PETA is asking a small Connecticut town to consider changing a street “in the spirit of peace and goodwill this Christmas.”
PETA wrote a letter to Killingworth, Connecticut, First Selectman Nancy Gorski, asking her to rename Roast Meat Hill Road to Vegan Roast Hill Road. The organization argued changing the name would “encourage locals to celebrate with healthy but hearty vegan roasts.”
PETA also offered to “cover the signage costs and host a delicious ‘ham’ sandwich giveaway in town.”
Killingworth residents had a ball with the letter on the town’s Facebook page and told PETA to get stuffed.
“This reads like an article from the Onion,” a local resident named Laura remarked, while another local named Aaron joked they should be more upset about Skunk Misery Road in neighboring Haddam.
Gorski has not yet responded to the letter. It is unknown how PETA learned of the street name.
As for how the road, which is believed to be Killingworth’s oldest, earned its unique name, the Hartford Courant once reported locals believe a deacon named Avery was hit by misfortune when his wagon carrying salt hay was struck by lightning and he was unable to save his oxen. Another legend speaks of a barn with cows inside going up in flames during the town’s earliest years.
However, the state paper says the name likely was inspired by the Hammonasset tribe, which is said to have used the area as a winter camp. The Courant reported the area was surveyed between the 1600s and 1700s; the street was named Roast Meat Hill Road after surveyors found animal bones.