In New Lebanon, located in the Hudson Valley, locals are pushing “Behold! New Lebanon,” where "ticket-buying visitors are promised an unvarnished glimpse of present-day country culture, organizers say, which includes being ferried by school buses to working farms, forests, kitchens, corrals and a speedway," Brown writes. "There they will 'behold' guides like Cynthia Creech, showing off her genetically rare breed of Randall cattle; Eric Johnson, training Border collies to shoo Canada geese off public fields; and Melissa Eigenbrodt, the local postmaster, who can demonstrate the art of tracking deer—without a gun—by following hoof scrapes along the trail."
"If the effort succeeds, New Lebanon will join an emerging rural renaissance—a movement that some are calling 'rural by choice'—in which small towns are reinventing themselves by embracing local skills and artisanship," Brown writes. "Across the country, communities are trying a variety of approaches with varying success, from designated downtown culinary districts (Bridgeton, N.J.), to artist collaboratives spearheading small-town revivals (Arnaudville, La.), to the annual Fermentation Fest in Reedsburg, Wis., which pumps roughly $300,000 into the local economy." So far, the museum project has netted $55,000, charging $15 to $25 for day tickets or $40 for the weekend.
Other areas have already found success with similar projects, Brown writes. "In
Green River, Utah (population 953), a group of Auburn University design
and architecture graduates and former AmeriCorps/Vista volunteers
started the nonprofit Epicenter
in 2009 (motto: 'Rural & Proud'). They have restored 14 houses and
run school arts programs and sponsor a 'frontier fellowship' for artists
in residence."
"In
Reedsburg (population 9,000), between Chicago and Minneapolis, Donna
Neuwirth, 60, and Jay Salinas, 55, are urban transplants who started as
farmers but went beyond food, creating the nonprofit Wormfarm Institute
to develop what they call a regional culture-shed," Brown writes "The Fermentation
Fest—which includes artist-designed farm stands, a drive with scenic
overlooks of art installations in fields, and opera performed in a hay
wagon—drew 12,000 people last October." (Read more)
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