What's the most depressing U.S. town you've ever visited?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread has deteriorated from legit to a typical DCUM snob thread. Gary, Indiana? Yes, depressing by any measure. A few other listed cities? Ditto. But Asheville, NC? Etc? Get real. Many of the cities listed here as "depressing" have large sections that are less "depressing" than the suburban sprawl that many of you are living in right now, I'm sure. I'd stick a fork in my eye before living in Fairfax or Montgomery counties.
Y'all think you're so damned special.

omg u r soooo kewl.

I mean, it's true. We have a second home about 75 miles outside of DC, and every time I drive through the DC suburbs going back and forth I get depressed. I could never, ever live in any of them. None is appealing in the least. None.

Shouldn’t that make you NOT depressed? Like woohoo, I’m going to my second home 75 miles away! Why get depressed about something you will never do? That should bring you fleeting sadness, at most.

Your logic should apply to every post on this thread then, right?

I think most people are naming towns they’ve spent time in.

Yea, like the one who couldn't remember which Kansas City she found depressing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread has deteriorated from legit to a typical DCUM snob thread. Gary, Indiana? Yes, depressing by any measure. A few other listed cities? Ditto. But Asheville, NC? Etc? Get real. Many of the cities listed here as "depressing" have large sections that are less "depressing" than the suburban sprawl that many of you are living in right now, I'm sure. I'd stick a fork in my eye before living in Fairfax or Montgomery counties.
Y'all think you're so damned special.

omg u r soooo kewl.

I mean, it's true. We have a second home about 75 miles outside of DC, and every time I drive through the DC suburbs going back and forth I get depressed. I could never, ever live in any of them. None is appealing in the least. None.

Yeah, I’m sure wherever you live is paradise in comparison. There’s a reason you didn’t share your superior place of residence - people in glass houses and all that.

I live in DC. Second home is in the country. It's absolutely superior to the soul less DC suburbs. Many places are, in fact. It's not that hard to be superior to the DC suburbs.

Nationwide house prices and school rankings say otherwise my friend

She probably lives in NW DC, which is practically a suburb anyways.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Forks, WA!

Yes! And it was trying so hard to leverage its connection to the Twilight series.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:The only place more depressing and third world IME is Cairo, Illinois. Lots of racism too.

Charleston, SC

I couldn't get over the racism there. Plus everything was grimy and dirty. Beautiful old buildings in rotten decay. I don't get how people like it there. I felt like the historical racism made the air thick.... and I'm white.

Wow I don’t see that at all. What parts of town did you go? I have only been once but I learned so much about the history of that region and how the black culture in and around the city evolved. It does have a terrible racist history but I feel like they own it and acknowledge it in a way a lot of other places paper over. For instance, this was years ago, but it was a historical site near Charleston that I first went on a tour that was centered on the enslaved people who built it and cultivated the land, rather than the slave owners. This is now more common in the South, but it was very uncommon then.

Also, the food in Charleston is phenomenal. And you can be at the beach in a half hour.

I can’t imagine calling it depressing in the way people are talking about here. It’s diverse, economically vibrant, culturally rich.

You really must have had rose colored goggles on. Yes the food is good. Everything else, not so much. South of Broad is where all the main touristy stuff is but you don't have to travel far to see the black people still live in decaying shacks. If they owned their racism, then why are they still so segregated?

There are middle class and UMC black people in Charleston. There is certainly a legacy of slavery and racism there— it’s far from perfect. But it’s not terribly different from New Orleans in that way. While I recognize the problems of these kinds of cities in the south, I’d never call either depressing except insofar as America is depressing.

Yeah, let's add New Orleans to the list too. Charleston and NOLA are basically two peas in a depressing pod!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread has deteriorated from legit to a typical DCUM snob thread. Gary, Indiana? Yes, depressing by any measure. A few other listed cities? Ditto. But Asheville, NC? Etc? Get real. Many of the cities listed here as "depressing" have large sections that are less "depressing" than the suburban sprawl that many of you are living in right now, I'm sure. I'd stick a fork in my eye before living in Fairfax or Montgomery counties.
Y'all think you're so damned special.

omg u r soooo kewl.

I mean, it's true. We have a second home about 75 miles outside of DC, and every time I drive through the DC suburbs going back and forth I get depressed. I could never, ever live in any of them. None is appealing in the least. None.

There is absolutely nowhere within a 75 mile radius of DC worth bothering to have a second home so this is hysterical snobbery to me

DP. I mean, c'mon. Shenandoah National Park is less than 75 miles from DC, for starters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread has deteriorated from legit to a typical DCUM snob thread. Gary, Indiana? Yes, depressing by any measure. A few other listed cities? Ditto. But Asheville, NC? Etc? Get real. Many of the cities listed here as "depressing" have large sections that are less "depressing" than the suburban sprawl that many of you are living in right now, I'm sure. I'd stick a fork in my eye before living in Fairfax or Montgomery counties.
Y'all think you're so damned special.

omg u r soooo kewl.

I mean, it's true. We have a second home about 75 miles outside of DC, and every time I drive through the DC suburbs going back and forth I get depressed. I could never, ever live in any of them. None is appealing in the least. None.

Yeah, I’m sure wherever you live is paradise in comparison. There’s a reason you didn’t share your superior place of residence - people in glass houses and all that.

I live in DC. Second home is in the country. It's absolutely superior to the soul less DC suburbs. Many places are, in fact. It's not that hard to be superior to the DC suburbs.

I mean… some of us like life without rats and random shootings. But you do you.

And if you actually live in the non-walkable parts of DC like CCDC - you’re in the burbs, just fooling yourself about how you’re a city person.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Have you guys been to Cumberland lately? It definitely has a long way to go but at least near the trail there are a lot of businesses that seem to be thriving, people eating/drinking outside, etc. To me it’s disqualified from being the MOST depressing. The scenic setting alone is worth something. There are some real armpits out there.

I'm one of the Cumberland posters -have not been there for about 10 years so I'm glad to hear this!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wichita, KS

Can we nominate all of Kansas?

Done! And seconded!

Can we also add Oklahoma, Nebraska, North Dakota, and Iowa?

[Anonymous]

Cumberland, Maryland

Altoona, Pennsylvania

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread has deteriorated from legit to a typical DCUM snob thread. Gary, Indiana? Yes, depressing by any measure. A few other listed cities? Ditto. But Asheville, NC? Etc? Get real. Many of the cities listed here as "depressing" have large sections that are less "depressing" than the suburban sprawl that many of you are living in right now, I'm sure. I'd stick a fork in my eye before living in Fairfax or Montgomery counties.
Y'all think you're so damned special.

omg u r soooo kewl.

I mean, it's true. We have a second home about 75 miles outside of DC, and every time I drive through the DC suburbs going back and forth I get depressed. I could never, ever live in any of them. None is appealing in the least. None.

Yeah, I’m sure wherever you live is paradise in comparison. There’s a reason you didn’t share your superior place of residence - people in glass houses and all that.

I live in DC. Second home is in the country. It's absolutely superior to the soul less DC suburbs. Many places are, in fact. It's not that hard to be superior to the DC suburbs.

Nationwide house prices and school rankings say otherwise my friend

I knew you'd start talking about schools. Schools have nothing to do with visiting or driving through a town you don't live in and finding it depressing. Also, somebody said San Francisco is depressing. Its home prices make the DC suburbs look like trailer parks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread has deteriorated from legit to a typical DCUM snob thread. Gary, Indiana? Yes, depressing by any measure. A few other listed cities? Ditto. But Asheville, NC? Etc? Get real. Many of the cities listed here as "depressing" have large sections that are less "depressing" than the suburban sprawl that many of you are living in right now, I'm sure. I'd stick a fork in my eye before living in Fairfax or Montgomery counties.
Y'all think you're so damned special.

omg u r soooo kewl.

I mean, it's true. We have a second home about 75 miles outside of DC, and every time I drive through the DC suburbs going back and forth I get depressed. I could never, ever live in any of them. None is appealing in the least. None.

There is absolutely nowhere within a 75 mile radius of DC worth bothering to have a second home so this is hysterical snobbery to me

DP. I mean, c'mon. Shenandoah National Park is less than 75 miles from DC, for starters.

Yup and clearly they have never been to Middleburg or Upperville.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread has deteriorated from legit to a typical DCUM snob thread. Gary, Indiana? Yes, depressing by any measure. A few other listed cities? Ditto. But Asheville, NC? Etc? Get real. Many of the cities listed here as "depressing" have large sections that are less "depressing" than the suburban sprawl that many of you are living in right now, I'm sure. I'd stick a fork in my eye before living in Fairfax or Montgomery counties.
Y'all think you're so damned special.

omg u r soooo kewl.

I mean, it's true. We have a second home about 75 miles outside of DC, and every time I drive through the DC suburbs going back and forth I get depressed. I could never, ever live in any of them. None is appealing in the least. None.

Yeah, I’m sure wherever you live is paradise in comparison. There’s a reason you didn’t share your superior place of residence - people in glass houses and all that.

I live in DC. Second home is in the country. It's absolutely superior to the soul less DC suburbs. Many places are, in fact. It's not that hard to be superior to the DC suburbs.

Nationwide house prices and school rankings say otherwise my friend

She probably lives in NW DC, which is practically a suburb anyways.

And you'd be wrong. I, too, consider Upper Caucasia to be a depressing suburb and wouldn't live there either. To me, there's the city and the country. No in betweens. No suburban hell.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Cumberland, MD - both of my parents grew up there. It was a beautiful little town once, but it became depressed once railroads became less vital to the economy. It is so sad to visit now - I believe it may be ranked the poorest town in MD - lots of drugs and all boarded up. I sometimes wonder if it will ever have a renaissance like Ashevillle - such a pretty location and charming old buildings. I hope it revitalizes one day.

I had to look at the date to see if I wrote this a long time ago and didn't remember. I was born there and my dad was the only one of his 12 siblings to leave the area and consequently the only one to have a better life. Frostburg is worse IMO. So are nearby pockets of WV.

[Anonymous]

Aztec, NM.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread has deteriorated from legit to a typical DCUM snob thread. Gary, Indiana? Yes, depressing by any measure. A few other listed cities? Ditto. But Asheville, NC? Etc? Get real. Many of the cities listed here as "depressing" have large sections that are less "depressing" than the suburban sprawl that many of you are living in right now, I'm sure. I'd stick a fork in my eye before living in Fairfax or Montgomery counties.
Y'all think you're so damned special.

omg u r soooo kewl.

I mean, it's true. We have a second home about 75 miles outside of DC, and every time I drive through the DC suburbs going back and forth I get depressed. I could never, ever live in any of them. None is appealing in the least. None.

Yeah, I’m sure wherever you live is paradise in comparison. There’s a reason you didn’t share your superior place of residence - people in glass houses and all that.

I live in DC. Second home is in the country. It's absolutely superior to the soul less DC suburbs. Many places are, in fact. It's not that hard to be superior to the DC suburbs.

I mean… some of us like life without rats and random shootings. But you do you.

And if you actually live in the non-walkable parts of DC like CCDC - you’re in the burbs, just fooling yourself about how you’re a city person.

I don't live in non-walkable DC.