Don’t tell me Mayberry is just a myth!

Here’s just one example of a person who loves their small town living:
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Audrey in Utah

Right after I moved here, my parents came to visit. One evening my mom was out on the back porch, and one of my neighbors stepped out the front door and called his son’s name. A second later you could hear the son’s call back from another part of the ‘hood. The dad then told him it was time for dinner. Shortly afterward, we saw the son running up to the house.

My mother looked at me and informed me that I had moved into Mayberry. My thought was, “yeah, isn’t it cool?!”So, I have been sick these last few weeks (read FOREVER). One of my neighbors read my blog and sent her daughter over with some homemade creamy chicken noodle soup. Isn’t that one of the nicest things you’ve ever heard? I put it in the fridge, and when I got home from school tonight I heated up some of it. All I can say is, “YUMMY!!” I think even the noodles are homemade! Oh so delightful!

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Bethabara Park – Apple Festival 2008

Come and celebrate the harvest at Apple Festival 2008. Unique crafts, traditional music and food fill Historic Bethabara Park. Local orchards, handicraft demonstrations, and colonial re-enactors highlight this festival, as do horse-drawn wagon rides and colonial games.

When Moravians arrived in Bethabara in 1753, they almost immediately set about planting apple trees from seeds brought from Europe. According to records, it was recommended to plant six apple trees for every family member.

VIEW PHOTO GALLERY

Click HERE for more on Bethabara Park and the Apple Festival!

Liberty Antiques Festival

One of the biggest festivals of the year in Randolph County, NC….the Liberty Antiques Festival celebrates with more than 400 dealers from over 25 states as they converge on this quaint small town in North Carolina.

Liberty Antiques Festival

The Town Of Liberty, NC

Facts About North Carolina’s Small Towns

Ours is a state of small towns. There are 478 towns in North Carolina with fewer than 10,000 people. In fact, 437 towns have fewer than 5,000 people. Thousands of North Carolinians choose to live in small towns. More than 900,000 live in towns with fewer than 10,000 people.

Most small towns are located in rural counties. Nearly half are in the East. The eastern third of the state has 253 municipalities, most of which have fewer than 5,000 people. Small town residents are likely to be native-born. More than 65% of the population in small towns is native to North Carolina. Small town residents tend to be older and to have limited education. Forty percent are over 45 years of age. One in five small town residents has less than a high school education.

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Benson One Of Six Towns Picked For Main Street Program

David Anderson, Jr.
Reporter for The Daily Record –

– Benson is one of only six towns in North Carolina accepted this year into the Small Town Main Street program. Nearby Roseboro was also selected.Since the program started in 2003, 22 towns, all with populations of less than 7,500, have participated in the program. Angier was inducted in 2007.”This is an exciting step for us,” said Ben Murphrey, Benson’s downtown revitalization coordinator. “(Small Town Main Street Community) is an important title to have when you’re a town of this size.”The program, although offering no money, helps towns promote and preserve historic business areas, while, at the same time dragging them full force into the 21st century.

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Small Towns Keep North Carolina’s Heritage, Culture Alive – VisitNC.com

Across North Carolina you can find bustling Main Streets like Salisbury’s alive with tourists and shoppers. This picturesque Heartland town hums with activity now as it has since Colonial times when potters, hatters and weavers plied their trades in the commercial district. For some it is the antique dealers and specialty shops that bring them here.

But for most tourists to North Carolina’s Main Streets, the draw is the heritage and culture they preserve.”There’s plenty to interest and entertain visitors in our small towns. In fact, about 25 percent of North Carolina’s visitors say they come just to experience the kind of state culture and heritage that is abundant in a town like Salisbury,” says Lynn Minges, executive director of the North Carolina Division of Tourism, Film and Sports Development.

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How We Know Mayberry Was Created With Mount Airy In Mind

Many of Mayberry’s fictional people and places have real-life counterparts in Mount Airy, N.C. All of the following were mentioned on “The Andy Griffith Show” and actually exist in or around Mount Airy:

Fancy Gap-Bannertown-Rockford Street-Haymore Street-Oak Street-Elm Street-Orchard Street-Maple Street-Willow Street –
River Road-Blue-Vue Motel-Moravian Church (actually Grace Moravian Church)-Grand Theatre-Doyle Perkings, clothier Frank Smith-Rachel Smith-Evan Moore-Blue Bird Café-Snappy Lunch-Wiener Burger-Earlie Gilley’s Service Station-Mount Pilot (true name Pilot Mountain)-Nelson Funeral Home (true name Moody’s Funeral, but Roy Nelson worked there)

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North Carolina’s Best Festivals

Bill Leslie from WRAL in Raleigh shares his thoughts on NC Festivals. The comments below the article are from people sharing their favorites….

Hillsborough hugs the hog. Wilson is wowed by whirligigs. Benson embraces the mule. Enfield praises the humble peanut. And Lexington’s love affair with barbecue is legendary. Passion for products, creatures, crops, traditions and music has spawned dozen of colorful festivals across North Carolina. With the cooler weather of autumn coming soon we are entering the heart of festival season statewide.

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List of Small Towns in North Carolina

One the things I just realized I need to do on here is to post a list of the small towns in North Carolina that I picked for my book, “In Search of Mayberry.”

To learn more about the book, “In Search of Mayberry” visit www.insearchofmayberry.com!

Here they are with detailed info on each to follow.

1. Dillsboro
2. Black Mountain
3. West Jefferson
4. Mount Airy
5. Elkin
6. Davidson
7. Hillsborough
8. Liberty
9. Mount Olive
10. Beaufort
11. Swansboro
12. Southport