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I am going to go with a small city that I think is a little underrated - Quincy, Illinois! The city has just over 40,000 people, and the region as a whole has around 80,000 people. I am very interested in more established older towns in the midwest that aren't necessarily the fastest growing - I think that you are missing a lot if you are the type of person that judges a town right away by % growth and amount of chain branded "anything." Quincy, is for the most part, a working class town on the beautiful Mississippi in Western Illinois! It shares a media-market with Hannibal, MO and Keokuk, IA serving as an industrial Tri-State area on the Mississippi River. The city has two unique bridges coming in and out of the city connecting Illinois with the state of Missouri. The city is also served by Amtrak and is connected to Union Station in Downtown Chicago.
Other notable features to the city adding to it's historic American architecture is the German Historic District on the south side of the city, as well as a beautiful Catholic university known as Quincy University - which I have posted a picture of below. The city also has a fair amount of early Mormon history.
Idk if it's everything you're looking for...but Bloomington, Indiana is my top pick with your criteria.....
Pop. 81k, fantastic location, lots of cool things to do, great bars & restaurants, etc.
Ok, oversight on my part. Then i'll use my home city of sumter, south Carolina with a population of 41,000 and county population of 108,000.
Sumter looks pretty awesome, love the southern charm aspect.
Quote:
Originally Posted by believe007
Idk if it's everything you're looking for...but Bloomington, Indiana is my top pick with your criteria.....
Pop. 81k, fantastic location, lots of cool things to do, great bars & restaurants, etc.
I am going to go with a small city that I think is a little underrated - Quincy, Illinois! The city has just over 40,000 people, and the region as a whole has around 80,000 people. I am very interested in more established older towns in the midwest that aren't necessarily the fastest growing - I think that you are missing a lot if you are the type of person that judges a town right away by % growth and amount of chain branded "anything." Quincy, is for the most part, a working class town on the beautiful Mississippi in Western Illinois! It shares a media-market with Hannibal, MO and Keokuk, IA serving as an industrial Tri-State area on the Mississippi River. The city has two unique bridges coming in and out of the city connecting Illinois with the state of Missouri. The city is also served by Amtrak and is connected to Union Station in Downtown Chicago.
Other notable features to the city adding to it's historic American architecture is the German Historic District on the south side of the city, as well as a beautiful Catholic university known as Quincy University - which I have posted a picture of below. The city also has a fair amount of early Mormon history.
Gorgeous, exactly the kind of city I am looking for in this thread!
Bloomington, IL is the best small city under 200k that I've probably ever been to. Its like something out of a TV sitcom.
Its what I grew up thinking small towns should be like, with a grid, no real ghettos, very safe, no traffic, great schools, civic pride, cute little downtown, great bike trails, and super cheap houses.
Bloomington, IN is nice too but are not to be confused.
Newport Beach, CA. World class restaurants, hotels, shopping, nightlife, some of the best beaches and best weather in the country and it even has its own island (Balboa). Laguna Beach. Everything Newport has plus some of the best art galleries in the US and a lovely little village downtown.
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Quincy, IL
