PETERBOROUGH, N.H. - Residents of this small, picturesque New England town are not commonly recipients of visits from political and media heavyweights, nor is the place they call home often mentioned in the national news.
But that all changes once every four years, when New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation presidential primary turns the national spotlight on such towns, and many people who live and work here said yesterday they welcome the attention.
“We’re in this quaint New England village, and [now] we’re a hub of activity,’’ said Karen Dudra, 58, after attending a morning church service at the Peterborough Unitarian Universalist Church on Main Street in the center of town.
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Part of the excitement, she said, comes from media celebrities who descend on the town of about 6,200 every four years, sometimes incognito.
In 2004, Dudra said, she attended a town meeting to hear Democratic primary candidate Wesley Clark.
‘Maine has its lobsters, Vermont has its maple syrup, New Hampshire has its primary.’
New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd later poked fun at Clark’s argyle sweater in a piece on the race, and Dudra realized she had sat next to her at that event.
“I thought she had a city look to her,’’ Dudra said. Clark “was wearing this argyle, Charlie Brown sweater, and I said something like, ‘He thinks he’s fitting in with that?’ ’’
Dudra, who plans to cast a primary vote for President Obama tomorrow on the Democratic side to show her support, and others said they take pride in showcasing their passion for politics and knowledge of the issues, which have been frequently noted by the national press corps.
“This town does so much’’ to stay engaged in the process, said Nance Hall, 57.
She said the intimate town-meeting style of politics is what keeps people interested in government at every level. She described that style as one of fairness to all sides, no matter how sharply they may disagree.
“Everyone gets to voice their opinion,’’ she said. “You are heard. I really feel like you’re heard, no matter how ridiculous it is, what you have to say.’’
Hall said the political culture in Peterborough is a far cry from that in her native Aspen, Colo., where many people were ambivalent about politics.
“All people [wanted to do] was just to ski and party,’’ she said with a laugh.
And with a primary campaign in Peterborough also comes the occasional makeover to its Town House, said George Billings, 76.
He recalled that when GOP candidate Jon Huntsman held a campaign event in town a couple of weeks ago, “they lit everything up with red, white, and blue lights.’’
Billings, who plans to vote for Mitt Romney, said that in addition to the media attention and visits from candidates, the local economy gets a much-needed boost from the extra foot traffic.
That would disappear, he said, if New Hampshire ever surrendered its status as the first state to hold a primary vote after the Iowa Caucuses.
“New Hampshire would turn its toes up and die if it was taken away,’’ he said. “Maine has its lobsters, Vermont has its maple syrup, New Hampshire has its primary.’’
Not every local business owner shares Billings’s view that primary season is a financial boon.
Elizabeth Littles, 55, co-owner of Steele’s Stationers on Main Street, said the throngs of journalists, candidates, and campaign staffers take up parking spaces but do not buy much at her establishment.
However, she recently sold a few pens and notebooks to a television reporter she did not recognize, who was in a bind.
“He was happy to see reporter’s notebooks,’’ she said.
Littles added that while she enjoys the excitement that comes of primary season and the political discussions she has with friends, she can certainly live without the constant barrage of robo-calls from campaigns.
While the calls are not unique to Peterborough, Littles had what some might view as an unusually strong reaction when she received a call urging her to vote for Newt Gingrich tomorrow.
“I [shouted], ‘I hate Newt’ and hung up,’’ she said. “It’s good, but sort of ridiculous. I don’t know why I’m getting these phone calls. I’ve had it.’’
Nancy Grove, who said she is in her 50s, said she has also had it with the calls but has been pleased to see New Hampshire and the town in the spotlight in recent months.
“It makes something happen in this small town,’’ she said. “It puts us on the map.’’
Try BostonGlobe.com today and get two weeks FREE. Globe correspondent Alexander C. Kaufman contributed to this report. Travis Andersen can be reached at tandersen@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @TAGlobe.