The charm of American small towns comes in many forms, and these quaint, less traveled locations are responsible for contributing some tried-and-true slices of real Americana. Because of that, they are some of the coolest places to visit in the country.

But where exactly are these places?

According to Budget Travel’s seventh annual Coolest Small Towns contest, the historically entertaining town of Beaufort, North Carolina, and the vintage seaplane recycling capital of America known as Hammondsport, New York, are two of them; they tied for number one on this year’s list.

The remainder of the list consists of a western town with a saloon and a 138-year-old Chinese temple (Weaverville, California), a hiking and cycling paradise (Damascus, Virginia), an artists' colony (Nashville, Indiana) and the "wickedest town in the West" (Jerome, Arizona) among others. (Click the link below for more info on each of the towns.)

The Coolest Small Towns in America

(tie) 1. Beaufort, N,C.: population 4,039

(tie) 1. Hammondsport, N.Y.: pop. 661

3. Weaverville, Calif.: pop. 3,600

4. Damascus, Va.: pop. 814

5. Nashville, Ind.: pop. 803

6. Port Townsend, Wash.: pop. 9,113

7. Cape May, N.J.: pop. 3,607

8. Jerome, Ariz.: pop. 444

9. Ste. Genevieve, Mo.: pop. 4,410

10. Cooke City, Mont.: pop. 75

 

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