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As is the case with many of you, the Super Bowl is on my mind. There are more important things to be concerned with at this moment in history, certainly. But those things don’t have bouncy cheerleaders and 3D commercials.
Anyway, it crossed my mind that the names of the two cities whose teams are involved in the game – Pittsburgh and Phoenix – both begin with the letter “P.” (And yes, I know that the Cardinals technically play their home games in Glendale, but it’s classified as a suburb of Phoenix.) So my question to you:
Besides Phoenix, AZ (#5)
and Pittsburgh, PA (#59),
what THREE other American cities
whose names begin with the letter “P”
also appear on the list of the 100 most
populous cities in the United States?
Here are the ANSWERS.
Comments (17)
Comment
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But how will it play in Peoria?
posted by bill icksnay on 1-30-2009 at 7:41 am
Both Phoenix and Philadelphia are #6?
posted by Carl on 1-30-2009 at 8:42 am
i would have bet my right arm that providence was one of these. so much so that i feel like i have to do some fact checking.
posted by steven wade on 1-30-2009 at 10:11 am
I got Philly no problem, and Portland after some thought. I had no idea Plano was that big, though, and never would have gotten it.
posted by Josh on 1-30-2009 at 11:17 am
I missed Plano too…..I guessed Providence RI.
posted by Ian on 1-30-2009 at 11:41 am
If the Cardinals’ Glendale is considered “Phoenix”, then you’re clearly talking about Metro Areas, not cities. Plano would be considered “Dallas.” Also, Providence, RI, though its city population is less than the population within the city borders of Plano, is the center of a metro area over 1.5 million, which is referred to as the Providence metro area. Ian at 11:41 had the right answer.
posted by Rey on 1-30-2009 at 12:07 pm
Wait, if Phoenix is #6, does that mean that Philadelphia has the exact same number of people?
posted by C on 1-30-2009 at 12:10 pm
The metro area idea was used to find the commonality between the Cardinals and Steelers, noticing that the two cities (kinda) began with P, and from there went off to the list of the 100 most populous cities, not 100 most populous metro areas. It was also pointed out that the Cardinals aren’t technically from Phoenix, so the whole argument against it is kinda moot.
I also missed Plano, though I didn’t even think of Providence (but should have – a friend is living there currently). Only other possibility I could think of was Pierre, SD, but it seemed unlikely.
And I believe the #6 Phoenix is a typo… Phoenix is actually slightly larger as of 2007 (if talking about the actual city).
posted by Jude on 1-30-2009 at 1:47 pm
According to 2005 U.S. Census figures:
5. Philadelphia, PA – 1,479,339
28. Portland, OR – 538,544
71. Plano, TX – 241,991
BTW:
Providence, R.I. #130
Paterson, N.J. #133
Pomona, Calif. #145
Pasadena, Calif. #150
Pasadena, Texas #152
Pembroke Pines, Fla. #174
Palmdale, Calif. #196
Peoria, Ill. #197
Provo, Utah #199
posted by Chris Corbet on 1-30-2009 at 1:54 pm
Phoenix got bumped to #5 some time ago.
1. NYC
2. L.A.
3. Chicago
4. Houston
5. Phoenix
6. Philadelphia
7. San Antonio
8. San Diego
9. Dallas
10. San Jose
posted by Johnny Cat on 1-30-2009 at 1:58 pm
In the winter time, Phoenix (or at least the Phoenix metro area, which is gigantic) has a greater population than Houston. So It’s 5th in the summer and 4th in the winter
posted by M on 1-30-2009 at 2:02 pm
Rey, the mention of “Glendale” was just preemptive; it didn’t imply anything. The question did clearly ask for cities, not metro areas, so I’d have to disagree with you about Providence.
And the rankings given referred to the city population from the Census’ 2007 estimates.
posted by Sandy Wood on 1-30-2009 at 3:21 pm
In the west, cities annex their suburbs before they incorporate. In the East, home rule often takes precedent; therefore, the suburbs are entities unto itself. When Louisville, KY incorporated its suburbs into the city limits in 2001, it shot from the 69th largest city to the top 20. The numbers for Phoenix are quite misleading- Phoenix is mostly suburban, but all of those residents are considered part of the city. This is not true for places like Providence, Buffalo and other middle sized cities with large county populations but small city populations.
posted by aaron on 1-30-2009 at 4:15 pm
I can’t believe I actually got ‘em. Even Plano. That city just popped into my head right before I clicked the answer. Pasadena and Pomona didn’t even enter my head even though I grew up between the two cities, adjacent to Pomona.
posted by Billy on 1-30-2009 at 4:42 pm
I guessed Peoria..
Only because its super close to me, and I figured it was descently big.
I also guessed Pekin because I was clueless.
posted by Isabella on 1-30-2009 at 6:15 pm
I couldn’t think of any. And I live in Plano with relatives near Peoria. A little slow today.
posted by natalie on 1-31-2009 at 12:25 am
I guessed Philly and Portland right away. But, Plano…no way that would have crossed my mind.
posted by TaylorMcD on 1-31-2009 at 10:41 pm