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Yes. Texas was actually founded by a Virginian by the name of Sam Houstoun. He and several other Virginians settled Texas. Most Texans can trace their roots to VA or NC or TN.
Many of the early Texas settlers did in fact come from Virginia. After the Texas Revolution and in that heavy migration period after the War Between the States, Tennessee furnished the largest number of newcomers with Alabama a close second. Of course NC, MS, GA, LA, Ark, etc were well represented as well. Those from the Deep South states tended to concentrate in East Texas, while those from the Upper South usually went to North and West Texas. Central Texas saw both. You see that in the speech and cultural variations today.
I live next door to the city of Arlington, Texas. Did you know that the founders named it after Robert E. Lee's hometown of Arlington, Virginia? And that the city of Cleburne (south of Fort Worth) is named after another confederate general? There are several Robert E. Lee schools in Texas, too. Dallas has a civil war memorial with four statues of generals including Lee.
While he was in Texas during the civil war he was quite proud of the Texas troops that he had command over.
There is a park in Dallas named Robert E. Lee park and in addition to a huge equestrian statue of the general, there is a 2/3 replica of his home in Arlington which can be rented out for family reunions, gatherings, etc (unfortunately, nowdays, the part of the city where it was originally built is not the best! LOL).
It is well documented fact that General Lee held his Texans in special esteem, and there are quite a few quotes on the subject. In fact, some of them are etched on the monument honoring "Hood's Texas Brigade" on the capital grounds in Austin. One of the most memorable goes something like "None have brought greater honor to their state than have the Texans." In fact, when the first Texas units reached Richmond, President Davis greeted them with the words "Texans! The troops from the other states have their reputations to make, but the sons of the defenders of the Alamo have theirs to maintain."
To me, a Yankee means anyone from the Northeast (Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, and New England). Midwesterners to me are midwesterners, not yankees. To me there is no such thing as a "southern midwestern state." The Midwest states are Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio. all these states in modern times listed here strike me as being much more quote-on-quote "yankee" than "southern." The Southern states are Arkansas, Texas depending on what criteria you are talking about, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky, arguably West Virginia, and Virginia. Maryland and Delaware strike me as being more yankee than Southern. Also, New Mexico and Arizona are not yankee lol...number one, they are way too far west, number two, they are too far south. Missouri I would consider the Midwest...so if Yankee fits that definition, I think Missouri fits in better with that than the South, especially since most of it is north of the Mason-Dixon, which is the latitude of approximately Highway 60 and where the Ohio River touches Missouri in the far southern portion of the state. In any case, who really cares what is yankee and what isn't? It was important to be a Yankee or Southerner during the Civil War....this is 2007 folks. It should not be considered a crime to be from the North or the South these days, because ultimately, by saying it is, you are saying it is a crime to be from America...and that's something Al Qaeda believes in. So rather than reinforcing the proclamations of a terrorist organization, let's just drop the what states do you consider southern/yankee and just say what states do you consider america? Must we continue argueing over boundaries which really do not apply today....the only boundaries relavant to America today are the West Coast, East Coast, the Canadian border, and the Mexican border. I would argue for the Mason-Dixon line really only having any relevance to the states east of the easternmost plains states (Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, and North Dakota). I think that U.S. Highway 60 should be used as the true Mason-Dixon line...for the most part the Southern dialect is roughly bounded on the north by U.S. Highway 60 all the way from West Virginia to Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle. Where Virginia is concerned, I like to think of the Mason-Dixon line as being the Maryland-Virginia border.
As a proud native Pennsylvanian who does not look down upon those who hail from the South, I'd personally like to know "what gives?" Why on Earth is this forum cluttered with so many bitter Southerners complaining about we "Yankees?" The guy I've recently been courting romantically is a native of Mississippi, and I have family in Georgia, Lousiana, and Virginia, so I don't quite see why you Southerners refer to we Northerners in such a derogatory manner?
My area is becoming an outer exurb of New York City, and we quite literally just landed the AAA affilliate of the New York Yankees, along with several Manhattan-based restaurant franchises (Cold Stone Creamery, The Original Soup Man, etc.) There are a lot of those nitty-gritty BosWash Corridor accents here that have accompanied the transplants, along with aggressive drivers. Nevertheless, I refuse to let Scranton be referred to in a derogatory manner just because of our geographic location. If anything, I think being two hours from Manhattan and Philly is a good thing.
Since I wasn't really sure as to why Southerners viewed Northerners with such contempt, I did a little research of my own. I quoted the following directly from Wikipedia:
In the American South, the term is sometimes used as a derisive term for Northerners, especially those who have migrated to the South. As some Southerners put it, "A Yankee is a Northerner, and a Damnyankee [written and pronounced as one word] is a Northerner who moves (or comes) South". Southerners, by and large, resent being labeled "yankee" when travelling abroad.
As a proud native Pennsylvanian who does not look down upon those who hail from the South, I'd personally like to know "what gives?" Why on Earth is this forum cluttered with so many bitter Southerners complaining about we "Yankees?" The guy I've recently been courting romantically is a native of Mississippi, and I have family in Georgia, Lousiana, and Virginia, so I don't quite see why you Southerners refer to we Northerners in such a derogatory manner?
My area is becoming an outer exurb of New York City, and we quite literally just landed the AAA affilliate of the New York Yankees, along with several Manhattan-based restaurant franchises (Cold Stone Creamery, The Original Soup Man, etc.) There are a lot of those nitty-gritty BosWash Corridor accents here that have accompanied the transplants, along with aggressive drivers. Nevertheless, I refuse to let Scranton be referred to in a derogatory manner just because of our geographic location. If anything, I think being two hours from Manhattan and Philly is a good thing.
Since I wasn't really sure as to why Southerners viewed Northerners with such contempt, I did a little research of my own. I quoted the following directly from Wikipedia:
In the American South, the term is sometimes used as a derisive term for Northerners, especially those who have migrated to the South. As some Southerners put it, "A Yankee is a Northerner, and a Damnyankee [written and pronounced as one word] is a Northerner who moves (or comes) South". Southerners, by and large, resent being labeled "yankee" when travelling abroad.
Why can't we all just get along?
As a Virginian I only use "yankee" negatively to people who moved down here and start criticizing things Southern. Until they do that, I have nothing against them in my book. Its just when they say "where I come from we do things better .. or faster" or " I think we ought to change the name Jeff Davis highway. Its too stuck in the past"
ETC. ETC.
The term Yankee is actually used in a loving joking manner.
I don't think people should worry about it so much. We are all Americans , after all.
The only context i ever hear this used is the New york Yankees baseball team. In the northeast, we dont use this term. we are just refered to yankees by southerners. i dont think ive ever used this work outside of the context of baseball. To me, "yankee" states would be anything northeast of new jersey and eastern pennsylvania up to maine. But mainly NY, NJ, CT, RI, MA
Sorry I have to disgaree. Any place in Florida south of Orlando is yankee.
Geography doesn't always indicate culture. The Deep South really ends at Jacksonville.
No it is not. I lived in South Florida and visit there every year since the majority of my family lives there. There is NOTHING Yankee about South Florida. There maybe some people that moved down from New York or New Jersey to South Florida. But if anything, the area is tropical or island moreso than Yankee. And again, go visit the lake okachobee(sp) area and tell me that is Yankee and talk to those people and tell me that is Yankee. You will be laughed at hysterically if you called them Yankee.
No it is not. I lived in South Florida and visit there every year since the majority of my family lives there. There is NOTHING Yankee about South Florida. There maybe some people that moved down from New York or New Jersey to South Florida. But if anything, the area is tropical or island moreso than Yankee. And again, go visit the lake okachobee(sp) area and tell me that is Yankee and talk to those people and tell me that is Yankee. You will be laughed at hysterically if you called them Yankee.
Once again, georgraphy does not always indicate culture. The cultural South really stops at North Florida.
Florida is an ironic state in that the northern half is Southern, while the Southern half is northern.
Im not saying there aren't pockets of Southern in South Florida , but overall its very yankeefied. Miami is about as Southern as New York city.
Northern Florida on the other hand is very Southern as is the panhandle. Jacksonville is right Southern, as is Tallahassee
But Ft. Lauderdale, St. Petersburg, etc -thats all yankee now. Just like Northern Virginia, its largely populated by people from other states or Cubans. Nothing wrong with that, but its sure not southern.
Last edited by vasinger; 08-28-2007 at 09:42 PM..
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The guy I've recently been courting romantically is a native of Mississippi, and I have family in Georgia, Lousiana, and Virginia, so I don't quite see why you Southerners refer to we Northerners in such a derogatory manner? 
