Zzyzx, California

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Location map of Zzyzx, California

Zzyzx Road exit sign on Interstate 15

Lake Tunedae, a dry lake near Zzyzx, California

For other uses of "Zzyzx", see Zzyzx (disambiguation).

Zzyzx, California is a settlement in San Bernardino County, California, formerly the site of the Zzyzx Mineral Springs and Health Spa and now the site of the Desert Studies Center. The area is also the location of Lake Tunedae, one of the refuge habitats of the endangered Mohave tui chub.

Zzyzx Road is a 4.5 mile / 7.2 km long, part paved and part dirt, rural collector road in the Mojave Desert. It runs from Interstate 15 generally south to the Zzyzx settlement.

1 History
2 Lexicography
3 Appearances in popular culture
4 See also
5 References
6 External links

[edit] History

Soda Springs, a natural spring, has long seen human activity. The area was a prehistoric quarry site and projectile pointsand rock art can be found in the area. The Mojave Road ran past the spring, as did the Tonopah and Tidewater Railroad. Remnants of a wagon road stop and railroad artifacts are readily seen. Evaporative salt mining and mill sites can be found here as well.

The name Zzyzx, pronounced /ˈzaɪˌzɪks/ (pronounced as "Zei-zix" with the accent on the first syllable, rhyming with "Isaac's", not "physics"), was given to the area in 1944 by Curtis Howe Springer, claiming it to be the last word in the English language. Springer made up the word's pronunciation. He established the Zzyzx Mineral Springs and Health Spa at the spot, which was federal land that he had no permission to use. He used Zzyzx until 1974, when he was arrested by the United States Marshals for misuse of the land as well as alleged violations of food and drug laws, and the land was confiscated by the government.

Since 1976, the Bureau of Land Management has allowed California State University to manage the land in and around Zzyzx. A consortium of CSU campuses use it as their Desert Studies Center.

[edit] Lexicography

Word Ways magazine verified the source of the lexicography as an undated San Bernardino County map published by the Automobile Club of Southern California. The magazine characterized Zzyzx Springs as "a hydrologic feature and a privately owned spa catering to the senior citizen, about 8.5 mi. (13.7 km) south of Baker on the western edge of Soda Dry Lake, off the abandoned right-of-way of the old Tonopah and Tidewater Railroad."

Zzyzx was approved as a place name by the United States Board on Geographic Names on June 14, 1984. As is the case with the road, Zzyzx, California, is the USBGN's lexicographically greatest (alphabetically last, at least in English alphabetical order) place name.

The location and the road are often believed to be the lexicographically greatest exemplars of their respective classes, i.e. recognized locations and recognized street names, in the world. However, a street named Zzz exists in Bangs, Texas, and a street named Zzzz exists in Kearney, Nebraska.

[edit] Appearances in popular culture

There are films titled Zzyzx^[1] and Zyzzyx Road (also called Zyzzyx Rd.)^[2] (Note the different spelling for Zyzzyx Road.)
Michael Petracca's novel Captain Zzyzx takes its name from Zzyzx Road: the book's title is also the name of a rhythm and blues band that the protagonist, Harmon Nails III, performs in. In the book, the musician Nails saw the road sign while driving on I-15, was compelled to pull off the highway to drive down Zzyzx Road, and swore that the next band he played in would be called Captain Zzyzx.
Michael Connelly's novel The Narrows featured Zzyzx prominently.
Stone Sour's second album Come What(ever) May contains a song named "Zzyzx Rd."
Stavesacre's album Collective has a song named "Zzyzx", and their album Absolutes has a song named "Zzyzx Scarecrow".
The Norwegian-American band Zeromancer named an album after the town, supposedly after they passed it while on tour.
In 2000 computer game Sacrifice, there is a character called Zyzyx.