Discussion Groups / English Usage / July 2007

I'm not sure what the question is.  I lived on the Near North (in the
early 60s) on Scott Street, just a block from Goethe.  As far as I
know, there's only one Goethe Street.  Some nice apartments on Goethe,
and I've been to parties and such in several of them.

It was a bus stop on Clark Street, and some people who lived in the
Carl Sandburg Village apartments used that stop.

There was no accepted, established way for the residents to pronounce
the street name.  You'd hear "Goat-tay", "Go-thee" (or "Go-thy"),
"Go-thay", and some serious attempts to swallow the word enough to
make it sound "authentic".  "I live on Goat" was often used.

Areff, I believe, used to take the bus on Clark and I think he's
commented on how the bus drivers pronounced the street name.  It would
be difficult to convince me that any two drivers used the same
pronunciation.

People in this group might be concerned about the correct
pronunciation, but I never heard anyone who lived around there do the
equivalent of "OY!ing" any version used by anyone else.  

We were pretty casual about those things in those days.  "Rent party
on Goat!" was all we needed to hear.

Later, I moved to an apartment on Menomomee Street in Old Town.  Try
saying that when you've had a few beers!