Visit Paris Without Leaving the United States

You might not have realized it was that many (I'd really only heard a lot of jokes about Paris, Texas), but there are twenty three cities and towns in the United States named after Paris.

This hub will be a quick guide of all of them, just in case you get bitten by the Paris bug but don't want to go international.

(The population and related statistics come from the 2000 Census.)

New Paris, Indiana

With a population of 1,001, the main attraction is Sunnyside Park, which won the title of America's Most Beautiful Park from the National Library for the Blind. It features a state-of-the-art playground and a duck pond.

New Paris, Ohio

Technically a village, the population is 1,623. It sits quite close to the border of Indiana. The coolest thing about it is that Benjamin Hanby wrote "Up On The Housetop" (a Christmas carol) here.

New Paris, Pennsylvania

This borough is home to only 214 people. One road here offers a phenomenon called "gravity hill" where cars and water appear to roll uphill against gravity. It is actually an optical illusion of the surrounding scenery.

Paris, Arkansas

The site of the last public hanging in Arkansas, Paris has a population of 3,707. The man hung had been convicted of murdering his girlfriend, and this was before the first electric chair in Little Rock.

Paris, Dakota Territory

2,006 people live here in what is now called Beresford in South Dakota. The name was changed when the city incorporated in 1884 and named after Lord Charles Beresford.

Paris, Idaho

Surrounded by ranching land, this Paris is home to just 576 people. It was founded by Mormon pioneers who built a church that seats over 2,000 people, which is almost four times the total population of the town.

Paris, Illinois

Home to "Alfalfa" of the Little Rascals, Paris now has 9,077 residents. In the 1950s a minor league baseball team was based here called the Paris Lakers.

Paris, Kentucky

The world's tallest three-story structure, according to Ripley's Believe It or Not, was built here and still stands. 9,183 people live in this city, whose tourism motto is, "Horses, history, and hospitality."

Paris, Maine

There is some confusion about the name of this town of 4,793. South Paris is a census designated place within Paris, and because of this the town itself is often referred to as "South Paris." This is with the exception of Paris Hill, which is the historic district.

Paris, Michigan

It is only an unincorporated community within the larger township of Green Charter, which has a population of 3,209. The village is thought to be "fathered" by John Parish in 1965, who named it after himself. Over time, it changed from "Parish" to "Paris."

Paris, Missouri

A whopping 1,529 people (603 households) and a bicentennial tree live on just 1.2 miles of land that are this Paris.

Paris, New York

This Paris is divided into six different communities and hamlets, with the total population at 4,609. It was not named after the French city but after a benefactor, Colonel Isaac Paris.

Paris, Ohio and Paris, Pennsylvania

Too small to even have a census, these Parises are technically communities. Though unincorporated, they do have a post office (for each) and their own zip codes.

Paris, Tennessee

A park in this city is home to a sixty-foot replica of the Eiffel Tower. 2,018 people call their hometown the home of the World's Biggest Fish Fry.

Paris, Texas

The "Second Largest Paris in the World," 25,898 people call this Paris home. It, too, has a small replica of the Eiffel Tower, though the current one standing is the second one that was built in the city; the first was wooden and destroyed in a tornado (this Paris is right in Tornado Alley).

Paris, Virginia

Right in the middle of Virginia's hunt country, this Paris only has a population of 49. There is one church here, and the Appalachian Trail passes nearby.

Paris, Wisconsin

There are two Parises in the state of Wisconsin. One, in Grant County, has 754 people. The other is in Kenosha County and occupies much more space but still only has 1,473 people.

Paris Township, Michigan

Not to be confused with Paris, Michigan, Paris Township is a civil township with a population of 557. The unincorporated community within Paris Township is called Parisville, which has been a Polish American settlement since 1848, making it one of the oldest in the States.

South Paris, Maine

This is the census-designated place whose name is popularly applied to the whole town of Paris, Maine. 2,237 people call South Paris home.

St. Paris, Ohio

Originally called "New Paris," the founder (David Huffman) renamed the village after learning there was another place in Ohio called "New Paris." While there is an actual Saint Paris, it is unclear whether Huffman meant the town name as a reference to him or not.

West Paris, Maine

Of the 1,722 people living in this town, 98.78% are white. 16.4% of the population here is living below the poverty line.