Zzyzx Road is a 4.5-mile-long (7.2km), part paved and part dirt, rural collector road in the Mojave Desert. It runs from Interstate 15 generally south to the Zzyzx settlement.
The nearest populated area is the small town of Baker, 7 miles (11km) north on Interstate 15. Las Vegas is the nearest major city, approximately 100 miles (160km) northeast.
History
Curtis Howe Springer made up the name Zzyzx and gave it to the area in 1944, claiming it to be the last word in the English language.[3][4] He established the Zzyzx Mineral Springs and Health Spa in 1944 at the spot, which was federal land, after filing mining claims for 12,000 acres (4,900ha) surrounding the springs. He used the springs to bottle his water and provide drinks for travelers through the hot desert. Springer also imported animals from around the country to attract more families to visit his ranch. He used Zzyzx until 1974, when the land was reclaimed by the government.[5]
The name appeared as "Zzyzx Springs" in Dmitri Borgmann's 1967 book Beyond Language. In 1977, Borgman noted his source as being "an old, undated map of San Bernardino County published by the Automobile Club of Southern California" and repeated his description of the settlement as being "a hydrologic feature and privately owned spa in San Bernardino County, California, about 8.5 miles south of Baker, on the western edge of Soda Dry Lake, off the abandoned right-of-way of the old Tonopah and Tidewater Railroad."[6] After Borgmann's book, the 1973 Hammond Ambassador World Atlas began to show the place, labeling it as "Zzyzx" without the "Springs"; the 1976 Rand-McNally Commercial Atlas and Marketing Guide followed suit.[6]
Zzyzx has frequently been noted on lists of unusual place names.[9] Zzyzx was declared the "most difficult to pronounce" place name in California by Reader's Digest.[10]
PhanArt: The Art of the Fans of Phish 1618426583 Pete Mason - 2009 PA: What's up with ZZYZX Rd. on the way from Los Angeles to Las Vegas? ZZYZX: In 1944 Curtis Howe Springer decided to just claim some land in the desert to create a health spa. He called it Zzyzx so he could have the last word in the ..."
Rhymes or Porcupines 1476257698 Zzyzx Rd Sign, 1997. Two syllables make up this most unusual word. One of the strangest... you've ever heard. The first part is Zi, the second is Zicks Together they form the name... Zzyzx! Zzyzx Road leads to Tork's... "
Eckler, A. Ross (February 1996). "Zzyzx". Word Ways. 29 (1). Morristown, NJ: A. Ross Eckler: 22–24. ISSN0043-7980. Retrieved December 12, 2015. Text also in"Zzyzx". Archived from the original on February 21, 2001. Retrieved December 12, 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Zzyzx,_California, and is written by contributors.
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