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Millenial Mecca—Appleton Fox Cities, Wisconsin ranked among America’s 25 best places to live

Appleton, Wisconsin Mayor Timothy Hanna
Thomas Wilmer

Join correspondent Tom Wilmer for a walkabout in Appleton, Wisconsin with the Mayor, Timothy Hanna celebrating his 22nd year in office. Discover why the Fox Cities region has evolved to become a magnet for millennials who find the thriving arts, culture, music, and theater scene alluring draws. 

Astoundingly affordable real estate costs is another draw with the current median priced home listed at $164,900 (according to Zillow). Money Magazine ranked Appleton as the 24th Best Place to Live in America (2016).

Appleton's majestic performing arts center with 2,500 seats receives traveling Broadway shows before major Wisconsin cities.
Credit Foxcities.org
Appleton's majestic performing arts center with 2,500 seats receives traveling Broadway shows before major Wisconsin cities.

Appleton is the core of the Fox Cities region, comprising 19 communities along the shores of Lake Winnebago and the Fox River.

Appleton, Wisconsin is revered as the home of Harry Houdini and a park in the heart of downtown is fittingly called Houdini Plaza
Credit ADI foxcities.org
Appleton, Wisconsin is revered as the home of Harry Houdini and a park in the heart of downtown is fittingly called Houdini Plaza

Situated in East Central Wisconsin, Appleton is 31 miles south of Green Bay, 100 miles from Milwaukee, and 81 miles to Chicago’s O’Hare Airport.

Downtown Appleton, Wisconsin with the Fox River in foreground
Credit Foxcities.org
Downtown Appleton, Wisconsin with the Fox River in foreground

College and university life adds to the vibrancy of the region with Fox Valley Technical College and Lawrence University in Appleton, and the University of Wisconsin Fox Valley located in nearby Menasha.

The Lawrence Institute was founded in 1847, ten years before the incorporation of Appleton.

The Fox Cities region has been a premier paper-producing region since the first mill opened in 1853.

Appleton, Wisconsin 1874
Appleton, Wisconsin 1874

It was Appleton that claims the first telephone in the state of Wisconsin, and it was here that the town’s electric plant illuminated the first home in America utilizing hydroelectric power—and the first town beyond the East Coast to employ incandescent lighting in America. 

Hearthstone Mansion in Appleton, Wisconsin
Credit Thomas Wilmer
Hearthstone Mansion in Appleton, Wisconsin
Appleton, Wisconsin logo
Credit Appleton, Wisconsin
Appleton, Wisconsin logo

 Journeys of Discovery with Tom Wilmer NPR One, Apple Podcast album artJourneys of Discovery with Tom Wilmer NPR One, Apple Podcast album art
 

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 Journeys of Discovery with Tom Wilmer winner of the Lowell Thomas Award 2017, 2016, 2015, 2013Journeys of Discovery with Tom Wilmer winner of the Lowell Thomas Award 2017, 2016, 2015, 2013
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Underwriting support for Journeys of Discovery with Tom Wilmer provided by Society of St. Vincent de Paul
Credit Society of Saint Vincent de Paul
Underwriting support for Journeys of Discovery with Tom Wilmer provided by Society of St. Vincent de Paul

Tom Wilmer produces on-air content for Issues & Ideas airing over KCBX and is producer and host of the six-time Lowell Thomas award-winning NPR podcast Journeys of Discovery with Tom Wilmer. Recorded live on-location across America and around the world, the podcasts feature the arts, culture, music, nature, history, science, wine & spirits, brewpubs, and the culinary arts--everything from baseball to exploring South Pacific atolls to interviewing the real Santa Claus in the Arctic.
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