The Case for Small Towns and Tiny Museums

When we’re thinking about all the things “we can’t” do, many of us are guilty of overlooking the small and slow things we can do. A lot of that small day trip stuff is open for business, never crowded anyway, and a cheap day out of the house. If you’d stop for a few minutes, or a couple hours, to inspect obscure and slightly out of the way locations, you have not only been someplace new, but you likely also have original content to talk about.

I’m making the case for small towns and tiny museums.

Pack a sandwich, you have no idea if anything is open. The website of every business in the quaint village you're thinking about visiting is out of date by at least two years. Bring some cash, there are still places that do not take cards. That’s okay! Go anyway. Do everything there is to do. Drink the world’s greatest cup of coffee if you see it.

Most small towns have some kind of museum. It may focus on the local industry, native peoples, transportation, natural history, military, lighthouse etc. there’s something interesting at each and every one. Some have a small fee for entry and others are by donation.

Many of these museums are staffed by volunteers who are interested in their area’s history/local features and enjoy telling people about it. These knowledgeable folks will also be able to point you towards other nearby points of interest. If you’re financially able to tip, be heavy handed on that front. Don’t forget to sign the guest book!

Some small towns have neat old buildings. Some offer tours where you can transport yourself back to a different time and try imagining raising 13 kids in a two room cabin without power, running water or plumbing. Even worse if it was during a pandemic. It sometimes feels like a challenge to pass the time even with all of our modern technology.

Maybe you’ll find yourself stooped over entering a replica Pacific Northwest native longhouse or other dwelling with basket weaving and storytelling happening inside. Check out how they managed to built it. Listen about how they used the local materials to thrive for thousands of years. Hear about their hardships.

Leave your car for a few minutes, take a walk and shop. This is an excellent opportunity to support a really small business. If the town has a grocery store, you may even score locally made goods to give to your friends who spent yet another day inside at home.

Small towns can look scary. I imagine in some circumstances for many people they are scary. I hope that is becoming less true and more varieties of people from all socioeconomic circumstances feel comfortable swinging that door open on the classic small town’s only eatery. The dive bar.

Bars and restaurants might not be open right now, or maybe they are with outdoor seating. The dive bar is a gem of American culture and a veritable library of verbal tales and fascinating characters. You’ll know the place as soon as you see it. It has the sort of unkempt façade you might otherwise avoid if you weren’t out for an experience. Dive bars put the shabby in shabby chic. The low-expectation atmosphere is perfect to get yourself out of your comfort zone as you order whatever is on tap and take in the taxidermy adorning the walls.

Get up and wander around here, too. These time capsules are a museum of sorts in their own right. Check out the pictures from Halloween 1986 of happily wasted people who are probably dead now. Chances are, the place looks the same. Other joints will have weird art and surprising visits from celebrities.

You should eavesdrop maybe just a little and strike up a conversation if you have the chance. There might be something extra unique just around the corner or a weird festival later in the year you would never know about if you didn’t ask.

Be sure to review my handy guide to pooping in the woods and other inconvenient locations before leaving your neighborhood. https://vocal.media/authors/d-cu4u2h0zjp