I like the idea of small towns and eventually want to settle in one, but I don't like small towns that are littered with big box retail and have no urban/architectural character. Their main street/downtown core should be mostly intact, and should have at least some amenity to offer (whether its good culture, nature, food, whatever) My knowledge of these places isn't there, so I'm asking people for some insight. What are some good ones to consider? I have two guidelines: *Population should be less than 100,000 (preferably 30,000 - 90,000) *They should not be a part of or be strongly associated with a large metropolitan area (so for example, they should be far enough away from any metro areas, that they could not be considered bedroom communities)
Gloucester Massachusetts (my town http://www.gloucesterma.com/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gloucester,_Massachusetts Town of 35,000ish. Mostly intact downtown/main street area (they are in the process of starting to construct a mini-mall, not downtown though.)Wonderful Beaches, whale-watching, harbor sails, history (one of oldest American colonies), an art colony, seafood, an annual "fiesta" (Blessing of the fleet, carnival, St.Peter's parade) Strong ethnic/immigrant roots (first it was English, then Irish, then Finnish/Swedish, more recently there is a very strong Sicilian, Portuguese, Azorean, and Brazilian communities all of which are apparent on the towns fishermen memorial) Your nearby to other places, Salem, Essex (shipbuilding museum) A ferry to cape cod. It's a nice place (minus some of the locals ) (EDIT) The town also has had more Hollywood attention, being the Setting for Captains Courageous. it was also the setting and filming location for The Perfect Storm. The Good son and Moonlight Mile were filmed here too.
Thanks everybody so far, these are the kinds of suggestions I was going for. I've been to Gloucester being when I was in high school, I remember it being nice. The water smelled pretty fishy though. I bought a souvenier lobster-shaped hair comb and one of those t-shirts that changes colors in the sun. Never been to Monterey, do intend on hitting up the California coast sometime though. Asheville looks cool, my kind of place really...but WTF is up with this baseball team name/logo?
I have a question. I might have a job in Wilmington, NC. My interview is next week. Other than wikipedia, I don't know much about the place. No one I know has been there so I am trying to find info from someone that has been there or lived there or at least in the area. Is Wilmington immersed with "big box retail". I know they have a boardwalk but. Is there a nice nightlife, arts/culture, etc etc???
it's expensive, but it's a great town here's a useful link city data Chico CA is another good bet. college town. 90 miles from Sacramento. go see Arnold.
Well, there are lots of tourists that come through! It's a great place to eat and drink, and the outdoor sports might are probably the best in the Southeast. The baseball teams in the other towns I lived in NC were the Crawdads and the Warthogs--no better there. The Midwestern college towns that spring to mind are Bloomington, IN, and Madison, Wisconsin.
I lived there for a few months. There is some big box stuff like anywhere, but the downtown area is very cool and has good nightlife. There is a fairly large state school there that provides some of the best girls in that area of the country. The main beach area for Wilmington is Wrightsville Beach, which has its own nightlife and decent surfing. The Outer Banks are reasonably accessible from there as well.
Good call there on the small college towns. They tend to have the right mix of amenities that I'm looking for. Matt, Ithaca looks awesome. I think that's my favorite suggestion so far.
Well then, I'm partial to Blacksburg, VA. I've also been to Bozeman, MT once, and thought that was pretty nice. Charlottesville, VA isn't bad either.
Bozeman is great but it's apparently full of people from California. At least as recently as a year or so ago, real estate was stupid expensive, considering that it is in the middle of freakin' Montana.
Is this just for Americans or can anyone join in? If you're ever visiting a small town in the NL let it be Giethoorn AKA the Venice of the Netherlands. Many houses, churches and bars are accessible only by boat. http://www.worldisround.com/articles/12004/ I dare all of you to find a more picturesque town.
And it has Laguna Seca Raceway. Home to the most famous turn in all American road courses: the Corkscrew. My contribution: New Bern, North Carolina. The birthplace of Pepsi-Cola. The former colonial capital of North Carolina.
You crazy Americans. In Australia, 100,000 people is a decent sized city. 'Small town' would be a few thousand.