rural America

Who speaks for rural America? Farmers want international trade deals and relief from regulations. But small towns are focused on re-inventing themselves to attract a new generation. FrankvandenBergh/Getty Images hide caption

Susan Frawley Eisele holds her 6-week-old son, Albert Jr., at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in New York City in 1936. Eisele, of Blue Earth, Minn., won an essay contest with Country Home magazine and was named best American rural correspondent of 1936. Courtesy of Kitty Eisele hide caption

Mendocino, Calif., lures vacationing tourists and retirees. But the lone hospital on this remote stretch of coast, in nearby Fort Bragg, is struggling financially. David McSpadden/Wikimedia hide caption

One of the first signs drivers see on the way into Unionville, Mo. is this billboard advertising cardiology at Putnam County Memorial Hospital. Offering specialty services, like cardiology and psychiatry turned the hospital around, community leaders say. Bram Sable-Smith/KBIA/Side Effects Public Media hide caption

Leo Thompson stands in front of his isolated home, where he has lived for 35 years, on the Navajo Nation reservation. Like an estimated 18,000 Navajos homes, his his isn't connected to the electrical grid — it's a half-mile from the nearest line — and until recently Thompson used a generator for power. Ibby Caputo for NPR hide caption

Something's missing in the small town of Jackman, Maine. They've have an electrician and some carpenters among their 800-odd residents, but no plumber — which can complicate things. Ruediger Wittmann/iStockphoto hide caption

Charlton Memorial Hospital closed in 2013, but it may now be able to offer some ER services thanks to a limited license Georgia is now offering to struggling rural hospitals. Susanna Capelouto hide caption

The 2011 Asparagus Queen, Megan Roskan, and runner-up Christine Merten wave to spectators during an Independence Day parade in Whitehall, Mich. With interests waning in agricultural pageants, organizers are relaxing the requirements to encourage more people to apply. Courtesy of Phil Squattrito hide caption