Felony Flats

Felony Flats is a derogatory nickname of areas in several cities in the Western United States historically perceived to have high crime rates. They are usually near a river or creek with corresponding flat area. In some Western cities, similar neighborhoods are known as skid row.

• Aberdeen, Washington's Felony Flats, beside the Wishkah River, best known as the childhood home of Kurt Cobain[1] 46.981°N 123.809°W
• Apple Valley, California neighborhood, near California State Route 18[2] 34.5315°N 117.2235°W
• Part of Spokane, Washington's West Central neighborhood, near the Spokane River[3][4] 47.663°N 117.445°W
• Vancouver–Camas, Washington, near the Columbia River[5]
• North side of Wasilla, Alaska near Mile 49 on the George Parks Highway[6] 61.582°N 149.608°W
• An area within south-east Portland, Oregon, loosely defined as encompassing neighborhoods such as Foster-Powell and Lents.[7][8]

The similarly disparaging term "Poverty Flats" was bestowed on many Western towns, including what later became Dunsmuir, California, Redding, California,[9][10] Lee Vining, California (was Poverty Flat), Grant, Idaho,[11] Wolf Point, Montana,[12]^:1 and Moab, Utah.[13]^:41[14]^:253 A fictional Northern California mining town called Poverty Flat was depicted in the 1915 movie The Lily of Poverty Flat, based on the Bret Harte book of the same name, and shot near Santa Cruz, California.[15]

See also

• The Flats, once an Irish ghetto in Cleveland

References

1. Seminara, Dave (March 25, 2014). "Chasing Kurt Cobain in Washington State". The New York Times. Retrieved August 6, 2015.
2. Steve Hunt (January 25, 2015), "Felony Flats? Can't we fix this?", Daily Press, Victorville, California: Local Media Group, Inc.
3. Virginia de Leon (April 28, 2002), "Neighborhood marks anniversary of COPS West ; Station transformed area known as 'Felony Flats'", The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Washington, archived from the original on September 24, 2015 – via HighBeam (subscription required)
4. Jones, Jacob (December 18, 2012), "CRIME AND PROGRESS — Recent West Central homicides renew community vigilance", The Pacific Northwest Inlander, retrieved August 20, 2015
5. "Clark Countys pockets of poverty", The Columbian, Vancouver, WA, October 4, 2009, archived from the original on September 24, 2015 – via HighBeam (subscription required), [K]nown to its residents as the original Felony Flats...like driving into Appalachia...Untouched by wave after wave of urban redevelopment, forgotten by maps, carefully ignored by code enforcers and often owned by out-of-town landlords, these clusters of disintegrating shacks and trailers are tucked into crannies from Fruit Valley to Camas...they live in the worst corners of town.
6. Boots, Michelle Theriault (October 13, 2012). "'Felony Flats' on Parks Highway to give way to road widening". Alaska Dispatch News. Archived from the original on May 13, 2013. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
7. Maushard, Lawrence (February 28, 2008). "Good-Bye, Felony Flats". Portland Mercury. Retrieved August 1, 2020.
8. Silkman, Bonnie (April 25, 2019). "Two shootings, less than a mile apart, in SE Portland: 'It's a neighborhood that's had a lot of trouble'". Fox 12 Oregon. Retrieved August 1, 2020.
9. Historic walking tours: Redding's railroad reservation, Shasta Historical Society, c. 2014, archived from the original on September 12, 2015, retrieved August 20, 2015
10. Dottie Smith (June 21, 2011), "Before Redding, there was Poverty Flats", Taking Care of History (blog), archived from the original on March 4, 2016, retrieved August 21, 2015
11. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Grant, Idaho — "The variants, Poverty Flats and Gravy Bend, were acquired during impoverished times when residents had to eat watered-down gravy."
12. Johansen 2010.
13. McCourt 2007.
14. Van Cott 1990.
15. James P. Leonard (February 16, 1915), "The Lily of Poverty Flat — A Visit to Mimic Pioneer Village Where Movies Are Being Made", Santa Cruz Daily Surf, p. 8 – via Santa Cruz Public Library

Sources

• Johansen, B.E. (2010). Native Americans Today: A Biographical Dictionary. Greenwood Press. ISBN 978-0-313-35554-7.
• McCourt, T. (2007). Cowpokes to Bike Spokes: The Story of Moab, Utah. Johnson Books. ISBN 978-1-55566-396-4.
• Van Cott, J.W. (1990). Utah Place Names: A Comprehensive Guide to the Origins of Geographic Names : a Compilation. University of Utah Press. ISBN 978-0-87480-345-7.