Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 39

Jarek TUSzynSki
TODD BUSH

The Floyd Country Store is famous for its Friday Night Jamborees.

Our quest to have our readers select
the happiest towns in the mountains
began with a set of criteria applied to
just under 100 cities and towns in our
coverage area (the mountain regions
of Virginia, North Carolina, West
Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Georgia
and South Carolina).
To narrow the field, we applied the
following minimum happiness-based
standards (eliminating 22 of the
original 96 towns and cities (all data
gathered from city-data.com):
* Cost of living index at no higher than
110 (with 100 being average).
* Percent of population that is married
at 30 or above.
* Average commute at less than 30
minutes.
* Crime rate at under 600 per 100,000.
* Unemployment at under 10 percent.
* Percent of population with a bachelor's degree above 10 percent.
* Median household income not lower
than $20,000.
We then divided that list of 74 mountain cities and towns into the three
population categories of 50,000 and
up; 10,000 to 49,999; under 10,000,
and turned those lists over to our
readers for voting.
Complete finalist lists in each category:
BlueRidgeCountry.com/Finalists

Jarek TUSzynSki

Happy Towns: How the
Nine Winners Emerged
from 74 Finalists

Farmers' Supply in downtown Floyd is a shopping experience that not only fulfills today's needs but
also takes you back decades in the hardware realm.

theatre company. And local kids
don't need to leave their hometown
to make it big on stage, since there's
a Carnegie Hall Children's Choir for
ages 9 to 14.
Lewisburg is full of surprises, like
more than a dozen restaurants in the
diminutive downtown alone, both
plain and fancy. Farm-to-table dining is so fresh that ingredients may be
served only a few hours after they are
More
May/June 2016 39


http://www.city-data.com http://www.BlueRidgeCountry.com/Finalists

Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016

Contents
Happiest Towns in the Blue Ridge Region
Summer Photoessay
Great Unusual Sleep Spots in the Mountains
North Georgia Dining
Special Section: The Southern Highlands Attractions 2016 Grand Tour
Letters/Worth a Click
From the Editor
Contributor Bios
Mill Creek Stories
Great Buys
The Hike
Festivals & Events
Creature Feature
Country Roads
Mountain Report
Singing in the Garden
Guest Column: John Manchester
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Intro
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Cover1
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Cover2
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 3
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 4
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 5
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Contents
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Letters/Worth a Click
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 8
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 9
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 10
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 11
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - From the Editor
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Contributor Bios
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Mill Creek Stories
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 15
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Great Buys
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 17
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - The Hike
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 19
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Festivals & Events
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 21
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 22
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 23
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 24
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Creature Feature
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Country Roads
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 27
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 28
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 29
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 30
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Mountain Report
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Happiest Towns in the Blue Ridge Region
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 33
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 34
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 35
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 36
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 37
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 38
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 39
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Summer Photoessay
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 41
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 42
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 43
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Great Unusual Sleep Spots in the Mountains
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 45
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 46
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 47
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 48
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 49
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 50
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Special Section: The Southern Highlands Attractions 2016 Grand Tour
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA2
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA3
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA4
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA5
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA6
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA7
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA8
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA9
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA10
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA11
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA12
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA13
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA14
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA15
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA16
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA17
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA18
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA19
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA20
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA21
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA22
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA23
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - SHA24
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - North Georgia Dining
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 52
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 53
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 54
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 55
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - 56
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Singing in the Garden
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Guest Column: John Manchester
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Cover3
Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2016 - Cover4
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