Mount Vernon makes magazine’s ‘coolest small towns’ list

Posted on Sep 30, 2009 by David DeWitte.

Mount Vernon, Iowa

Mount Vernon has been certified as one of America’s “Coolest Small Towns” by a travel magazine.

Budget Travel magazine features Mount Vernon, population 4,600, on a list of 10 coolest small towns in its just-released October issue. It was the only town in the Midwest featured on the list.

The magazine selected towns based mainly on three factors: The ability to get a good cup of coffee and excellent food, “more art galleries than country stores,” and the tendency for people who leave for the big city to realize they’ve made a mistake and return home.

Among the Mount Vernon businesses mentioned in the magazine were FUEL, the popular coffee house-gallery, the highly-reviewed Lincoln Cafe, and the Lincoln Wine Bar.

Kristy SeBlonka of the Mount Vernon-Lisbon Community Development Group said the article appears to be generating some visits to Mount Vernon already. She said some of the city’s cultural attractions were not listed in the magazine article, such as Cornell College’s galleries and theater program.

The other nine cities on Budget Travel magazine’s list included Breaux Bridge, La.; Cayucos, Calif; Tubac, Ariz.; Wallace, Ida; Saugerties, N.Y.; Jacksonville, Ore.; Lexington, Va.; Rockland, Maine and Whitefish, Mont.