Ironton, OH

Set right on the Ohio River at Ohio's southernmost tip, Ironton is a town of about 10,500 people with deep industrial roots. Being part of the Huntington-Ashland tri-state region means residents enjoy a quiet, small-town atmosphere while staying within a 20-minute drive of jobs, shopping, and healthcare across the river in West Virginia and Kentucky. The riverfront and historic downtown still feature the classic brick storefronts from the town's nineteenth-century iron boom days.

ATTRWvfunnyman / CC BY-SA 3.0

For day-to-day living, Ironton offers a compact layout with local schools, a county library branch, and higher education through Ohio University Southern. The community comes together around long-standing traditions, most notably the Ironton-Lawrence County Memorial Day Parade, which has been running continuously since 1868. Between its affordable housing and handy riverfront location, Ironton makes a practical home base for anyone looking to settle in the tri-state area.