Chautauqua, New York

This is one of the most interesting small towns in the U.S.  Chautauqua is famous as the home of the Chautauqua Institution, the birthplace in 1874 of the Chautauqua Movement of educational and cultural centers.  Depending on your perspective, this is a small town within a university or a university within a small town.  Residences consist of hundreds of small Victorian cottages as well as multi-level condos and vacation rentals of distinctive architecture.  The town and campus are built on the slopes overlooking Chautauqua Lake.  The Chautauqua Institution is completely enclosed to provide secure environs for residents.   The campus consists of a commons surrounded be retail shops, pavilions, lecture halls and an amphitheatre.   Most traffic in the compound is pedestrian and bicycle.  As a result, this village attracts affluent retirees.  EARNS OUR HIGHEST RECOMMENDATION.

The term Chautauqua refers to local assemblies that flourished in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th century that provided education and entertainment in the form of lectures, concerts and plays. There are only three surviving small town Chautauqua’s in the U.S. and all three are recommended by SmallTownGems.com. The other two are Lakeside, Ohio and Monteagle, Tennessee.