Towns

Towns are settlements where people live, work, learn, and play near each other. Towns often start with people gathering near a source of water, food, materials, religion, and protection. As towns mature, they add wells, streets, public spaces, more significant community buildings, and services like agriculture, home goods stores, restaurants, bakeries, etc. In the United States in 2019, there were 16,410 incorporated villages under 10,000 people out of 19,502 urban areas. Many towns in the United States start with Main Streets at a crossroads of two larger roads. These Main streets offered overnight rooms, hardware stores, bakeries, dry goods, Inns, and taverns. As towns extend their populations out and up, towns evolve into cities. Take a look at some of the world’s oldest towns. Different cultures, countries, and continents have different population standards for villages in rural areas, towns, villages, and cities.

Make a list of the five oldest towns in the World. Upload them to the gallery!

Every town nestles in its landscape.

Small towns worldwide, towns by the ocean, besides inner lakes, in the mountains and valleys, may be linear up the hillside and down in valleys. Others follow the linearity of a river or a mountain range.

Some towns have a semi-circular layout from a waterfront or centrally from a town center.

Some towns develop on an orthogonal grid.

Towns have defined edges and do not sprawl into farm fields or the countryside.

Some towns are all one- to two-story buildings, while others are denser, with multi-living units of up to four or even six stories.

Many towns today offer seasonal or year-long farmer markets where fresh produce is shared. People in the towns today often celebrate historical cultural events such as parades, horse races, bull runs, cheese festivals, etc.

Today, towns are treasured places to live!

Find a town near you that you want to live in or visit.

Draw a plan for a village and a town, or use CITY STREETS to draw the layout of a town of your choice!

Upload your town(s) to the Gallery!

Towns are small settlements where people create domestic space with access to water and growing food. Settlers establish their shelter and necessary water, energy, and food needs by building homes and laying out vegetable gardens and areas to raise chickens, goats, and cows. The earliest European and African American settlement in the United States was St. Augustine, founded in 1565 on the east coast of Florida. The town, started by Ponce de Leon, brought Catholic religion to the native indigenous peoples who initially settled there. Shortly thereafter, between 1607 and 1608, the Spanish, English, and French founded settlements north of the 30th latitude that survived despite the odds against them. In 1607, Spaniards founded Sante Fe as capital in New Mexico highlands building on the O’Ga P’Ogeh (Tewa for White Shell Water Place) lands of the Pueblo Indians along the Sante Fe river, a tributary of the Rio Grande River. The British established Jamestown on the Atlantic coast in 1608. French settlers established a town on the St Laurence River named Quebec. Today ST. Augustine is a historical site with Spanish Architecture, Cathedrals, Convents, and the fountain of youth!! Alvis Street is the oldest street in the US, and it has Spanish-style balconied buildings. Jamestown is a historical site where people can experience the first colonial settlement. Sante Fe is the capital of New Mexico and the cultural center of southwestern art.

All of these towns are still surviving; some have grown into cities!

Towns develop differently across cultures, drawing upon local traditions, social structures, environmental factors, and historical influences.  Shared themes include integrating cultural landmarks, community-centered design, and regional arts and crafts offering unique urban identities.  Some towns prioritize integrating nature with gardens and green spaces, while others focus on local architectural crafts and bustling market squares. Some cultures prioritize communal spaces like plazas or courtyards, while others focus on linear street grids. Local materials and traditional construction methods like adobe bricks in arid regions or timber framing in forested areas celebrate indigenous building techniques.  Prominent religious buildings like mosques, temples, or churches serve as focal points in the town. Town development reflects social structures, with different neighborhoods catering to other social classes.  In some cultures, community collective decision-making in planning and development is valued.  Regular cultural events are significant in a town’s life, attracting tourists and fostering town economics. Local culinary traditions, with dedicated markets and restaurants, often play a substantial role in town development. Which Town social culture captures your attention?

Each town is unique. Towns operate locally, offering crafts, food, and drinks. People live and work in their towns. Towns are, by and large, self-sufficient. Towns that survived over centuries are essential for their history and the heritage of their buildings, and many are known for tapestries, ceramics, sculpture, fabrics, leather goods, glass, jewelry, etc. The word ‘Town’ comes from a British word for enclosed places like a fenced farm, a walled courtyard, or a town with set boundaries. Towns are inhabited by townspeople! To go to town means to have fun doing things in a town! Towns also have more residents and commercial buildings offering food, baked goods, hardware services, and more. Towns have schools, maybe a library and a bank. Towns may even have a central green or gathering space with cafes, stores, etc. Make a small model of a town that you would like to live in!