Things Owensboroans Say

8

THE BLUE BRIDGE

An Owensboro icon, the Glover H. Cary “blue bridge” spans the Ohio River between Kentucky and Indiana. Originally painted silver, it was repainted blue in the ‘70s. Today, the blue bridge shines even brighter with color-changing LED lights that are programmable to match the season or for special events.

9

MALCO MOVIE THEATER

Located in Gateway Commons, Owensboro’s new Malco theater features large format extreme screens, electronic motorized recliner seating, and a grill and bar with a full menu.

10

NASCAR

In addition to being the hometown of Darrell & Michael Waltrip, many other NASCAR drivers, pit crew members, officials, and mechanics got their start at Kentucky Motor Speedway (Whitesville) and Windy Hollow Speedway.

11

THE OWENSBORO CHRISTMAS PARADE

The annual Owensboro Christmas Parade is “Where Kentucky Starts Christmas.” The 2018 parade featured 100 floats and stretched 11 city blocks along 2nd Street.

THINGS OWENSBOROANS SAY

Welcome to Owensboro. We’re glad you’re here. Greater Owensboro is known for friendly folks and southern hospitality. Hopefully you’ve picked up on that already!

That being said, we definitely don’t want you to feel like an outsider for very long. So here are some Owensboroisms you should know about. We’re not claiming any of these make any sense – it’s just the way things are here in Owensboro. Pick up on these and you’ll be talking and thinking like a native Owensboroan in no time.

IT’S NOT “POP”

First of all, we call soda “coke,” whether it’s a Coke, Dr. Pepper, Pepsi or whatever. When we say coke we mean any carbonated soft drink.

LOCAL HIGH SCHOOLS

Owensboroans call Daviess County High School “County” for short. But not so much “County High.” However, for some reason it’s perfectly acceptable to call Owensboro Catholic High School “Catholic High” or even just “Catholic” for short. But Owensboro High School is not “City” or “City High.” It’s “Senior High” because it started out as Owensboro Senior High School back in the day and we just never stopped calling it that. There’s no confusion with Apollo High School though. It’s just “Apollo.” There’s no other way to say it.

LOCAL LANDMARKS

There are two bridges: the “new bridge,” which is out Highway 60 east of town, and the “blue bridge,” which is downtown. We don’t ever call them by their proper names (like Glover H. Cary, for example). We keep it totally informal when it comes to our bridges.

There is also no “East Parrish” and “West Parrish” Avenue to an Owensboroan. It’s just “54” on the east end and “Parrish” on the west end. Out-of-towners struggle with the pronunciation of Frederica Street. Owensboroans slur it like Louisvillians slur the word “Louisville.” You don’t say it phonetically. It’s pronounced “Fred-rickuh.” Three syllables. Not “Fred-er-reek-ah.”

And as for The Big Dipper, one of Owensboro’s favorite local restaurants, it’s just “The Dipper.”

LOCAL DIALECT

To an Owensboroan, the names “Brian” and “Ryan” are one syllable. “Kyle” and “Cal” almost rhyme, even though they should sound nothing alike.

For some unknown reason, we call garbage cans “toters” and knit hats “sock caps.”

Some Owensboro folks put an “r” in the word “wash.” It’s not every day, but occasionally you will hear of someone “warshing” their laundry or car.

Then some of us drop the “l” for no reason at all. As in “a five year ode” or a “bow” of soup. (Listen… it’s true isn’t it! Oops, idn’t it? Sorry.)

We took a non-official tally and noticed that Owensboroans are about 50/50 on the pronunciation of Thruston. Incidentally, it could be said, “Thruston Dermont Road” as it’s spelled or “Thurston (as in “thirstin”) Dermont Road.” Either way.

Some folks will put a “the” in where there’s not even a “the” needed. As in, going to “The Walmart.”

Start using these “Owensboroisms” and you’ll fit right in! O

CLIMATE IN FAHRENHEIT (AVERAGES)

WINTER:

teens-mid 40s

SUMMER:

mid 60s-mid 90s

SPRING:

50s-70s

FALL:

50s-mid 80s

# OF SNOW DAYS:

3

YEARLY SNOWFALL:

6” total