My search for the epitome of an All-American, "Mayberry" neighborhood

[DinsdalePirahna]

Millbrook NY (Millbrook, New York - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

(and you may even find Otis the Drunk and a clan of Hillbillies like the Darlings in nearby Onion Town)

[Huckleberry3911948]

they exist. alota small texas towns. the problem is people go there and then try to make it just like the septic tank they escaped. no matter where we go, there we are.
my favorite is they all want friendly respectful towns, and then they go there with 9mm pants down.

[denverian]

Originally Posted by northbound74

Idyllic places, if they ever existed, are increasingly just suburbs of big cities or perhaps the occasional tourist trap. Ok, so WFB is a bit upscale, but it's not that upscale.
Sadly, friendly, safe, livable podunk places are increasingly rare.

You can definitely find such places in the 'burbs. I lived in the city of Orange for a decade (middle of Orange County, CA) and they have preserved the downtown core to keep it resembling a Mayberry type of town. It's referred to as "Old Town Orange" and the houses are generally around 100+ years old and well preserved. They have specific zoning in the little downtown area to keep it looking "small town" because Hollywood uses it as a set very often. I can't count how many times I've been watching a movie and suddenly I recognize store fronts or cafes because they filmed it in Orange.

[jtur88]

Originally Posted by Fundman

I think the person mentioned race because a lot of people make reference to growing up in "Mayberry," or say things like "it no longer seems like the town I grew up in," back "before things changed" as code words for before blacks and Hispanics moved in.

WalMart has changed towns more than Blacks and Hispanics have.

Mayberry is a place where kids play outside and their mothers don't necessarily know exactly where they are.

[terrence81]

Originally Posted by citylove101

Yes I noticed. And it gave me the creeps.

Anybody who thinks all white towns are "All-American" is about 50 years behind the times.

Originally Posted by ckhthankgod

To be fair, that community is around 8% Black, with Asians and Hispanics coming in at 1 and 2%. So, it isn't completely White either.

Originally Posted by michigan83

Saying that an all-white town is "creepy" just because of how the residents look is a little over the top. I mean... seriously? It's creepy that they all have white skin? Come on. They are still people.

Sigh y'all just sigh. I thought it was a nice picture and didn't really notice the racial make up. At the same time a town that's 90% white is considered overwhelmingly white in my book. For some that would automatically create a safety concern. To pretend that it doesn't create concerns is to stick one's head in the sand and act like a black President means we're post-racial. Which is an annoying myth that I wish would just go away. This country has gotten uglier and more racist since his election in my opinion.

I don't think a town that is all white is creepy but please understand why someone, particularly someone of color, might have an issue with an all white town due to the ugly racist history of this country.

[terrence81]

Back to the topic.

I would nominate the DC suburb of Vienna VA. I've always gotten an old fashioned vibe and you do see kids playing in the street.

I live in a townhouse development but there's always kids playing in the street even little black boys climbing trees. I don't know I think black boys should climb trees more often both literally and figureatively. So West Springfield, VA can be added to the list as well.

[brava4]

Originally Posted by terrence81

Back to the topic.

I would nominate the DC suburb of Vienna VA. I've always gotten an old fashioned vibe and you do see kids playing in the street.

I live in a townhouse development but there's always kids playing in the street even little black boys climbing trees. I don't know I think black boys should climb trees more often both literally and figureatively. So West Springfield, VA can be added to the list as well.

Oh yuck!! Vienna is in Fairfax County which has over a million people in it. You've got to be nuts to think one strip of road is like small town America.

[northbound74]

Originally Posted by denverian

You can definitely find such places in the 'burbs. I lived in the city of Orange for a decade (middle of Orange County, CA) and they have preserved the downtown core to keep it resembling a Mayberry type of town. It's referred to as "Old Town Orange" and the houses are generally around 100+ years old and well preserved. They have specific zoning in the little downtown area to keep it looking "small town" because Hollywood uses it as a set very often. I can't count how many times I've been watching a movie and suddenly I recognize store fronts or cafes because they filmed it in Orange.

It looks very nice. Reminds me of a lot of the little suburbs around Milwaukee.

I'll add that small towns everywhere I've seen so far in Wisconsin are like that. It's pretty cool to see after growing up in a part of the country where so many small towns have declined.