This South Mississippi city has one of America’s most charming streets, according to poll

All along the galleries and oaks of Ocean Springs’ Washington Avenue, there’s a new reason to be proud.

It’s just been named among the best streets in the country.

A poll of 3,000 travelers conducted by Mixbook ranked the street ninth in a list of the nation’s “most charming main streets” this month. Local shops that line the avenues have always been part of small-town charm, the poll’s authors say, but now they are facing a new dilemma: quaint streets are losing out to competition from shopping malls.

So to remind the country of the “allure of America’s main streets,” the poll highlights the best in the country.

Authors said Washington Avenue made the list because of its galleries and boutiques, the Walter Anderson Museum of Art and the Peter Anderson Arts & Crafts Festival.

Here’s the list of most charming main streets, according to the poll:

1. King Street, Charleston, South Carolina

2. Main Street, Lake Placid, New York

3. Main Street, Beacon, New York

4. Main Street, Montpelier, Vermont

5. E Las Olas Boulevard, Fort Lauderdale, Florida

6. Broughton Street, Savannah, Georgia

7. King Street, Alexandria, Virginia

8. Broadway Street/Biltmore Avenue, Asheville, North Carolina

9. Washington Avenue, Ocean Springs, Mississippi

10. Main Street, Eureka Springs, Arkansas