By: Millie Zeiler | From: Big City Review

The top 10 U.S. Southern cities to visit look into the geographical collection of states that are mostly situated along America’s Bible Belt. Also known as the American South and Southland, the South’s history is defined by the Mason-Dixon line, the Ohio River, and the 36°30′ parallel. Also referenced as the Missouri Compromise, part of the parallel is a boundary between the states of Kentucky and Tennessee, east of the Mississippi River and west of the Tennesee River. Another part is between Arkansas and Missouri, west of the St. Francis River. The Oklahoma Panhandle and the Texas Panhandle are also where this parallel’s boundary stretches across.

There are also boundaries set between North Carolina and Virginia. All the states involved within the Southern States are Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia (D.C.), Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia. When it comes to the charm of the South, these are the states that come to mind, some more prominently than others. From them, ten cities seem to have perfected what makes them the best Southern communities to visit.

# 2 – San Antonio, Texas

The Lone Star state has San Antonio, an incredibly beautiful city loaded with history and scenery that can easily turn a visitor into a resident. Bluntly put, if you go to San Antonio without visiting its iconic Alamo, you’re missing a golden opportunity as a tourist. Smack in the middle of the city, the echo of Alamo’s past shouts loud and clear as a reminder of the wild frontier during an era America had yet to be established as a nation. In 1691, it was named after a Portuguese priest named Saint Anthony of Padua by a Spanish expedition team. San Antonio is the oldest municipality in Texas, which was first founded as a Spanish mission and colonial outpost in 1718. In 1731, it became the first charted civilian settlement in the region.

At the time, it belonged to the Spanish Empire. The 1836 Battle of the Alamo took place here, fifteen years after San Antonio was under the control of the Mexican Republic The Alamo, plus the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park is recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage site. In addition to these magnificent examples of history, San Antonio also lives in the present day with its collection of other top tourist attractions. These include Marriage Island, Morgan’s Wonderland, River Walk, SeaWorld San Antonio, Six Flags Fiesta Texas, and Tower of the Americas.

If sports is your thing, the National Basketball Association’s San Antonio Spurs is the city’s pride and joy as a major league sports team. So is the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo, which is one of America’s largest annual events of its kind. San Antonio is part of the Texas Triangle, a region within the state that takes up the southwestern corner of Central and South Texas. Because of its location, the United States Armed Forces have numerous facilities in the area.

The population within San Antonio’s city limits is over one million people. The metropolitan area has well over two million residents in total. Over sixty percent of the people who live here are Hispanic, making San Antonio the most populated city in the United States with such strong Spanish influence. It sits very close to the capital city of Texas, Austin, which is less than one hundred miles away. It is one of the cities included in the Texas Triangle, as are Dallas and Houston.