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Charlottesville was settled in the eighteenth century on a hill overlooking the Rivanna River. It was named in honor of Queen Charlotte, the young wife of George III, and serves as the seat of Albemarle County. The town is nestled between the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Appalachian Trail to the north and Monticello, home of Thomas Jefferson, to the south. Today, Charlottesville is a small, thriving university town that has kept up with the well-cultivated tastes of its inhabitants.
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Read what has been written in AARP The Magazine's Healthiest Hometowns
(By Sarah Mahoney and Brad Edmondson, September & October 2008) (http://www.aarpmagazine.org/lifestyle/healthiest_hometowns.html/page=1)
CHARLOTTESVILLE, VIRGINIA
Charlottesville regularly makes it onto best-places lists for its scenery, culture, and history. Thomas Jefferson's father was one of its founders; James Madison and James Monroe lived here, too. But what really sets the place apart is its strong focus on medicine. It ranks fourth among U.S. metropolitan areas in the number of physicians per capita, and it also makes the top ten for family-practice doctors, oncologists, and cardiologists. The most obvious reason is the University of Virginia's medical school and 572-bed teaching hospital.
Of course, good medicine is critical when you're sick. But Charlottesville also has a strong tradition of helping its residents stay healthy. When Susan Seidler, now 59, learned that her bones were losing density, she went to a midlife counselor, two nutritionists, and an exercise physiologist who helped her design a diet and exercise program to ward off osteoporosis.
Luckily for Seidler, it's easy to get lots of exercise in Charlottesville. The city is in a natural bowl between the Blue Ridge and Southwest mountains. The Rivanna River runs around the city, and a network of trails parallels the river and climbs the hills.
| Population: |
40,315
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| Median housing price: |
$382,800
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| Average number of sunny days: |
219 per year
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| Healthy bragging rights: |
Residents are not just the healthiest eaters on our list, they are also among the happiest, and most likely to say they are satisfied with their lives. |
Charlottesville offers a wide range of cultural and recreational activities. For those who enjoy the outdoors, the nearby Blue Ridge Mountains and rivers provide easy access for hiking, fishing, camping, rafting and even skiing.
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