If you don't already, could you? There are those that wouldn't, saying "I don't want everyone to know my business." They can be/are very private people, something that small town people generally aren't. In my teen years, on a farm, a lot of folks in 'Busco (Indiana) knew my parents/guardians. Banker, grocery store clerks/manager, barber shop and other folks. Yes, 'Busco was a small town, just like Huntertown, where I went to high school. As for me, I could easily live in a small town, as long as that small town was in the north west. A place where I could talk rodeo, horses and other livestock, crop production, wildlife and wear western clothes (when we wanted to). My wife would feel the same way about things we like. Of course, this is, in part, the reason we are moving back to Colorado. It wouldn't bother us to drive to a city for different things, including medical. When I lived in So California, I spent many weekends in Norco, California. A noted "horse town" that had a story about in the magazine Western Horseman. They also had a very nice, and nice paying as well, pro-rodeo each year. Norco was small, and instead of sidewalks, had dirt paths going by houses there for horseback riders. A nice small restaurant called The Cowgirl Café that all locals went to and I knew many of them. After I met my wife, took her out there to a horse auction, roping arena and eat breakfast at The Cowgirl. She wore her western clothes and cowboy hat...…..fit right in! So, what do you think...…...could you live in a small town?
Ive lived in small towns but now I don't know if I want to drive too far for shopping and drs. That's my only problem with a small town. Although Fresno is close to 600,000 in population, I still feel like I'm in a small town but with all the amenities very close. I never leave my zip code. Two of the smallest towns had populations of less than 5,000! One was in Illinois, the other was a very small town in Hungary right on the Danube River. Prior to that we lived in Budapest..on the Buda side....loved that also. I get along with all types of people so that's never an issue....but driving far is. And yes @Cody Fousnaugh .... I know you don't like diversity.
With Amazon.com and other online shopping sites, it's a lot easier to live in a small town now than it was a few decades ago. We could get by with only a few trips to Bangor a year, since we could buy clothes and everything else we need online, even a lot of our groceries, but we have a couple of grocery stores.
I already live on the edge of a small town, population about 24,000 ... and out here in the village I think there's 800... We're situated just about 20 miles from central London, and surrounded about 10 miles north south and West by larger towns so we can pretty much get anything we want. Only problem is that some of the older people who don't drive find it difficult getting to the doctors or hospitals in the nearest town , there's only one bus a day !!
Yes, I could and have lived in a number of small towns, eight to twenty-five thousand population. My preference is a somewhat larger place. I have found small towns somewhat clannish. I never wanted anyone to know me too well and I'm not nessisarily a team player, i.e. join this, join that organizational, let's do this or the other. The best small towns I've lived in or enjoined the most are those little oilfield towns. However, at heart, I'm a city boy.
When I think of a small town, I am thinking of populations under two thousand, if not in the hundreds. A population of 25,000 would be one of the bigger cities in Maine.
Smaller, yes...but would need good doctors and hospital. Do not want to do the BFE type of small town. Population in my actual city is 108,659...but there are two other cities that run together in ours...so 199,654-plus.Way to stinking big. Many years ago, read about a place in Oregon- Portland -I think, that was a big favorite of seniors ,because you could walk to everything, no real need a car. Sounded good to me.
I spent part of my life in a small village. The quality of life can be very good but IMO you trade your privacy, independence and some convenience for the benefits of small-town life. I prefer the anonymity and convenience of the city.
I get a kick out of the forms we all must fill out, yesterday it was U.S. Customs form to ship to boxes of car parts to me nephew in Japan. Every forms asks for, "Town or City". Why, we live in neither......it's county, Mohave County, sprawling hugely larger than any city, with groups of homes here and there, where developers or contractors bought tracts of land and built and sold homes on them, interspersed with huge amounts of open Desert, thousands of acres, unspoiled by roadways or other evidences of human presence. Much of such land is known as "Public Land", some is actually owned by one or the other of the incorporated towns here and there, always around their own perimeter, to allow for further incorporation should "growth" require it. "Growth" is a nasty word to many rural dwellers, as it implies development (meaning building of homes and businesses). For many, development implies encroaching humanity, bringing with it undesirable things: crime, taxes, pollution, lack of compassion for the unspoiled lands. Our county is the 7th. largest county in the entire United States, 34,400 square miles, twenty-two MILLION acres, 15 persons per sq. mile, total population of around 200,000, 1/3 that of Fresno, California, per @Chrissy Cross. When I lived in Las Vegas in the '70s, I drove out west on Charleston blvd. often, beyond the reach of the sprawl, 4-wheeled on Jeep trails into what later became Red Rocks Recreation Lands, and realized quickly: in a place like that, there was NO crime, surviving was the sole responsibility of the individual, the quiet, beauty of the land, and tranquility present belied the absolute madness present down in the valley, in the City of Las Vegas, just 20 miles away. Such 20 miles brought an incredible difference of prevailing conditions. Frank Location in the U.S. state of Arizona, Mohave County. The county in CA immediately to the left, across the Colorado River, is San Bernadino, the LARGEST county in the U.S. CA has big things, too.........
I live in a village of probably 100/200 it is spread over a couple of miles. I would not trade it for anything. As far as food pickup trucks go by selling fresh vegetables There is bigger trucks going by supplying the small stores which will stop and sell directly to you if you order a reasonable amount for me no problem. The doctor from Luperon a small town near by goes by on a regular bases on his motor cycle and he will stop if you ask him. I walk down the road and get fresh milk every morning. Everyone is friendly and would stop and help if asked. Just love being here.
I live in a small, town it has 3.500 people however its surround by 3 other towns which are all about 18 km apart The main shopping town / area that’s 18km from me has 4.600 people. The main shopping area only had a Woolworths supermarket up,to 2 weeks ago when an Aldi opened there, other than that we only have a small foodland supermarket so the likes of foodland and WW could charge what they like for groceries and get away with it ,so now we have a good competitor up,there Allot of the population of all the towns which is called a triangle don’t actully live in the towns because the whole area is surrounded by sheep / beef and cereal growing large acreage farms.
To me a small town is less than 500. I think I would hate that. In fairness though, the only small town life I was ever exposed to was where one of my grandmothers lived, back in the Fifties. An isolated little town of less than 100 people. All they talked about was what the neighbors were doing. Most young folks got out of there as soon as they could, because there were no jobs. So the inhabitants were mostly retired people, and those who stayed behind, possibly less ambitious, or possibly influenced by their relatives. Reminded me of the book, Winesburg, Ohio, by Sherwood Anderson. This little town was no doubt the exception, rather than the rule. Small towns are likely much different now. Around here anyway, most people who live in small towns commute to work in the city. They just want to get away to some space when they go home. They generally have as much anonymity as city folks. I live in a town/county of about 120,000, with a lot of diversity. I like it. I find comfort in the fact that something close by is open after 5pm. lol
I have lived in small towns, mid size towns and huge towns. I currently live in a small town and that is my favorite. Prior to living here our town was only 1200 people ... where we are now it's just under 6000 .. and that is about my limit. I don't care for the stress and hurry up of large towns .. I prefer to take my time, enjoy things and just mosey along at my own speed.