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What happens when a struggling American town runs out of normal ideas?

Apparently, it builds the world’s largest rocking chair, welcomes a zombie apocalypse, pretends to be a village in Germany, fills an abandoned factory with modern art, or turns quilting videos into an entire tourism industry.

In this video, we explore 10 American towns that were revived by one very strange thing. These communities lost factories, railroad jobs, military activity, residents, and downtown businesses, but each found an unexpected way to bring visitors, investment, jobs, and life back into town.

We’ll visit Grantville and Senoia, Georgia, where The Walking Dead created real-world tourism; Casey, Illinois, home to enormous record-breaking objects; Hamilton, Missouri, where YouTube quilting tutorials helped rebuild downtown; Roswell, New Mexico, where aliens became an economic engine; and Leavenworth, Washington, which rescued itself by transforming into a Bavarian village.

We’ll also explore how refugees helped stabilize Utica, New York, how contemporary art transformed North Adams and Marfa, and how the Pioneer Woman turned Pawhuska, Oklahoma, into a major tourist destination.

These towns prove that economic revival does not always arrive through a new factory or massive government project. Sometimes it arrives wearing lederhosen, carrying quilting fabric, or stumbling down the street dressed as a zombie.

Which strange town comeback surprised you the most? Let us know in the comments.

#SmallTowns #AmericanTowns #USHistory #UrbanRevitalization #RoadTrip #TheWalkingDead #Roswell #Leavenworth #WorldAccordingToBriggs


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What happens when a struggling American town runs out of normal ideas?

Apparently, it builds the world’s largest rocking chair, welcomes a zombie apocalypse, pretends to be a village in Germany, fills an abandoned factory with modern art, or turns quilting videos into an entire tourism industry.

In this video, we explore 10 American towns that were revived by one very strange thing. These communities lost factories, railroad jobs, military activity, residents, and downtown businesses, but each found an unexpected way to bring visitors, investment, jobs, and life back into town.

We’ll visit Grantville and Senoia, Georgia, where The Walking Dead created real-world tourism; Casey, Illinois, home to enormous record-breaking objects; Hamilton, Missouri, where YouTube quilting tutorials helped rebuild downtown; Roswell, New Mexico, where aliens became an economic engine; and Leavenworth, Washington, which rescued itself by transforming into a Bavarian village.

We’ll also explore how refugees helped stabilize Utica, New York, how contemporary art transformed North Adams and Marfa, and how the Pioneer Woman turned Pawhuska, Oklahoma, into a major tourist destination.

These towns prove that economic revival does not always arrive through a new factory or massive government project. Sometimes it arrives wearing lederhosen, carrying quilting fabric, or stumbling down the street dressed as a zombie.

Which strange town comeback surprised you the most? Let us know in the comments.

#SmallTowns #AmericanTowns #USHistory #UrbanRevitalization #RoadTrip #TheWalkingDead #Roswell #Leavenworth #WorldAccordingToBriggs


Ree Drummond Book:https://amzn.to/4xZ02MW

You can also follow us:
Facebook: World According to Briggs
Instagram: World2Briggs

Do you want to move to that perfect place?
Do you need a local Realtor for the area you want to move to?
HomeAndMoney.com can help:
Use this link: https://homeandmoney.com/briggs/

New Merch
https://briggs-azm-shop.fourthwall.com/products/this-place-sucks

Sponsorship Inquiries:
WorldAccordingtoBriggs@outloudtalent.com

🔶My Other Channel:
🏡Suite Life For Briggs:
@SuiteLife4Briggs

📚Doing It With Briggs:
@DoingItWithBriggs

🎓On This Day:
@AboutToday

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YouTube Video VVVlY1BKQkw2RTFQVmt5MS1najZLSDVnLmdtSG1GTDRGSFpr
World According To Briggs 1.4M

10 American Towns Saved by Very Strange Things

World According To Briggs 12 hours ago

How much do you really need to earn to afford rent in America?

In this video, we count down the 10 states where renters need the highest salaries to afford a modest two-bedroom apartment. Using 2025 data from the National Low Income Housing Coalition, we compare the annual income and hourly wage required to keep housing and utility costs below 30% of household income.

The results are brutal. The average American now needs nearly $70,000 a year to afford a two-bedroom rental, while renters in California and Hawaii need more than $100,000. States including New York, Massachusetts, Washington, New Jersey, Florida, Maryland, and  DC also rank among the most expensive places for renters.

This video explores the rising cost of rent, housing affordability, the income needed to live comfortably, and why even a six-figure salary no longer feels wealthy in some parts of the United States.

Which state has the most unreasonable rental prices? Let us know what rent costs where you live.

Subscribe to World According to Briggs for more videos about the cost of living, affordable states, expensive cities, retirement destinations, population trends, and the best and worst places to live in America.

#CostOfLiving #HousingCrisis #RentPrices #AffordableHousing #ExpensiveStates #UnitedStates #WorldAccordingToBriggs
World According to Briggs covers U.S. cities, states, migration trends, retirement destinations, cost of living, crime, housing, and quality-of-life rankings.



You can also follow us:
Facebook: World According to Briggs
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Do you want to move to that perfect place?
Do you need a local Realtor for the area you want to move to? 
 HomeAndMoney.com can help: 
Use this link: https://homeandmoney.com/briggs/

New Merch 
https://briggs-azm-shop.fourthwall.com/products/this-place-sucks

Sponsorship Inquiries:
WorldAccordingtoBriggs@outloudtalent.com 

🔶My Other Channel: 
🏡Suite Life For Briggs: 
@SuiteLife4Briggs

📚Doing It With Briggs: 
@DoingItWithBriggs

🎓On This Day:
@AboutToday

How much do you really need to earn to afford rent in America?

In this video, we count down the 10 states where renters need the highest salaries to afford a modest two-bedroom apartment. Using 2025 data from the National Low Income Housing Coalition, we compare the annual income and hourly wage required to keep housing and utility costs below 30% of household income.

The results are brutal. The average American now needs nearly $70,000 a year to afford a two-bedroom rental, while renters in California and Hawaii need more than $100,000. States including New York, Massachusetts, Washington, New Jersey, Florida, Maryland, and DC also rank among the most expensive places for renters.

This video explores the rising cost of rent, housing affordability, the income needed to live comfortably, and why even a six-figure salary no longer feels wealthy in some parts of the United States.

Which state has the most unreasonable rental prices? Let us know what rent costs where you live.

Subscribe to World According to Briggs for more videos about the cost of living, affordable states, expensive cities, retirement destinations, population trends, and the best and worst places to live in America.

#CostOfLiving #HousingCrisis #RentPrices #AffordableHousing #ExpensiveStates #UnitedStates #WorldAccordingToBriggs
World According to Briggs covers U.S. cities, states, migration trends, retirement destinations, cost of living, crime, housing, and quality-of-life rankings.



You can also follow us:
Facebook: World According to Briggs
Instagram: World2Briggs

Do you want to move to that perfect place?
Do you need a local Realtor for the area you want to move to?
HomeAndMoney.com can help:
Use this link: https://homeandmoney.com/briggs/

New Merch
https://briggs-azm-shop.fourthwall.com/products/this-place-sucks

Sponsorship Inquiries:
WorldAccordingtoBriggs@outloudtalent.com

🔶My Other Channel:
🏡Suite Life For Briggs:
@SuiteLife4Briggs

📚Doing It With Briggs:
@DoingItWithBriggs

🎓On This Day:
@AboutToday

1.3K 161

YouTube Video VVVlY1BKQkw2RTFQVmt5MS1najZLSDVnLmtKa2JRZjA5Mlhz

10 States Where You Need the Highest Salary Just to Live Comfortably

World According To Briggs June 21, 2026 10:59 pm

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