BRATTLEBORO, Vt.—It’s a dubious distinction, to be sure. That’s OK. Brattleboro’s had them before.
Mother Earth News magazine has named this liberal southern Vermont town one of “Eight Great Places You’ve Never Heard Of,” citing its efforts at sustainability, its annual “Strolling of the Heifers” bovine parade and its all-around quality of life.
The Topeka, Kan.-based magazine, which has a circulation of about 375,000, also picked Eau Claire, Wis., Dixon, N.M., Ocean Springs, Miss., Bloomington, Ind., Bellingham, Wash., Ukiah, Calif., and Paonia, Colo., featuring stories and photos about each in the August/September issue, hitting newsstands July 24.
No rank order was assigned.
“People love Brattleboro because it’s vintage Vermont, complete with covered bridges, dairy cows grazing on hillsides and church steeples jutting into the sky,” the article says. “This artsy, intellectual town on the Connecticut River is known for music, art and great food.”
There was no set criteria for the annual places rating, according to John Rockhold, managing editor of Mother Earth News. The magazine’s editors took into account their own travels, what’s been written about the places and what they’ve heard to arrive at it.
“What’s in common is that they all have a strong sense of community,” he said Monday. “They’re places you’d want to make hometowns, with strong concern about sustainability, community, local economies, local food. They speak to the Mother Earth News reader in that these are places you can find quality of life.”
Brattleboro, the only eastern town named to the list, welcomes the honor.
“This is a great reflection on Brattleboro and the rest of the state,” said Audrey Garfield, chairwoman of the Selectboard.
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Information from: Brattleboro Reformer
