Big cities have a lot going for them. New York’s theater district, the monuments and museums in Washington, and major attractions of other urban centers draw visitors from throughout the country and around the world. But don’t overlook what other towns, no matter how small, have to offer. Many boast of enough to hold one’s interest, invigorate the imagination, and make a visit worthwhile.
That’s especially true at this time of limited travel. One or more communities that make up in attractions what they lack in size may well be located within a short drive of where you live. To make my point, here’s an introduction to several tiny towns around the country and to why they might warrant a visit.
If you have an appetite for Americana, consider setting your sights on Stockbridge, Massachusetts. That town (population about 2,100) hasn’t changed much since Normal Rockwell lived there and portrayed it in paintings. It’s still the quintessential New England village of tidy, well-preserved homes surrounded by lovely gardens. The historic Red Lion Inn continues to welcome guests as it has since 1897, and in summer people flock in to enjoy a lineup of music, theater, and cultural festivals.
Another New England town that evokes the quaint appeal of the past is Mystic, Connecticut (4,200). For a period of some 135 years beginning in the late 18th century, it was a major ship-building center. That era is recalled at Mystic Seaport, a re-creation of a 19th-century fishing village with more than 60 historic buildings and a mini-fleet of old sailing ships. At mealtime, many visitors head for Mystic Pizza, the shop that was made famous by the movie of the same name. “Mystic” was derived from the Pequot Native American term “missi-tuk,” which refers to a river with high waves.
A more immersive Native American experience greets people in and just outside of, Taos, New Mexico. The town (6,000) is a showcase of adobe architecture that reveals its Native American and Spanish heritage.
Not far away is the Taos Pueblo, a complex of multistoried earthen structures considered to be the oldest continuously inhabited place in the country. Life goes on there much as it has for some 2,000 years. Pueblo residents who live in the original houses cling to their old ways, making do without electricity or running water and baking bread in outdoor beehive-shaped “hornos” (ovens).
