If you are one of those people who has always wanted to live on an island, the San Juan Islands are your chance (actually you have 450 chances, although only 4 of the islands have ferry service). Located off the coasts of Washington and British Columbia, the islands are both a tourist destination and a retirement community. The setting, the…...

History lovers will find Natchitoches (NACK-uh-tush), Louisiana to be an interesting retirement community. Located on the Cane River Lake, this charming southern town of 18,500 was the picturesque setting for the movie Steel Magnolias, starring Sally Field and Shirley MacLaine. An older movie set here is The Horse Soldiers with William Holden and the Duke, John Wayne. The town was…...

Franklin County is located in Northeast Texas, 72 miles southwest of Texarkana and 96 miles northeast of Dallas on Interstate 30.  Mount Vernon, the county seat, has been selected a Main Street City because of its historic preservation, museums, a diversified community of gifted artists, and a superb quality of life.  Franklin County (population just over 10,000) has been designated…...

Port Townsend, Washington is located on the extreme northeastern tip of the Olympic Peninsula, just across Puget Sound from Seattle. Port Townsend was a thriving port settlement before Seattle was founded.Unfortunately, the Union Pacific Railroad bypassed it, sending the thriving community into an economic tailspin. While bad for the people who lived here then, this event was serendipitous for the…...