Towns named coffee: cozy U.S. locales
By Perry Luckett, CoffeeMan1
Just on a lark, I was wondering today how many towns in the United States have the word coffee in their names. If you’re reading this, you love the bean, but think how much your reputation as a connoisseur would accelerate if you lived in a cozy namesake town. Ok, it’s true I have to cheat a bit to talk about these town names because only a couple really are namesakes for our favorite beverages. Still, no-one ever accused me of letting strict standards get in the way of a good yarn.
Towns named Coffee: a cozy group of two
Coffee, Georgia—covers a tiny unincorporated area in Bacon County
A post office called Coffee was established in 1890 and continued operating until 1957. Today, the nearest post office is in Ambrose or Douglas. The community was named after either a local pioneer citizen or General John E. Coffee, a state legislator and U. S. representative (sources vary). Coffee lies just about half way between New Lacy and Mershon along Georgia State Route 32 (each about 4 miles away). Route 32 is a 188-mile paved road that winds from west to east through beautiful Georgia countryside.
Bacon County is in the southeastern part of Georgia—right next to Coffee County. (The usual jokes about having coffee with your bacon can start here.) The constitutional amendment to create the county was proposed July 7, 1914, and ratified November 3, 1914. It’s named after Augustus Bacon, a former United States Senator from Georgia. As of the 2010 census, the county’s population was 11,096. Its county seat is Alma, where about 3,500 people live.
Coffee itself is kind of a “bump in the road,” although it did have a general store for many years—owned by the Carter family. After the store closed, it served for a while as the Restoration Temple House of Prayer before it fell into disrepair and burned in late 2010. A number of abandoned farmhouses also stand in the area as a silent and crumbling reminder of hard times. To a degree, those times continue: about 11.6% of families and 16.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.8% of those under age 18 and 16.8% of those age 65 or over. So the coffee people drink here isn’t from a specialty shop, even though the town bears its name.
Coffee, Virginia—a little road stop in the country west of Lynchburg
This spot is listed in Google Maps as “Coffee, Jefferson, Virginia”—so it doesn’t have a Census listing of its own. The area leads a quiet existence near the junction of Coffee Road (Virginia State Route 644) and Cottontown Road (VA State Route 621). It lies about 12 miles (22 minutes) west of Lynchburg, so it has good access to the “big city” using U.S. Highway 501. Lynchburg is where Coffee-area residents must go to get specialty coffee—Starbucks or the Bean Tree Café are likely choices. They’re also near the small town of Forest (population about 10,000), which captures literally what this densely wooded area looks like once you’re a short distance from town.
Although Coffee lies within the Lynchburg Metropolitan District for Census purposes, area residents typically attend schools in Forest, which is home to Jefferson Forest High School (the Cavaliers, about 1400 students), Forest Middle School (the Knights, about 1100 students), Forest Elementary School, Thomas Jefferson Elementary School, Timberlake Christian School, and New London Academy. Forest has a standard array of fast-food restaurants, several churches, two golf courses, and a population that votes about 70% conservative. For specialty coffee, residents cover their favorite Starbucks, Third Wave Coffee, or The Muse.
Three towns with coffee in their names cover the rest
Coffee Creek, California—a cozy nook named for a mishap
Coffee Creek was named from an occasion when a sack of coffee spilled into the creek. [HG] Some good practical people among its founders, right? It’s a census-designated place within Trinity County—just north of where Coffee Creek flows into the Trinity River along Highway 3—and is the most northern community in the county. Coffee Creek Road originates at Highway 3 and offers access to the interior of the Trinity Alps. The road is 20 miles long, dirt and only for high clearance vehicles.
On the 2010 census Coffee Creek’s population was 217, living in 85 households, with only about 19% of those households containing children under 18. I guess that’s why their median age is about 50. Residents are either affluent or “house poor” because the median home value is about $408,000 and the median income is $49,688. [Niche]
If your politics lean toward the Democratic Party, the district around Coffee Creek should be a great place to live. It’s in California’s 2nd Senate District, represented by Democrat Mike McGuire and the 2nd Assembly District, represented by Democrat Jim Wood. It’s also in the state’s 2nd U.S. Congressional District, represented by Democrat Jared Huffman. On the other hand, according to niche.com, residents of the town itself enjoy its rural feel and tend to be conservative. [WikiCC]
Coffee City, Texas—a cozy town on a lake
Coffee City is a small town in southeast Henderson County, Texas, United States. It’s on the west shore of Lake Palestine, a reservoir on the Neches River. The town limits extend into the center of the lake, which is the border with Smith and Cherokee counties. To the south, the town includes Ledbetter Bay and its two inlets Ledbetter Inlet and Highsaw Cove, while to the north the town extends beyond the Caney Bay inlet. As of the 2010 census the town had a total area of 6.6 square miles (17.2 km2), of which 1.9 square miles were land and 4.7 square miles, or about 71%, were water.
The city was developed after the construction of Lake Palestine in the early 1960s. As it is located on a sliver of Henderson County, a wet county, which extends eastward onto Lake Palestine and Texas State Highway 155, a number of liquor stores sprung up by the 1980s to capture business from residents of Tyler and neighboring Smith County (which at the time was dry). The importance of Coffee City declined in 2012 with the passage of legislation which allowed beer and wine sales in Tyler. The population was 278 at the 2010 census, up from 193 at the 2000 census, but the current census includes annexations that have raised the number to about 600. [WikiCC]
Recreation around Coffee City centers expectedly on lake activities (fishing, boating). For example, Lake Palestine Resort has been East Texas's premier camping, fishing, and boating destination for more than 30 years. Their 10-acre property is home to lodging, RV sites, boat slips, a general store, and even an event space. Flat Creek Marina and RV in Chandler, TX (about 15 miles up the lake from Coffee City) offers a marina and campground with access to Bait and tackle supplies, cabin rentals, boat slips, and spots for recreational vehicles to park.
Coffee enthusiasts in Coffee City must travel a bit (15 miles to Chandler or 25 to Tyler) to cover their hankering for specialty coffee. Chandler Donut Shop (Chandler) seems to be the closest spot for “good coffee,” although that means old-style regular coffee that donut shops are famous for. For specialty coffee, a Coffee City resident must travel to, for example, Brady’s Specialty Coffee in Tyler. Brady's Coffee Shop opened their doors in 1996 and for 23 years has focused on quality coffee and being a sanctuary from the noisy outside world! They serve specialty coffees from around the world roasted locally, as well as teas from The Republic of Tea, plus freshly baked, handmade cookies and muffins. Other good choices for specialty brews would be Coffee City USA Roaster, Country Coffee Co, and Foundry Coffee House—all in Tyler, Texas.
Hot Coffee, Mississippi—a cozy stop for weary travelers
Hot Coffee is an unincorporated and non-census-designated community in Covington County, Mississippi, celebrated in local Mississippi lore. It’s sometimes assigned the same zip code as nearby Collins. The community was established at the crossroads of two popular travel routes: the north-south Jackson's Military Road, and the east-west Natchez to Fort St. Stephens Wagon Road—on the way to Mobile, Alabama. In 2005, National Geographic published an article about Hot Coffee, describing it as “a tiny community of farms, homes, and businesses scattered along two-lane Highway 532. The 12-mile stretch known locally as Hot Coffee Road runs from the town of Mount Olive to a crossroads that dates back to pioneer days.”
How did Hot Coffee become a cozy sipping stop? Before automobiles and highways, long wagon trips to get crops to market and the return trip with food and other necessities was a multi-day journey. Not surprisingly, an inn was built to offer lodging for wagoneers on their trips to and from market. Then, an enterprising fellow named L.J. Davis built a store in 1870 and hung a coffee pot over his door, advertising "the best hot coffee around.” [SD] It was made from pure spring water and New Orleans beans, plus molasses drippings for sweetener. Davis never served cream with his coffee, believing it ruined the taste. Local politicians would visit Davis' store and buy coffee for constituents and passing travelers. His coffee’s popularity led to the community’s enduring name. [RT]
Hot Coffee is often included in accounts of unusual place names in the United States, which may explain its popularity in American popular culture, as well. For example, in the 1968 play Boys in the Band (as well as the 1970 film adaptation), character Michael refers to Hot Coffee as his hometown. Amanda Seyfried mentions the town in a movie, Love the Coopers, as the place she'd like to live because it sounds like the perfect place for a waitress.
In movie The Boss Kathy Bates’s character Ida Marquette remembers Hot Coffee as a place she "once made love on a pool table . . .with six members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame." A more recent mention of Hot Coffee appears in John Green’s young adult novel, Paper Towns (2008, movie 2015), as the place where Margo Roth Spiegelman learned to play the guitar. [WikiHC]
Another musical reference appeared in 2008: the recording of song “Hot Coffee” (2008) by country singer Courtney Leigh Heins and her group—named (of course) Hot Coffee, Mississippi. [SNB] The lyrics pay tribute to Hot Coffee’s reputation as a coffee stop for road warriors but suggest the coffee itself is no longer a draw. (The only business in town now is a MacDonald’s that dates from 1967.) Heins says she is stranded in Hot Coffee, Mississippi, having buried her axle ten miles down the road and found a sign reading “Hot Coffee, population no one knows.” Turns out she’s on the run from the law and finds Hot Coffee the best place to hide out: “Never worryin’ ‘bout the ol’ 5-0 [police] / Cuz there ain’t no cup o’ joe in this whole town.”
Hot Coffee was also childhood home of notable Mississippian and actress Stella Stevens (1938 – ). Hollywood columnist Louella Parsons referred to Stevens as “the cream of Hot Coffee.” The comment was witty but slightly inaccurate. Although Stevens’ parents moved to Hot Coffee when she was four years old, she actually was born in Yazoo City, Mississippi (population 10,000+ in 2018)—a veritable metropolis compared to our little crossroads. Stevens is well known for her film career, including box office favorites The Poseidon Adventure with Gene Hackman; The Nutty Professor with Jerry Lewis; Girls, Girls, Girls with Elvis Presley, and The Ballad of Cable Hogue with Jason Robards. Jr. [SNB]
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References for towns with coffee in their names: a cozy list
Brian Brown, “Photographs of Coffee in Vanishing South Georgia,” © Copyright Brian Brown Photography/Vanishing Media USA 2008-2020, https://bit.ly/2OYrgyX, (2020). [BB]
“Coffee, Georgia,” Roadside Thoughts.com, https://bit.ly/2BBA5vx, (2020). [Road]
“Coffee, Virginia,” City-Data.com, https://bit.ly/3jNdQUs, (2020). [CDCV]
“Coffee City, Texas,” City-Data.com, https://bit.ly/39A1x9C, (2020). [CDCCT]
“Coffee City, Texas,” Wikipedia, https://bit.ly/3f3X3sL, (June 21, 2020). [WikiCCT]
“Coffee Creek, California,” Wikipedia: https://bit.ly/2ZydJUO, (April 8, 2020). [WikiCCC]
“Coffee Creek, California,” Niche.com, https://bit.ly/305ZZ3Q, (2020). [Niche]
Henry Gannett, The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States, Genealogical Publishing Com, 1973, p. 86. Cited at URL https://bit.ly/3fD58FR
“Hot Coffee, Mississippi,” Wikipedia: https://bit.ly/3e5At2p, (June 14, 2020). [WikiHC]
“How Many Places Are Named Coffee?” https://bit.ly/39wK4P2, (2020). [PNC]
Roadtrippers, “Hot Coffee, Mississippi,” https://bit.ly/3iDhQ9z, (2020). [RT]
Sandra E. Norris-Bryant , “Join Us in Hot Coffee,” https://bit.ly/2AHPKce , (date unknown). [SNB]
Shannon Darnall, “Hot Coffee, Mississippi,” 35 American Towns and Cities Named for Food. The Daily Meal.com: https://bit.ly/3e9sAc8, (July 24, 2017). [SDHC]