We are looking to move to a smaller town somewhere in Alabama, Mississippi or Tenn. Does anyone out there know of a small friendly community that they think is #1? Things that we are looking for is very rural setting (30-45 minute from nearest town is fine with us), good school district (5 small children). Community sense of pride. In otherwords the perfect homestead! LOL If you know of an area/town that is known for friendly people and caring neighbors, please let us know. Thanks! Lisa B.

-- Lisa B. (j5diecast@aol.com), December 05, 2001

Answers

Sounds like our area. North Alabama right on the Al Tenn line. Good Schools, great neighbors, land reasonable, low taxes, have lived other places but will never leave here. If can be of futher help please advise. By the way one of the neighbors are selling their house. House is completely redone, new electical, windows, insulation, roof, siding, proches, plumbing every thing redone. House has three bedrooms, two baths, kitchen, den,and large living room, and a porch that is 8 feet wide and over 36 feet long across the front and a side porch. Has a usuable out building containing about 400 square feet that would make a great shop and six acres think they are asking around 60 thousand.

-- David (bluewaterfarm@mindspring.com), December 05, 2001.

Make sure you check on zoning laws in any of those areas. We live kind of between Birmingham and Gadsden which is kind of a bedroom community now for those two cities....

A lot of farm land is being gobbled up for subdivisions.

While we don't have zoning out in the country here now, they keep threatening it and trying to sneak it in under other names....

The climate here is fairly good. It does get pretty hot in the summers and we do have some really cold weather in the winters. I'd think up near the Tennessee-Alabama line would be a great area!

-- Suzy in Bama (slgt@yahoo.com), December 06, 2001.

I live in Alcorn county, Mississippi, about 5 miles from Tennessee & 25 from Alabama. No zoning, no building codes. Low taxes. However, it's more densely populated than a lot of other counties in Mississippi. We have 23 acres & like it here, so we'll stay for a while.

You didn't say whether or not you need a place to work. Other counties are less densely populated, but there's not as many places to get a job either.

I can't vouch for the local gov't-operated schools. I constantly hear how good they are, but I wouldn't send my kids to them. We homeschool some & send others to a local Christian school.

-- Ted Holt (tedholt@tsixroads.com), December 06, 2001.

I have for sale a 30acre organic farm in East Tennessee.It is24x44 with a 12x44covered porch,it also has a full[24x44]basement.It also has two outbuildings,apple orchard and a large garden.I am asking 79,900.Don

-- Don Schwartz (donschwartz2002@yahoo.com), December 06, 2001.

Very rural setting, hmm, that might be hard in MS., Ha! just kidding!

Well I live out 45 min out from the capitol, off of hwy 25. There is plenty of acerage available, south & east of Jackson proper with I-20 and I-55 providing access to off farm jobs. North of Jax gets a bit pricier per acre & a lot more zoning/covenant hoops to jump thru.

The local public schools [rankin co.] are blue ribbon winners & top in the state i belive.

There is a website out there that shows stats for schools in ms/us? %grad. ,% drop out %,student-teacher ratio, yearly grades, apptitude tests & such.

Community pride, hmm, well there are cattle folks, horse folks, crop folks, gentlemen farmers, hobby farmsteaders, & homsteaders too.

Where their interests overlap there is a sense of camaradierie, but if you are looking for parades down mainstreet & bandstands, 'fraid you are going to have to go to a higher population density.

More nieghborly than community. We wave, strike up conversation in the post office or in front of the merchantile, stop by to introduce ourselves or ask about the pig-goat-goose we saw up by the road.

I only moved here a couple of years ago , & there are only two families that own land here. A brother -in law of an ex-wifes' cousin [ok i never have figured out who all is related to who all :O] Moved & i bought a section of their spread. So i am the only one not related to these large extended families that have been here for 10 & 80+ years. Let me tell you that made me a bit nervous about fence lines , livestock, & all the other issues that can become a " us vs. the outsider" situation. Having to deal with other peoples stray bulls, cows, dog packs,& my own escape artist pigs, has let me get to know how gracious & friendly my nieghbors are these past few years.

-- bj pepper in C. MS. (pepper.pepper@excite.com), December 06, 2001.

Lisa, Hickman county in Tennesse has been great! Centerville is the only incorporated town in the county and the county is one of the largest in the state. Although there are more people moving into the east side because of I840 coming through, the south-west section of the county is lightly populated and so are the surrounding counties of that area. There is wonderful land and such here for fair prices. It has a simple small town personality and if you don't mind some "good ole boy" politics now and then, it would make a wonderful 'homeplace'.

-- MelleJan (janado@msn.com), December 12, 2001.

Sounds like Spring Garden, AL in southeastern Cherokee County. Ten miles to closest town; K-12 country crossroads school; about 750 students total. All of your kids ride the same bus. The schools basketball teams regularly compete in region and state championship games. Cotton and cattle farms dot the valleys around the mountains of the Southern Appalachians. Plentiful Deer,Turkey,and the occasional bobcat are seen here. Located halfway between Birmingham and Atlanta just north of US Hwy 278. A dry county, no alcohol sales.

-- david woody (woodydlee@cs.com), February 03, 2002.