Agloe New York: A Town That Only Existed On Maps

There is a town in New York State that simply does not exist. Sure, it has a name, and you can find it on a paper map. You can even enter the town name in your Google Maps app and it will appear, but this town does not exist. This is the story of Agloe, New York, which doesn't exist.

When I say this town does not exist I am saying there are no residents, no homes, stores, or post office. This is not a movie set or urban legend. This is a town with a name and nothing else. Over the years, this fake town became real because people believed it was real but it was just a 'paper town'.

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Back in the day, the great American road trip was navigated via paper maps. Most maps were very accurate but some included "paper towns". According to Atlas Obscura a paper town is a location that only exists on a paper map and New York has one of the country's most famous paper towns, Agloe.

Agloe, New York was invented by the General Drafting Company in 1925. Map makers, would place fake towns on their maps to protect against someone copying their map. The 'trap towns' could potentially prove their copyright had been infringed.

In the 1950s, the Agloe General Store was built at the intersection shown on the map and new maps started including the town of Agloe. When the General Drafting Company sued for copyright infringement they lost because Agloe had actually turned into a hamlet. All because people believed the fake town existed.

Read more; Did You Know These 12 New York Towns Share the Same Names?

Author John Green wrote the book 'Paper Towns' which debuted at #5 on the New York Times Best seller list in 2009 and, in 2015, went on to become a movie of the same name.