goss. Weslayan is boss.

  • Um, try going to New York City and ask someone where HOUSTON street is? **

  • It’s a jab at you carpetbaggers.

  • Yeah ……. this is Texas, what did you expect?

  • Oh, the horror this must project to him….

  • The mortification for Rice alums is not seeing the misspelling of their alma mater while traveling abroad (ie, outside of Texas), but being asked “is that an agricultural school?”

  • @WR: That’s good!

  • I had the same thought as most of you… but as it turns out, Houston Street in New York was named for someone named William Houstoun, whose name was Dutch rather than Scottish and thus pronounced differently. But they spelled it wrong!

  • Talk about a real live First World Problem. Or, Furst Whirled Problem if you like.

  • Poor, poor Adam. SIGH *sad music playing in the background*

  • @Semper Fudge must’ve received a denial letter and he’s still salty. Lol.

  • I’m a Texas Ex, and I wouldn’t care. With all the issues in the world to be so upset about something so trivial is revolting. Get a life. Good Grief

  • 10 bucks, Adam is a historey or gasp, an art historey major :)

  • Frankly, we personally have better things to worry about….

  • Agreed, it’s an embarrassing mistake, and especially annoying because Wesleyan University is named after a prominent figure, John Wesley. Other misspelled names in West U include Pittsburg, Wakeforest (the university is Wake Forest), and Westchester (assuming it’s named after the university in Pennsylvania, it should be West Chester). Nearby, Greenbriar and Blue Bonnet do not follow the dictionary spellings (should be Greenbrier and Bluebonnet).

  • @Mrs. Braeswood: Pittsburg could be named Pittsburg State University in Kansas

  • @Gary Deller Swing and a miss. Class of ’01, and have actually, sincerely been asked if Rice “is an agricultural school” on several occasions.

  • Don’t worry, they had the exit for Tellepsen on Gulf freeway NB misspelled since the freeway was erected.
    .
    Tom Tellepsen was a Houstonian who built a building company called Tellepsen that is still in business today and headquartered in Houston.
    .
    So don’t feel bad that a street named after a college way off in the northeast is misspelled when a street named after a prominent Houstonian with a business still HQed and in operation today was misspelled for at least 50 years.