Why Fontana is called Fontucky

Submitted by Anonymous on Sat, 11/19/2011 - 2:08am

In years past Fontana was often called Fontucky. The nickname Fontucky was given (and is still used today) because of the number of poor white people and rednecks living there (much like the back woods of Kentucky).

The nickname Fontucky has stuck and is still used partially because of the people living in some of the "nicer" surrounding areas such as Etiwanda and Alta Loma. People living in those areas try their best to differentiate themselves from the lower-income, lower classes and higher crime rates often associated with Fontana. By referring to Fontana as Fontucky, it perpetuates the stereotype which many claim is no longer true.

Today, the average income of Fontucky is actually slightly higher than the rest of California however the average home value is far lower than the rest of California. The lower home values of Fontana may be partially due to the number of mobile homes in the area which also makes the name Fontucky stick.

More people now refer to Fontucky as "little Mexico" or Fontalajara because the majority of people living in Fontana today are of Hispanic or Mexican descent. There are over 400% more "Mexicans" in Fontana today than there are Rednecks (aka, poor white trash).

No matter if you call it Fontana, Fontucky or Little Mexico, Fontana is still considered a shithole by most people!

Comments

Anonymous

Fri, 12/16/2011 - 7:28pm

yea, like MoVal is any better. lol. nerd!

iedude

Sat, 12/17/2011 - 8:53am

I think just about anyplace is better than Fontucky.. EVEN Moreno Valley.

Anonymous

Mon, 11/17/2014 - 6:49pm

LMAO! Moreno Valley is worse than Fontana!

Fontanian

Thu, 12/11/2014 - 3:10pm

I lived in Moval...nothing in comparison. It's like comparing Santa Ana and Newport Beach.

Ron McKinney

Mon, 12/24/2012 - 10:35am

You drive past a shack or trailer in Fontana and you can tell where its owner came from by the make and model of the junk cars parked in the yard and the brand of dead refrigerator on the porch. If the junker is a Ford, and the fridge is a Kelvinator, you can bet they're from Michigan. But if the dead car's a Chevy and the fridge is G.E. then they're surely from Tennessee or Kentucky. If the dude's sitting on his porch, drinking Coors, you know for sure he's from Oklahoma, but if that's a Pabst can or a Lucky Lager in his mitt, he could be from Peoria, or Iowa City.

My aunt Rene and Uncle Vernon sold their chicken ranch in Fontana and bought a furniture store in Banning. Uncle Vernon worked as a switchman at Kaiser Steel during the war and Aunt Rene ran the ranch, where she raised 10,000 Leghorns, 9 German Shepherd dogs, two milk cows and countless cats, all feral except at milking time.

When they sold the furniture store in Banning they opened a Mexican restaurant in San Berdoo; their Okie-style Mexican food, tamales, chilli, and you-nam-it, was so good that rich Mexicans drove all the way out from Compton to dine there.

During the war, a day before Christmas, the woman across the road was being carted off to Patton asylum. Before leaving she was allowed to carry her newest baby across and leave it on Aunt Rene's doorstep with a Bow on the basket and a Christmas card. Aunt Rene raised the baby girl--who died young, but not before having a baby of her own, which she left for Aunt Rene Mosslander to raise. When Uncle Vernon died, Aunt Rene was devastated and took to drink; she died in Patton, like the woman who left her a baby for Christmas. MERRY CHRISTMAS! from Ron McKinney.

Anonymous

Thu, 03/21/2013 - 3:51am

Ron I loved your story, talk about ol time Fontana before Fontucky....

After reading it I can't help but recall by late parents often seeing the views you mention and cussing the Oakies to describe all of them...

My dad retired from the LAPD in the mid 1940s and relocated East to be out of LA, in those days LA was a lot further west than the regular commutes we have today, at least it seemed a lot more than 50 miles away. I grew up in Fontana/Bloomington before Fontana was even incorporated as a city.

I think my dad was amongst the LA cops sent by the LA district Attorney to the California border to turn back the Oakies. The local Sheriff at the state line was outnumbered by them, I think they sent several platoons of them. They had no legal authority to do so, but did so anyway because they did not want the Oakies heading to LA. Life was a lot different in those days...

But that was why dad called them Oakies...

Anonymous

Sun, 01/04/2015 - 9:43am

You "moved up" by moving to Moreno Valley? That was a lateral move... at best.

Anonymous

Wed, 07/22/2015 - 8:16pm

another shit hole

Anonymous

Wed, 03/09/2016 - 6:03pm

Moval is a shit hole even worst

Ree Sem

Mon, 07/17/2017 - 4:06am

worse...you moron!

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