Smallest town/city you have lived in and what did you like/dislike about it?

Hometown Nebraska was about 1100 when I lived there.  Now it's about 800ish.  This is the smallest town I've lived in between 10 in 6 states.

I prefer to live in bigger areas because I like anonymity.  I live at least 6 hours from my closest relatives and friends.  Whenever I go back "home" people are just talking about other people's business.  I don't have that here.

 
StPaulHusker said:
Hometown Nebraska was about 1100 when I lived there.  Now it's about 800ish.  This is the smallest town I've lived in between 10 in 6 states.

I prefer to live in bigger areas because I like anonymity.  I live at least 6 hours from my closest relatives and friends.  Whenever I go back "home" people are just talking about other people's business.  I don't have that here.
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Some people like being the big fish in a small pond.  I'm not one of them.  I think it would annoying to have everyone know who you are and what you are up to.

 
ColoradoHusk said:
Some people like being the big fish in a small pond.  I'm not one of them.  I think it would annoying to have everyone know who you are and what you are up to.
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It's interesting when I go back.  I hear all sorts of gossip about peoples personal lives.  Money, relationships, drama, etc.  And I just think how happy I am that these same people don't live near me to talk about me like that

 
Smallest town I’ve lived in is Columbus. Population IDK.....18,000 at the time, guessing. I’ve had extended stays in a few towns slightly smaller. Largest would be Lincoln. I wouldn’t like anything smaller than about 50K unless it was very near a larger city. I also don’t think I’d like anything larger than about 500K but I wouldn’t mind being a short distance away from a large city. I really like Greeley at about 100K and within an hour of Denver. I’d go nuts in a very small rural area but I can see why people who grew up that way would like it.

 
Cdog923 said:
For awhile, yea. It burned down when I was in middle school, and didn't get rebuilt. 

The town I went to school in had a couple local places to eat, as well as a Pizza Hut, Subway and Taco John's. 
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Been trying to figure this one out.  

Thinking your an an alum of either Gordon, Kimball, or Ainsworth.  And that is from a guy who draws the line for western Nebraska as only the panhandle

 
Grew up in Jamestown, North Dakota (15,000 people), then Columbus (20,000 people), and went to middle/high school in Rising City (~450 people).

The thing I liked the most about it was the community that comes with a small amount of people to know which means that everyone knows everyone fairly well and people look out for their neighbors.

The thing I liked the least about it was....the same thing. It's great on some respects, and in others is crippling. People's opinions of you are formed very fast and even if you change and grow, the perception of you will likely lag behind by several years or so.

 
Except for 3 years in Lincoln, I've always lived in my hometown of 2,200.

-Dislike: Poor food selection, high prices goods like groceries and home supplies, not a lot to do other than drink.

-Like: Everyone knows another, small town feels safer to raise kids, relatives here, not a lot to do other than drink.

 
Cdog923 said:
This is one of the things I miss the most about growing up in a small town. 
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Stargazing?  I also came from a tiny town in western Nebraska.  While taking a leak along the highway while out and about drinking (you understand) I was astounded by the night sky and how many stars there were and how bright they were.  Now when I'm home I always plan on spending 1 night looking at stars.  I didn't realize there were so many shooting stars.

 
Not trying to cause any trouble here, but I am curious why people think raising a family in a small town feels "safer".  Is that based on thoughts on crime in a bigger city?

If my kids were living in a small town, I would be very nervous about them having to travel long distances to "do things".  I would be nervous of my kids driving on 2-lane, country roads in bad weather.  I would also be nervous of them driving out in the middle of nowhere to go drinking/partying, with no way to get back except driving themselves or riding with an impaired driver.

I understand my kids would be driving in a lot more traffic than small town families, but everything would be convenient and close for them.  Also, I tend to think that if you want to avoid crime in a city, avoid the areas of the city which have high crime.

 
SandhillshuskerW said:
I grew up in Arthur, Nebraska which is about 150 people. I grew up on a ranch that was 20 miles away and I wouldn't change a thing about it. I currently live and teach in Broken Bow, Nebraska. I'm a big hunter and I love the opportunities that are here to do that.
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I love that area and the whole Sandhills region.  I was home for deer hunting a few years ago and my friend noted how happy and content everyone was compared to people in Chicago area.  Small town Nebraska life could be boring if you aren't into outdoor activities and at times you have to be comfortable with your own thoughts.

 
StPaulHusker said:
I prefer to live in bigger areas because I like anonymity.  I live at least 6 hours from my closest relatives and friends.  Whenever I go back "home" people are just talking about other people's business.  I don't have that here.
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You don't live in a neighborhood?  My neighbors know everything about everyone.  I found out I was a frequent topic of conversation and my dating life generated a lot of discussion.  I thought it was kind of funny.

 
Smallest town outside of Nebraska was probably Idaho Falls, ID.  Amazing scenery, biggest french fries in the world and lots of mormons.

 
Lived on a farm until I went to college, nearest town was 6 miles away with a population of 400. Being a kid it was pretty neat having all that open space to do whatever you wanted. Go drinking out in the field without having to worry about anyone catching you. That's about the end of the perks. Having to drive like 15 miles one-way for school or to any store was terrible. My $6 an hour part-time job went completely towards $3.25 per gallon gas.

Moved to town of 10,000 for college. Absolutely loved the small college town. Lots of stuff always going on, fun places to eat and drink at, ran into friendly faces on a daily basis, young population always present, shopping for just about everything I needed. Employment options were not good though. Worked a couple jobs there for 4 years after college and got paid way less than I could have elsewhere with very limited advancement opportunity.

Moved away to the Twin Cities 8 months ago. So many different places I can work at, big events always happening, any niche hobby I have can be satisfied regularly, got myself a part-time job at a brewery and it's the bomb. I hate how expensive everything is, though I do get paid significantly more. I sort of enjoy that I have not once seen someone I recognize in public. I live really close to work so traffic isn't a problem. Crime isn't an issue at all either. Overall it's an upgrade, though I find myself missing friends and family back home.

Farm life is the only time I wouldn't go back to. You have to be in a very specific situation to be happier there than you would be just about anywhere else. I could move back to a town of 10k but it would have to be for a great paying job.

 
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