The Most Quirky Small Towns in the United States

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Hell, MI - Far From Heaven

Hell, Michigan got its start as a mining town that was established in the 1840s. Though it was a popular bootlegging town, it didn't get its name from any kind of nefarious act. Instead, legend has it that one of the original inhabitants paid local farmers with his own homemade whiskey. This led wives to respond, "he's gone to hell again," when asked where their husbands were, which eventually stuck, according to the town's official website.

Sswonk / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0
Sswonk / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0

However, there are a couple of other unofficial stories as to how the town got its name. Visitors to Hell can get married, have a drink at the local tavern, called Hell Hole Bar and Grill, and even become the mayor, though the website says that elections are only held when Hell freezes over.