Potholes - where does the name come from? - Ford Forums - Mustang Forum, Ford Trucks, Ford Focus and Ford Cars

josh.c · 08-01-2004, 20:48

While i was asking my girlfriend to once again try and avoid the big pot holes as the suspension will appreciate it, she replied sure but then asked well why is it called a pot-hole? Sure hole cos its a hole but why pot?

I never thought of that question before but now its out there, its annoying me. google is unhelpful so i just wonderred if any of you knew?

davway · 08-01-2004, 20:50

probably coz they are the size of a pot?

3Toed · 08-01-2004, 20:52

Could it be because if councils weren't smoking its namesake, they'd be fixed in a timely manner?

josh.c · 08-01-2004, 20:53

hmmm, both good points but nothing that sounds legit

Casper · 08-01-2004, 20:58

They are actually named after a natural geological pit:

Pothole- n geology, cylindrical pit formed in the rocky channel of a turbulent stream. It is formed and enlarged by the abrading action of pebbles and cobbles that are carried by eddies, or circular water currents that move against the main current of a stream. Potholes are most commonly found at the bottoms of eddies in rivers and in plunge pools below cataracts; sometimes potholes in a rock outcrop indicate the former site of a rapid or cataract. Potholes are often found in formerly glaciated regions where whirling columns of glacial meltwater sank well-like holes, or moulins, through the ice. Notable potholes are found in Ausable Chasm, N.Y., and Shelburne Falls, Mass. Potholes also refer to holes formed in human-made materials found in roads that are effected by natural freeze-thaw cycles or moisture

3Toed · 08-01-2004, 21:10

Here ya go!

:s6:

Quote:

Why Are They Called Potholes?

Have you ever wondered why potholes are called potholes? They don't look like pots! So how did potholes come to be called by their common name?
The spring 1998 issue of Maine Local Roads News reprinted an article by L. M. Boyd that was originally published in a 1993 edition of the Pothole Gazette. According to Mr. Boyd, pottery makers in 15th and 16th century England would take advantage of the ruts that wagon and coach wheels gouged into the roads. The potters would dig in the deep ruts to reach clay deposits that they would take as a cheap source of raw material for making clay pots. Teamsters, driving wagons and coaches over these roads knew who and what was causing the holes and referred to them as "potholes".

http://www.santa-clarita.com/cityhall/field/pothole.asp