I looked it up on Wikipedia. Out of all the Smithfields in the United States, only two are in New England (where the strip has been confirmed to be set). In the future strip, Marisa is talking to Brice, and she says she wants to set up a shop someday in “either Providence or Portland, Maine.” The “Maine” part may have just been added by Norm to avoid confusion on the readers’ parts, but I doubt anyone from Maine would refer to their Portland as “Portland, Maine,” so I can rule out Smithfield, Maine. Therefore, if the Smithfield from “Retail” is a real-life Smithfield, it must be the Rhode Island one, which has a population of about 22.1K (Is that big enough for a mall?).
However, I always felt that the “Retail” Smithfield is a fictional medium-sized city, and for some reason, I always placed it in Massachusetts. Maybe it’s because I can already rule out Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. So, it’s either the real Smithfield in Rhode Island or a fictional one in either Massachusetts or Connecticut (unless I’m forgetting a strip where it’s clear one of the states can be ruled out).
According to Wikipedia, Norm lived in Rhode Island and Massachusetts, so those are my top two guesses.
Just to clarify, Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire are referred to in future strips as if the characters weren’t currently in those states. THAT’S why I ruled them out.
Okay…”Smithfield”…
I looked it up on Wikipedia. Out of all the Smithfields in the United States, only two are in New England (where the strip has been confirmed to be set). In the future strip, Marisa is talking to Brice, and she says she wants to set up a shop someday in “either Providence or Portland, Maine.” The “Maine” part may have just been added by Norm to avoid confusion on the readers’ parts, but I doubt anyone from Maine would refer to their Portland as “Portland, Maine,” so I can rule out Smithfield, Maine. Therefore, if the Smithfield from “Retail” is a real-life Smithfield, it must be the Rhode Island one, which has a population of about 22.1K (Is that big enough for a mall?).
However, I always felt that the “Retail” Smithfield is a fictional medium-sized city, and for some reason, I always placed it in Massachusetts. Maybe it’s because I can already rule out Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. So, it’s either the real Smithfield in Rhode Island or a fictional one in either Massachusetts or Connecticut (unless I’m forgetting a strip where it’s clear one of the states can be ruled out).
According to Wikipedia, Norm lived in Rhode Island and Massachusetts, so those are my top two guesses.
Just to clarify, Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire are referred to in future strips as if the characters weren’t currently in those states. THAT’S why I ruled them out.