Hillsborough is competing in Budget Travel magazine's 10th-annual “Coolest Small Towns” contest and is currently leading as one of the top two nominees.
The contest is looking for American small towns with a population under 10,000 and a distinctive culture.
“Hillsborough has had the lead, and right now, we are running neck and neck with Washington, N.C.,” said Hillsborough Mayor Tom Stevens.
As the oldest town in the Triangle, Hillsborough is home to numerous historic sites. More than a hundred buildings from the late 18th and 19th centuries are located in the downtown historic district.
“Before Raleigh or Chapel Hill or Durham even existed, Hillsborough was already well-established,” said Michael Verville, marketing coordinator of The Alliance of Historic Hillsborough.
Today, many nationally recognized writers like Frances Mayes, Lee Smith and Allan Gurganus live in the small town of about 7,000 residents. It was recently called “America’s little literary town” by The Wall Street Journal.
The town’s art community is also thriving — there are three permanent galleries and many gallery spaces, Verville said. The local coffee shop Cup-A-Joe, a popular gathering spot, also has art exhibitions, some of which include works by Stevens, who is also an artist.
The largest folk art building collection in the U.S. is also on display in Hillsborough. It contains more than 1,000 miniature buildings and is owned by local resident Steven Burke.
