Which large American city name wad decided by a coin toss?
Answer: Portland, Oregon. Disagreeing over who should name the city, the two primary founders, Asa Lovejoy and Francis Pettygrove, tossed a coin in 1845 to decide who should name the city. Pettygrove won, and named the town Portland, after his home town in Maine. If Lovejoy had won, the city would likely have been called Boston.
Source: Portland by Jewel Beck Lansing
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