Editing Springfield (The Simpsons) (section)

===Location===
{{quote box|align=right|width=25em|quote="The true location of Springfield is in any state but yours"|source=—[[Chalkboard gag]], "[[Beware My Cheating Bart]]"<ref name="potts20120416">{{Cite web |last=Potts |first=Kimberly |date=2012-04-16 |title='The Simpsons' Reveals Where Springfield Isn't |url=https://www.thewrap.com/simpsons-blackboard-opening-reveals-springfields-location-37036/ |access-date=2020-06-23 |website=The Wrap}}</ref>}}
<!--Please do not add speculation about individual states to this section or any other section on the page-->
Because of the many contradictory statements made regarding Springfield in the show, the town cannot exist in a specific state. In ''[[The Simpsons Movie]]'', [[Ned Flanders]] tells [[Bart Simpson|Bart]] that the state where Springfield is located is bordered by the states of [[Ohio]], [[Nevada]], [[Maine]], and [[Kentucky]] – only Ohio and Kentucky are neighboring states in reality, and Nevada and Maine are at opposite sides of the US.{{r|potts20120416}}<ref name=":1">{{cite news |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/film/features/e3i8b30e2fc7d99d5a4e04b1f219f212c3e |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070516045021/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/film/features/e3i8b30e2fc7d99d5a4e04b1f219f212c3e |archive-date=May 16, 2007 |title=Springfield of dreams |work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |date=May 11, 2007 |author=Richmond, Ray |access-date=June 13, 2007}}</ref>

The fictional city's unknown geography is a [[Recurring jokes in The Simpsons|recurring joke]] in the series; the ''[[Dayton Daily News]]'' called it the "riddle wrapped in an enigma that is Springfield's location."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.daytondailynews.com/o/content/oh/story/opinions/columns/2007/06/11/ddn061207lifedl.html |title=Maybe this Springfield is just a state of mind |author=Stewart, D.L. |access-date=April 28, 2008 |date=June 12, 2007 |work=[[Dayton Daily News]]}}</ref> Episodes frequently make fun of the fact that Springfield's state is unidentifiable, by adding further conflicting descriptions, obscuring onscreen map representations, and interrupting conversational references.<ref group=notes>One of the contradictory identifications takes place in ''[[Lisa the Iconoclast]]'' (season 7, episode 16) in which the grave of Democratic Presidential candidate and later UN ambassador under President [[John Fitzgerald Kennedy]], [[Adlai Stevenson II]], is shown to be located in Springfield's cemetery. The actual grave is in [[Evergreen Cemetery (Bloomington, Illinois)|Evergreen Cemetery]] in [[Bloomington, Illinois]]. Like his father, Vice President [[Adlai Stevenson I]], and his son, Senator [[Adlai Stevenson III]], Stevenson was strongly connected to [[Illinois]], having been Governor of the state from 1949 to 1953. The Stevenson grave is thus a "clue" pointing to Springfield being in Illinois.</ref>

[[David Silverman (animator)|David Silverman]], who directed the movie and various episodes of the series, joked that Springfield is located in the fictional state of "North Takoma".<ref name="NT">{{cite news |author=Laura Lee Davies |url=http://simpsonsarchive.com/other/interviews/oakley.silverman.html |title=Bill Oakley & David Silverman |work=[[Time Out (company)|Time Out]] |date=September 25, 1996 |access-date=April 28, 2008}}</ref><ref name="Silverman">{{cite video |people=Silverman, David |date=2003 |title=The Simpsons The Complete Third Season DVD commentary for the episode "Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington" |medium=DVD |publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref> This is substantiated by the state abbreviations NT and TA used within the show.<ref name="Silverman" /><ref>{{cite episode |title=Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington |episode-link=Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington |series=The Simpsons |series-link=The Simpsons |credits=Meyer, George; Archer, Wes |network=Fox |airdate=September 26, 1991 |season=03 |number=02}}</ref> As of ''[[A Tale of Two Springfields]]'' (season 12, episode 2), the telephone [[area codes]] for Springfield are [[Area code 636|636]] ([[St. Charles County, Missouri|St. Charles County]] and Western [[St. Louis County, Missouri]])<ref>Simpsons Episode: Papa's Got a Brand New Badge (2002), First aired May 22, 2002</ref> and [[Area code 939|939]] ([[Puerto Rico]]).

To promote ''The Simpsons Movie'', various actual [[Springfield (toponym)|towns and cities across the U.S. called Springfield]] competed to hold the [[premiere]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070608/NEWS01/706080333/1001/NEWS |title=Springfield hopes to host 'Simpsons' premiere |date=June 8, 2007 |access-date=June 13, 2007 |agency=Associated Press |publisher=Lansing State Journal |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930020454/http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20070608%2FNEWS01%2F706080333%2F1001%2FNEWS |archive-date=September 30, 2007}}</ref>  The promotion was, whichever state sent in the most votes would be the winner and would officially be which state [[The Simpsons]] takes place in. Despite the smaller size of Vermont compared to other states, the town of [[Springfield, Vermont]] was chosen.<ref>{{cite news |first=Clark |last=Cindy |title='The Simpsons Movie' Hometown Premiere Contest |url=https://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/simpsons-contest.htm |work=[[USA Today]] |date=July 10, 2007 |access-date=July 10, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Carry |last=McGourty |author2=Jared Weiner |url=https://abcnews.go.com/WN/story?id=3359421&page=1 |title=Peace, Granola and Now 'The Simpsons' |publisher=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]] |date=July 10, 2007 |access-date=July 10, 2007}}</ref> In 2016, a ''[[New York Times]]'' study of the 50 TV shows with the most [[Facebook Like]]s found that "of all the Springfields in America, [''The Simpsons''] is most popular in Springfields in [[Springfield, Virginia|Virginia]], [[Springfield, Minnesota|Minnesota]] and [[Springfield, New Jersey (disambiguation)|New Jersey]], and least popular in Springfields in [[Springfield, Louisiana|Louisiana]], [[Springfield, Arkansas|Arkansas]] and [[Springfield, Georgia|Georgia]]".<ref name="katz20161227">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/12/26/upshot/duck-dynasty-vs-modern-family-television-maps.html |title='Duck Dynasty' vs. 'Modern Family': 50 Maps of the U.S. Cultural Divide |last=Katz |first=Josh |date=December 27, 2016 |newspaper=The New York Times}}</ref>