jerkwater

from WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006)

jerkwater
    adj 1: small and remote and insignificant; "a jerkwater
           college"; "passed a series of poky little one-horse
           towns" [syn: {jerkwater}, {one-horse}, {pokey}, {poky}]

from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

jerkwater \jerkwater\ adj. [from jerk + water, a place where it
   is necessary to draw (jerk) water to supply the boiler of a
   steam engine.]
   1. small and remote and insignificant; as, a jerkwater
      college.

   Syn: one-horse, pokey, poky.
        [WordNet 1.5]

   2. (Railroads) Off the main railroad line. [Archaic]
      [PJC]