They have always left it ambiguous, which state they are actually from. If someone has any idea, could you please help me?
-
12Can't believe this wasn't asked here before, but can't find a previous instance.– WaltCommented Sep 10, 2015 at 6:53
-
1Springfield may or may not be in Oregon, but Burnside, Flanders, Kearney, Lovejoy, and Quimby are all streets in the same neighborhood of Portland. Additionally, Evergreen Terrace, Terwiliger, and Van Houten are also Portland streets. And Montgomery Park is a park.– 300D7309EF17Commented Sep 14, 2015 at 20:32
-
2000 miles from Arlen, Texas– komodospCommented Oct 8, 2018 at 12:23
Add a comment
|
4 Answers
Undetermined.
The mystery is an intentional running gag and their true state of residence is never revealed. Instances when it does seem to be revealed or at least approximated are usually illogical, altered later or contradicted with some other information. From Wikipedia:
Because of the many contradictory statements regarding Springfield, it is impossible for the town to exist in a specific state.
And Wikia elaborates:
The uncertain location of Springfield is a running gag in the series, based on the fact that 34 states in the United States have at least one community with that name; and several have more than one. Episodes frequently make fun of the fact that Springfield's state has never been revealed, by adding further conflicting descriptions, obscuring onscreen map representations, and interrupting conversational references.
For example in The Simpsons Movie, Ned Flanders says that the state borders Ohio, Nevada, Maine, and Kentucky, which is an impossibility. And in the episode Behind the Laughter they're revealed to be from North Kentucky, but this was changed to South Missouri in reruns (and the show is revealed to be fake there anyway, so it could just be the filming location).
You can find many clues as to where Springfield is or isn't in the above, quite thorough Wikia page (including the fictional state North Tacoma), but in all likelihood these were deliberately planted there. It's unlikely that they'll ever let this gag go and that we'll ever get a definitive answer (certainly not now, with so much conflicting data). It's best to just enjoy the ride and not play into their hands. :)
-
2
-
4Add to this that Springfield has pretty much everything every city ever had, from airports, to coast and harbor, to mountains, to universities and power plants (and East Springfield has the size of Texas if I remember correctly). Commented Sep 10, 2015 at 9:45
-
2Sure, TV Geography. (Geez, I'm playing fast and loose with Tropes links today)– WaltCommented Sep 10, 2015 at 9:49
-
1I prefer the fan theory that the Simpsons universe is just The Matrix after the third movie. Then it exists literally everywhere. Also, what about the 48 states that the Simpsons are banned from? couldn't that limit it? :p– JakeCommented Sep 10, 2015 at 13:31
-
It cannot be in the northern hemisphere at all. slate.com/blogs/bad_astronomy/2015/02/22/… Commented Sep 10, 2015 at 22:56
While the series always tried to make the state a mystery so that Springfield could be anywhere, Matt Groening has confirmed that Springfield is based in Oregon the state where he grew up.
-
5Though the very link you provide says: "Later he explicitly mentioned that Springfield was not located in Oregon"...– WaltCommented Sep 10, 2015 at 11:57
-
Oh in the opening paragraph? Good catch I missed that it seems to switch between the two becoming sure of itself later on. "Groening also confirmed recently that Springfield was in fact based on Springfield, Oregon." "Also, in in interview, he stated it was Oregon very clearly." Commented Sep 10, 2015 at 12:38
-
3No worries. It's just that there's a big difference between 'based on' and 'based in'. ;)– WaltCommented Sep 10, 2015 at 12:40
-
@ThreeValueLogic Feel free to add those quotes from the Wiki into the actual answer to flesh it out a little more. Commented Sep 10, 2015 at 12:47
The FCC license radio and television stations with a W prefix for the east coast and a K prefix for central and west coast stations.
Since the radio station featured in several episodes is KBBL it cannot be on the east coast.
-
8But as the Wikia page I linked below states, there are some exceptions to this rule.– WaltCommented Sep 10, 2015 at 9:39
-
Also, Hank Scorpio seized the East coast, and we are led to believe the Simpsons don't live in his territory.– user25696Commented Sep 11, 2015 at 13:09
There is one episode where family guy meets the simpsons. They are known to live in Quahog, Rode Island. So it should be somewhere close to that. But it is never confirmed.
-
5
-
2The Simpsons already traveled to New York. I don't remember the episode number but it is the one where Homer has to retrieve his car and it has a boot on the wheel. Traveling up the coast a little to Quahog would not be unreasonable.– user9311Commented Sep 10, 2015 at 18:14
-
1The Griffin family has been to Africa. The Simpsons have famously been to every continent on earth at least once. I don't think travel times are a significant problem. Commented Sep 11, 2015 at 2:48
-
If you watched the episode in Family Guy you would have known that they only just drove out of the city borders, then their car broke down and they landed in the Simpsons city. Commented Sep 11, 2015 at 8:42