Mount Joy, Pennsylvania

The town feels like an established place, with early 20th-century mills and other structures still standing. Several are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and most buildings, including the George Brown's and Sons Cotton and Woolen Mill, have been renovated for modern uses (such as apartments). A handful sport colorful murals depicting the area's history. Bube's Brewery dates from 1889 and today is a funky microbrewery with a martini bar, restaurants, themed feasts and a small art gallery. Main Street is wide, often busy and has fun shops, antique stores and restaurants in well maintained but weathered buildings. Annual town events include holiday celebrations, a crab fest and Taste of Mount Joy.

Diners, sandwich shops and pubs with food make up the dining scene. Produce stands are at each end of Main Street during the summer, and there is an indoor farmers' market.

Downtown neighborhoods have foursquares intermingled with commercial buildings, while newer areas have brick ranch ramblers and Cape Cods. Outside of town, covered bridges and occasional Amish buggies traveling along country lanes evoke a simpler time.

Population:  8,500 (city proper)

Age 45 or Better:  54% 

Cost of Living:  16% below the national average

Median Home Price: $325,000

Climate:    Summer temperatures are in the 80s and 90s, and winter temperatures are in the 20s, 30s and 40s.    On average, the area receives 40 inches of rain and 26 inches of snow per year.

At Least One Hospital Accepts Medicare Patients?   No, but Lancaster, 15 miles away, has a hospital that accepts Medicare patients.

At Least One Hospital Accredited by Joint Commission?    No, but Lancaster, 15 miles away, has an accredited hospital.

Crime Rate:  Below the national average

Public Library:    Yes

Public Transit:   Mount Joy is served by Amtrak.

Political Leanings:   Conservative

College Educated:   25%

Is Pennsylvania Considered Tax Friendly for Retirement?    Yes

Cons:    None

Notes:  Mount Joy has grown 8% during the last decade.  Home prices have increased 6% since a year ago.

Recommended as a Retirement Spot?    Yes

Pennsylvania:

Established by William Penn as a sanctuary for Quakers, the Keystone State was the site of two Continental Congresses. The Declaration of Independence and the American Revolution became products of the second congress in 1775. Pennsylvania also played a decisive role in the American Civil War. The Battle of Gettysburg gave General Meade with a key win and put an end to the South's Northern Invasion.

The Appalachian mountains are Pennsylvania's backbone. The state has 140 miles of shoreline along Lake Erie and the Delaware Estuary. Five regions - the Allegheny Plateau, the Ridge and Valley, the Atlantic Coastal Plain, the Piedmont, and the Erie Plain - help provide a diversity of landscape and climate. Although Philadelphia, the state's most populous city, may experience some subtropical temperatures, the rest of the state can experience cold winters.

Pennsylvania's economy is one of the largest in the country and the world. It's a leading coal producer and the only state to mine anthracite. Fortune 500 companies based in Pittsburgh include U.S. Steel, PPG Industries, and H.J. Heinz. Locomotives for GE Transportation Systems are assembled in Erie. Mushrooms, apples, and Christmas trees are a few of the state's agricultural products.

Although it was the second state to enter the Union on December 12, 1787, Pennsylvania has recorded a large list of firsts. Betsy Ross made the first American flag in Philadelphia. Philadelphia is also the birthplace of the nation's first zoo. Titusville claims the world's first oil well.