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Hello. Texan here looking for a small town. Not to move to, more for vacationing and general research.
What I'm looking for is a small town that exists independently of a large metro area. Maybe 15,000 or less population, NO big box stores, ability to shop at local shops for groceries, home goods, etc. in a walkable, historic downtown, historic, walkable neighborhoods surrounding downtown, farmers markets, maybe a theater or two, good food scene, moderate politics.
Would like to find something within a two hour drive of a large city. East/northeast coast would be preferable but that isn't a requirement.
Perhaps NY communities like Lewiston, Sackets Harbor, Ticonderoga, Cooperstown, Watkins Glen, Clayton, Alexandria Bay, Port Henry, Saranac Lake, Tupper Lake and Old Forge, among others. What may be an issue is depending upon what you consider a large metro area, if a big box store outside of the limits of the community is fine and if a community has most of the criteria. From the places I listed, Watkins Glen, Old Forge and Tupper Lake seem to fit all of the criteria. There are probably others that would fit, but that is off of the top of my head.
A couple of other NY communities that are a little bit bigger that would fit are Norwich and Owego, but there may be 1 thing about each that would disqualify them. Corning may be another one.
Perhaps NY communities like Lewiston, Sackets Harbor, Ticonderoga, Cooperstown, Watkins Glen, Clayton, Alexandria Bay, Port Henry, Saranac Lake, Tupper Lake and Old Forge, among others. What may be an issue is depending upon what you consider a large metro area, if a big box store outside of the limits of the community is fine and if a community has most of the criteria. From the places I listed, Watkins Glen, Old Forge and Tupper Lake seem to fit all of the criteria. There are probably others that would fit, but that is off of the top of my head.
A couple of other NY communities that are a little bit bigger that would fit are Norwich and Owego, but there may be 1 thing about each that would disqualify them. Corning may be another one.
Hamilton is another NY community that comes to mind. Oswego is a small city of about 18,000, but fits everything else within city limits. East Aurora may also fit and the home of Fisher-Price. Again, there are others that could fit, but may miss one or two things in terms of criteria.
Hello. Texan here looking for a small town. Not to move to, more for vacationing and general research.
What I'm looking for is a small town that exists independently of a large metro area. Maybe 15,000 or less population, NO big box stores, ability to shop at local shops for groceries, home goods, etc. in a walkable, historic downtown, historic, walkable neighborhoods surrounding downtown, farmers markets, maybe a theater or two, good food scene, moderate politics.
Would like to find something within a two hour drive of a large city. East/northeast coast would be preferable but that isn't a requirement.
Check out Culpeper, Virginia.
If you can overlook the larger population (16K versus 15K) it fits your criteria perfectly.
Well, if you're looking for something outside the "sprawling suburbs", I would recommend someplace like New Hope, PA. Though it's not far from the sprawling suburbs, it is farther out from Philly (about an hour drive) and more isolated, giving it more of a small town feel with mostly small, local businesses (main street is entirely local businesses, though there is a shopping center outside the center of town with chain stores like Super Fresh and Wawa). Population is less than 3,000, though just across the river is Lambertville, NJ which has a very similar feel to New Hope and has a population of just under 4,000 (so if you consider one as sort of an extension of the other, we're talking a max of 7,000).
It's a Victorian town in the middle of rural PA - though not far from State College (Penn State Main Campus), it is distinctly separate. Population is just over 6,000.
I like the idea of Culpepper, VA, but even it is not all that far from DC metro area anymore. How about Hot Springs, AR? another one, Herrman, MO. Then there is Placerville, CA or Paradise, CA, but it is a little bigger. I think you get the true "small town" feeling from those in the Midwest, parts of the south and New England.
Hello. Texan here looking for a small town. Not to move to, more for vacationing and general research.
What I'm looking for is a small town that exists independently of a large metro area. Maybe 15,000 or less population, NO big box stores, ability to shop at local shops for groceries, home goods, etc. in a walkable, historic downtown, historic, walkable neighborhoods surrounding downtown, farmers markets, maybe a theater or two, good food scene, moderate politics.
Would like to find something within a two hour drive of a large city. East/northeast coast would be preferable but that isn't a requirement.
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