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Everyone knows and visits Boston on trips to New England. Providence is considered the second city of the region. Smaller gems like Newport RI, Portland ME, Burlington VT, and Portsmouth NH get a good deal of tourism and press as well. What do you think is the most underrated/ under-appreciated New England city (for the sake of this thread, pop of around 25,000+)?
With respects to New Bedford and Lowell, MA which both have made a lot of progress and have a good amount to offer, I'll go with New Haven, CT. It's a pretty city with an eclectic downtown area surrounding a nice, New England style common. Yale's presence (and other institutions) is a big plus. New Haven has great food and a prime location. It doesn't get a lot of press, but I love New Haven.
*edit* I'd appreciate if people didn't include immediate metro area cities as they are often closely related to the principal city of said metro area (i.e. Boston/Cambridge/Somerville, etc or Providence/Pawtucket/Warwick). Try to pick independent or distant satellite cities please.
I think this is a really neat topic. I am a southerner so I do not have enough info to vote yet. I will base my decision based on informed posts from posters.
That being said, some other really nice NE towns that I hear of that are impressive are New Haven, Bridgeport, and Providence. These areas are basically, on paper, just small cities. But their GDP is much larger than their population stats. I think Bridgeport is $80 billion. I also hear that weather in New Haven is not bad compare to other NE towns. Overall, I think I like the Connecticut metros.
I don't like that you made this thread so exclusive. You basically tell us what we can and cannot vote for.
That being said, I voted "other" because I do think Providence is an underrated city, its status in New England notwithstanding.
How is it so exclusive? I listed 16 cities and an "other" option so you can say why you feel a certain city is underrated even if it's not on the poll. The poll is just entertainment... the "winner" isn't getting a prize or anything.
I love Providence. I lived there for 2 years. From a nationwide point of view, it's underrated for sure. However, when compared to New England cities, it's considered second best for just about everything (food, architecture, nightlife, history, entertainment, etc) which is why I didn't put it in the poll. Glad to hear your reasoning though!
Quote:
Originally Posted by adavi215
That being said, some other really nice NE towns that I hear of that are impressive are New Haven, Bridgeport, and Providence. These areas are basically, on paper, just small cities. But their GDP is much larger than their population stats. I think Bridgeport is $80 billion. I also hear that weather in New Haven is not bad compare to other NE towns. Overall, I think I like the Connecticut metros.
Good points, many of these cities are powerhouses... just overshadowed by larger neighbors (Boston, NYC). The weather in New Haven is tempered by Long Island Sound and the fact that it's further South than most N.E. cities. Keep in mind, these city populations are "low" because they have tiny footprints in terms of square mileage in most cases (though some are just plain small cities). Providence has a population of about 178,000 in the city but 1.6 Million in the metro. it's because Providence itself is only 18.5 square miles. New Haven is 18.9 square miles and has about 124,000 there. Hartford has 124,000 in 17 square miles. The small land area is typical of New England cities and is deceiving when comparing size, especially with Southern and Western Cities. For example, Jacksonville Florida has a population of over 800,000 living in 767 square miles (compare that to Providence's 18.5 square miles)! It's metro area (at 1.3 Million) is actually smaller than Providence's. City Population figures in New England are very deceiving.
Just out of curiosity, are there any urban New England cities with large areas of rowhouses like those in Boston? The Boston ones are gorgeous, but I'm hoping that they're characteristic urban New England and not just Boston.
Just out of curiosity, are there any urban New England cities with large areas of rowhouses like those in Boston? The Boston ones are gorgeous, but I'm hoping that they're characteristic urban New England and not just Boston.
New London, Springfield & New Haven all have rows. Never seen the old factory town of Lowell but it would seem likely they are there. I am not sure about the others.
My wife and I were blown away at New Bedford's preserved history as the world's whaling capital. You feel like it's 1840 when your there. It also has a great Portuguese culinary tradition.
I also agree with the New Haven choice. It's a great little city.
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