User:Godsendlemiwinks/South County

South County is in Central Massachusetts.

Understand
South County is the name sometimes used to refer to the area of Central Massachusetts southwest of Worcester. The name does not refer to, as it might seem, the southern half of Worcester County. This would include Worcester and the entire Blackstone Valley. The region is not quite rural, not quite suburban. Former mill towns are surrounded by farms and very low density housing development. Sturbridge, despite being the smallest of the towns in South County, is home to most of the attractions because of the build-up of tourist oriented businesses surrounding Old Sturbridge Village.

South County consists of the following towns:


 * Charlton-Occupies nearly a third of the land area of South County. Very spread out.
 * Dudley-Mostly rural, although most people live in the denser sections next to Webster. Home to Nichols College.
 * Oxford- Small town with a mix of rural and suburban features.
 * Southbridge-Largest of the towns by population. Former manufacturing center with a fairly urban downtown.
 * Webster-Compact town that used to be a manufacturing center and is now primarily known for its lake.


 * Sturbridge is technically part of South County, but has its own article.

By Car
Nearly all visitors to South County will arrive by car. The area is bounded on three sides by major highways. To the north, the Massachusetts Turnpike (I-90) runs east-west with exits in Sturbridge and Auburn that can be used to reach South County. I-84 runs through Sturbridge from Hartford, CT, connecting with I-90. This is the most likely route for travelers coming from all points southwest. I-395 runs north-south along the eastern edge of the region with exits in Webster and Oxford before intersecting with I-90 and becoming I-290. I-395 provides access from Eastern Connecticut to the south and via I-290, all points north and northeast.

By Plane
Although you will still need a car to reach South County, travelers from further afield could fly into Boston or Hartford, both of which are about an hour away.

By Car
You will need a car to explore South County. It is a sprawling region without a center. Traffic on local roads is usually not an issue. Neither is traffic on I-395. However, traffic on I-90 and I-84 can back up for miles radiating out from their intersection in Sturbridge. This is not due to local traffic, but the fact that most traffic between Boston and New York City passes through the region. U.S. Route 20 parallels I-90 and is more useful for intra-regional travel since it intersects with more roads.

Buy
Outside of the antiquing options in Sturbridge, you won't find much shopping in South County. There aren't a lot of stores to begin with and most serve local residents (pharmacies, hardware, etc.)

Eat
South County isn't quite a culinary deadzone, but its close. Sturbridge has many restaurants, some of them quite well reviewed, and is an easy drive from most points in South County. Worcester isn't that far away either. Otherwise, you will mostly find greasy spoons and pizza/subs.

Drink
South County has recently become something of a destination for beer aficionados. The site Rapscallion now occupies has been a brewery since the early 1990's. In the last few years, Bentley and KBC have opened up and both have recently expanded with Bentley moving to a new taproom in the same building and KBC relocating from a roadside shack to a large taproom and beer garden in downtown Webster. Visiting all three in an afternoon is easily doable.