The question seemed easy enough. In fact, I thought I already knew the answer. I didn’t think I’d be falling down a rabbit hole.
My former Beacon Journal colleague Kathy Antoniotti and her friend Maggie Frost wanted to know: What is the origin of the name Turkeyfoot?
Turkeyfoot Lake, Turkeyfoot Lake Road, Turkeyfoot Road and Turkeyfoot Island are among the topographic features at Portage Lakes in Summit County.
I distinctly remember being told as a kid that Turkeyfoot Lake got its name because, when viewed from the air, it looks like the three-toed foot of a turkey. Decades later, I began to wonder: When viewed from the air?!?!
Turkeyfoot Lake, originally spelled Turkey Foot Lake, is eons older than the aviation age. How did Ohio settlers know what the lake looked like from the air? They certainly didn’t admire the view from Western Reserve blimps.
But that’s OK. For thousands of years, cartographers have drawn maps without floating above the planet to check their work.
When I view Turkeyfoot Lake on a map, I see a turkey’s footprint. Full disclosure: When I look at cloud formations, I think I see Bugs Bunny, Albert Einstein and the Mona Lisa — sometimes at the same time.