Centre of the universe? and other Ashland, VA Local Custom Tips

Folks from Ashland, Virginia like to think of themselves as the centre of the universe. They are definitely at the geographic centre of Hanover County, Virginia. Former mayor Dick Gillis came with the slogan in the 1980s supposedly because it was close to the mountains, the beach, Richmond, and D.C. It is right along the railroad line and it is a college town: home to Randolph-Macon University. Many in the rest of Hanover County believe Ashlanders like to think of itself as more cosmopolitan and urbane read: better than the rest of the county. In the autumn of 2008, Peter Greenberg wrote a book "Don't Go There! The Travel Detective's Essential Guide to the Must-Miss Places of the World" and included beloved Ashland under Lamest Claims to Fame. Of course Ashlanders were up in arms, demanding equal time to state the town's case on the same programme. While Greenberg's comments may have ruffled the feathers of Ashlanders, when put in context it makes sense. He said in the Today show interview, "I think it's (Ashland is) a nice place, but the point is, when you have hyperbolic overly stated claims that's a red flag to me." I will give Ashland its due for its fine architecture and more fine dining opportunities for a town this size, but I hardly think it is better than anywhere else in Hanover County...or the universe.

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Ashland has always been more liberal than the surrounding (very conservative) Hanover County. One would not know that a sleepy railroad town would be any different. The main reasons for this are Randolph-Macon College and a larger black community. Liberation-minded student proletariats always make university towns at least a little more liberal. In Ashland, you could see stickers like the one in the photo warning against dumping anything into storm drains because they empty into the Chesapeake Bay.

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The Ashland Strawberry Faire is a community tradition featuring the annual strawberry harvest. The Faire is usually the first Saturday in June. It is held on the streets right next to to the Randolph Macon College campus. The Faire is a free community, family event. There are vendors selling arts, crafts, plants, and antiques to those who come. Among the many fun things are two stages. They feature entertainment from brass and jazz bands, choirs, dancing, pipes and drums, to Little Miss and Little Mr. Strawberry contests and much more. The little nippers can participate in activities from face painting to dunking booths to strawberry pie eating contests. My friends Lee, Robbie, and I went up there Saturday 4 June 2005 to attend the festival. There, we ran across quite a lot of people we knew including my travel agent.

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