Where in the world is Antioch?

"Ante, Ock!"
The black-clad riverboat gambler snarled at a native American who faced him across the poker table. "Throw in some chips or I'm gonna deal you out."
A few seconds earlier, a passenger standing at the nearby railing, had gazed at the shore and asked her husband, "Where are we, dear?"
A third passenger was sketching a rough map of the area and entered what he mistakenly believed was the response to the woman's query: "Antioch."
And that, I was told, is how this riverfront community got its name. "Ock," according to my source, was the chief of a local tribe who was known for his slow play at the poker table...
Antioch, CA -- As a journalist, I consider it my professional duty to apply a healthy dose of skepticism to just about any statement. But it doesn't take much of a skeptic to recognize that the "Ante, Ock!" explanation for the naming of this burgeoning delta community just doesn't ring true.
Fortunately, local residents -- most notably, members of the Antioch Historical Society -- have done their homework and created an alternate account that seems better able to bear scrutiny.
Predictably, the shoreline that now marks the northern border of both the City of Antioch and Contra Costa County created a natural and logical path for native Americans, including more than one tribe of Miwoks (but probably no Ocks) who were enroute to and from the Bay.
Fish were plentiful in waters that reversed course each day with the tides and there's little doubt that nets were cast from shores that are now part of the city. Then, as now, the area is dotted with wetlands; a huge range of wildlife certainly occupied territory now filled with malls, schools, roads and housing tracts.
The first non-natives to arrive were Spanish explorers who conducted expeditions through the delta nearly 250 years ago. But early settlements leapfrogged from the Bay Area into the Central Valley and the Sierra beyond; and the process of "in-filling" didn't begin until the mid-19th century; it continues today.
Having dispensed with the legend of a poker-playing chief named Ock as the town's namesake, we are next offered a tale involving the Smith brothers.
WOO-OOOH-WOO-OOOH!
The skeptic's alarm sounds again as visions of cough drops and bearded brothers dance in our heads.
But then we're told that these were two OTHER brothers who came with their wives to seek their fortune during the gold rush and ended up applying their skills at tailoring and homebuilding to create an infrastructure that soon led to the first stages of the aforementioned in-filling.
In addition to being tradesmen, both brothers were ordained ministers and when the time came to name the settlement they founded, "Antioch" seemed to be a good choice.
Considered by many to be the birthplace of Christianity, the Syrian Antioch was where the apostle Paul reportedly began his work.
Once named, it took about 20 years for the settlement to grow to a population of 1,000 and another half-century to surpass 10,000. But when land closer to the Bay filled up with increasingly expensive housing, property that had formerly been agricultural began giving way to neighborhoods and the number of souls in Antioch doubled about every 20 years.
Today, with over 100,000 residents, the city is alternately referred to as the "Gateway to the Delta," RiverTown," the "Heart of Contra Costa County," "A-Town" and even "A-O" by some high schoolers. It's a blend of riverfront, historic western town and bedroom community and seems destined to continue growing even as traffic and other impacts begin to threaten the quality of life.
The city is bristling with new opportunities; and newcomers provide funding for schools and other civic facilities. But there is an underlying concern that growth may not be good just for its own sake and that more density may lead to new problems, including a higher crime rate.
Like many, perhaps all, 21st century cities, Antioch is discovering that these are the best of times and the worst of times.
Like most, perhaps all communities, Antioch is lucky to have a large majority of friendly, caring, hard-working and concerned citizens.
Most travelers never pass through Antioch and the world pays little attention to the goings-on here along the San Joaquin River. But this is the whole world for children growing up in one small corner of California and those who live here are challenged to make this the best Antioch it can be.
"Now, shut-up and deal."