TRIVIA: Places with a North, South, East or West prefix that don't have a geographical opposite number

[AY1975]

Can you think of any examples of areas with a North, South, East or West prefix that don't have an opposite number? By that I mean places with the prefix "East" that don't have a namesake with the prefix "West" or vice versa, or with the prefix "North" where no area with the same name but prefixed "South" exists or vice versa.

There are lots of examples of stations with a North, South, East or West prefix that don't have an opposite number, but that doesn't necessarily mean no area with that name exists. I mean actual places that don't have a geographic opposite number as such.

For example, there is East Sheen between Barnes and Richmond, west London (historically Surrey) but AFAIK there's no such place as West Sheen. Likewise, the next station after Richmond going towards Clapham Junction is North Sheen but I'm not aware of an area called South Sheen.

 

[317 forever]

I know North Berwick but have not heard of a South Berwick. North Berwick is some distance from Berwick-upon-Tweed.

There is an Underground station South Wimbledon but no North Wimbledon (although that might be an appropriate name for Wimbledon Park). Likewise, there is East Putney nearby but no West Putney.

South Ockendon but no North Ockendon is another one I can think of.

 

[rg177]

North Sunderland in the depths of coastal Northumberland is a bit far away from plain old Sunderland. No South/East/West equivalents either.

 

[32475]

If we include counties/ ancient Saxon kingdoms we have Essex, Sussex, Wessex and Middlesex but no Norsex

 

[Dai Corner]

Weston-super-Mare
Southsea
Northumberland
Easter Island

 

[PeterC]

South Ockendon but no North Ockendon is another one I can think of.

Sorry, there is a North Ockendon near Upminster.

On the other hand there is no Northminster to match Southminster and no Northend to match Southend.

I am not 100% sure about Woodham Ferrers and can't be bothered to get the OS map out to check.

 

[Gloster]

If we include counties/ ancient Saxon kingdoms we have Essex, Sussex, Wessex and Middlesex but no Norsex

It would have been No-sex, but not surprisingly the population died out as a result.

 

[32475]

It would have been No-sex, but not surprisingly the population died out as a result.

Well observed Gloster!

 

[david1212]

West Bay is a village nominally south of Bridport.

While there is e.g. North Bay and South Bay at Scarborough they are not distinct settlements.

 

[Lucan]

there is East Sheen between Barnes and Richmond, ... but AFAIK there's no such place as West Sheen

That would be the area that was re-named as Richmond when King Henry VII, who was also the Earl of Richmond (named after the one in Yorkshire), built a palace there.

 

[pdq]

A suffix rather than prefix, but Haverfordwest doesn't have any cardinal siblings

 

[Mcr Warrior]

A suffix rather than prefix, but Haverfordwest doesn't have any cardinal siblings

The 'West' was only added in the 1400's to distinguish the West Wales market town from Hereford, apparently.

 

[AY1975]

There is an Underground station South Wimbledon but no North Wimbledon (although that might be an appropriate name for Wimbledon Park). Likewise, there is East Putney nearby but no West Putney.

There's no West Putney station but there is an area known as West Putney, and a West Putney ward on Wandsworth Council. It basically covers the area south of the Windsor Lines from about halfway between Putney and Barnes stations to almost as far as Barnes station, where the Borough of Wandsworth borders the Borough of Richmond.

 

[swt_passenger]

Tyne Wear Metro. Jesmond, and well to its north you find er.. West Jesmond.

 

[dgl]

Southwell on Portland has no Northwell as does Southill in Weymouth.

 

[AY1975]

Sorry, there is a North Ockendon near Upminster.

On the other hand there is no Northminster to match Southminster and no Northend to match Southend.

And no Easterham to match Westerham, and no Eastgate to match Westgate-on-Sea, near Margate, and no Westbourne to match Eastbourne (although there is Westbourne Park in London!) and no Eastminster to match Westminster (although I believe that there was once a plan to combine a number of areas of East London to create an Eastminster).

Although there is a Southfields and a Northfields in London, they are probably not meant to be opposite numbers (unlike, for example, Surbiton and Norbiton) as they are nowhere near each other: Southfields is between Putney and Wimbledon whereas Northfields is near South Ealing.

Talking of which, there is South, North and West Ealing but no station called East Ealing and I don't know of an area called East Ealing as such.

There's an area of Hartlepool that was historically known as West Hartlepool, but AFAIK there was never an East Hartlepool.

I've also never heard of an East Bromwich to match West Bromwich.

 

[Calthrop]

A suffix rather than prefix, but Haverfordwest doesn't have any cardinal siblings

Also "suffixes": one thinks of Newcastle West, County Limerick. It would seem to make sense that the "West" part was applied, to distinguish it from Newcastle, County Down -- far to the north, and on the opposite side of the island; but so far as I know, the Co. Down settlement has never been referred to as Newcastle East; just Newcastle.

 

[PGAT]

There’s South Norwood and West Norwood, but no North Norwood or East Norwood

 

[Gloster]

You have the case of Cowes and East Cowes. With the latter that is how it is normally referred to, but the settlement on the west side of the Medina is normally just called Cowes and is only referred to as West Cowes if there is some good reason to differentiate it from its oppo.

 

[najaB]

There's not a West Kilbride as far as I know.

 

[Gloster]

There's not a West Kilbride as far as I know.

Yes, there is. It has even got a station on the Largs line.

 

[Calthrop]

You have the case of Cowes and East Cowes. With the latter that is how it is normally referred to, but the settlement on the west side of the Medina is normally just called Cowes and is only referred to as West Cowes if there is some good reason to differentiate it from its oppo.

Are, perhaps, Bideford; and its "opposite number" settlement East-the-Water -- immediately facing Bideford, but to the east of the River Torridge, and of the bridge across it -- something of an analagous pair?

 

[najaB]

Yes, there is. It has even got a station on the Largs line.

Well cut off my legs and call me shorty. Don't think I've ever heard anyone speak of it.

 

[Dai Corner]

In Bristol, there's an Easton but no Weston (although there's a Weston in Bath some way to the East
Also there's Westbury-onTrym but no Westbury
If we can include local authorities there is a South Gloucestershire but no North and a North Somerset but longer a South

 

[prod_pep]

There is a West Kirby on the Wirral but no East Kirby, at least officially. 'West' was added to 'Kirkby' (the second 'k' was later dropped) to differentiate it from a second place called Kirkby on the peninsula, the area now known as Wallasey (sometimes 'Wallasey Village') which was formerly Kirkby in Walley. The name change has nothing to do with Liverpool's Kirkby, although many locals seem to think different.

 

[najaB]

See if this gets the egg off my face: had a hunt on Google Maps and there's a South Alloa but no North Alloa.

 

[W-on-Sea]

Sorry, there is a North Ockendon near Upminster.

On the other hand there is no Northminster to match Southminster and no Northend to match Southend.

I am not 100% sure about Woodham Ferrers and can't be bothered to get the OS map out to check.

Southend is so called because it emerged as the south end of Prittlewell, the older settlement. There's no North Woodham Ferrers, but it was a good thing that the railway station formerly known as Fambridge was renamed North Fambridge to correctly reflect its location: there is a South Fambridge, on the opposite bank of the River Crouch, but it's even smaller than North Fambridge, and could really do with having a bridge...or even the ferry named in the pub in North Fambridge

"West Sheen" is an interesting one, in as much as Sheen was the former name of Richmond.

 

[Enthusiast]

London Underground:

• West Harrow but no East Harrow
• South Ruislip but no North Ruislip
• South Woodford but no North Woodford
• North Greenwich but no South Greenwich
• North Wembley but no South Wembley
• South Kensington but no North Kensington
• South Kenton but no North Kenton
• West Brompton but no East Brompton
• West Hampstead but no East Hampstead
• West Kensington but no East Kensington

Lots involving suffixes (e.g. Dagenham East but no Dagenham West) or no prefixes/suffixes (i.e. Eastcote but no Westcote, Northwood but no Southwood)

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Clayton West (Station closed in 1983) isn't the western side of a village called Clayton, it's just the full name of the village. There is no other Clayton or Clayton East in the area.

 

[PGAT]

Theres an East Grinstead but no other Grinsteads afaik