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Of the cities that are undeniably Southern, Charlotte is the one where the Southern culture is the most diluted. First of all, unlike New Orleans, Atlanta, etc it wasn't a huge metro area until the second half of the 20th century so it has less Old South culture. Very few plantations around compared to other parts of the South, no large tracts of historic antebellum architecture to the extent of NO, Charleston, Savannah, etc. Also because of recent growth a significant part of the population do not have ties to the South originally. Many people are northern transplants or immigrants who don't have ancestors who fought in the war and hence don't respect the war and the Confederate heroes and Southern history the way a native Southerner would.
Charlotte doesn't have large tracts of antebellum architecture mostly due to its location in the Piedmont; those are mostly found in the coastal plain. You won't find too much of that around Atlanta either.
Quote:
Charlotte is also one of the more liberal cities in the South. For me, quintessentially Southern aspects include conservatism and Christianity. While Louisiana's Cajun country is more Catholic, its still SERIOUS Catholic where people are devout in their religion, whereas in places like Charlotte and Atlanta you see more of the secular liberalism of the North. For example a city like Lafayette may not be the true Bible Belt because of its Catholicism, but they would never promote allowing men into women's bathrooms like Charlotte has which is what triggered the NC laws to begin with.
Charlotte is a left-leaning city but it's not *quite* as liberal as you portray.
I'm not arguing that it's the most quintessentially Southern city in this poll because I don't believe it is, but I was just addressing your two premises.
I placed each city in categories with comments if necessary. All cities within a category are more or less comparable in terms of how Southern they feel.
Highly Southern:
Birmingham (archetype of the South)
Memphis
New Orleans (this one is complicated; it's not traditional Southern, but I'd still say it mostly has a Southern feel, but more cosmopolitan and diverse)
Hampton Roads
More Southern than Not:
Richmond
Charlotte (not that Southern, but easy availability of some Southern foods, although not BBQ so much, and having the New South museum, as well as general vibe, makes it more Southern than not to me; probably a touch more southern than Atlanta, which I'd also probably put in this category).
Louisville (debatable here or the one below)
Less Southern than Southern:
Raleigh
Nashville (more transplants compared with Louisville, and also most of the development is rather recent , giving it a less Southern feel to me overall).
Jacksonville (tough one to place; is Southern somewhat, but mostly has a general Floridian vibe to me, which is a different thing; still by FL standards, it's rather Southern)
Not Southern:
Austin
San Antonio
*I've been to all but Hampton Roads at least in passing.
I placed each city in categories with comments if necessary. All cities within a category are more or less comparable in terms of how Southern they feel.
Highly Southern:
Birmingham (archetype of the South)
Memphis
New Orleans (this one is complicated; it's not traditional Southern, but I'd still say it mostly has a Southern feel, but more cosmopolitan and diverse)
Hampton Roads
More Southern than Not:
Richmond
Charlotte (not that Southern, but easy availability of some Southern foods, although not BBQ so much, and having the New South museum, as well as general vibe, makes it more Southern than not to me; probably a touch more southern than Atlanta, which I'd also probably put in this category).
Louisville (debatable here or the one below)
Less Southern than Southern:
Raleigh
Nashville (more transplants compared with Louisville, and also most of the development is rather recent , giving it a less Southern feel to me overall).
Jacksonville (tough one to place; is Southern somewhat, but mostly has a general Floridian vibe to me, which is a different thing; still by FL standards, it's rather Southern)
Not Southern:
Austin
San Antonio
*I've been to all but Hampton Roads at least in passing.
Yeah reading this I was a little puzzled that you’d put Hampton Roads in the most southern category. We can tell you definitely haven’t been here. Norfolk alone is arguably one of the most urban cities in the south. Atleast after Richmond. (Charleston, NoLa & Savannah are all arguable)
Yeah reading this I was a little puzzled that you’d put Hampton Roads in the most southern category. We can tell you definitely haven’t been here. Norfolk alone is arguably one of the most urban cities in the south. Atleast after Richmond. (Charleston, NoLa & Savannah are all arguable)
They aren't, ESPECIALLY New Orleans. It's widely considered the most urban city in the South.
I placed each city in categories with comments if necessary. All cities within a category are more or less comparable in terms of how Southern they feel.
Highly Southern:
Birmingham (archetype of the South)
Memphis
New Orleans (this one is complicated; it's not traditional Southern, but I'd still say it mostly has a Southern feel, but more cosmopolitan and diverse)
Hampton Roads
More Southern than Not:
Richmond
Charlotte (not that Southern, but easy availability of some Southern foods, although not BBQ so much, and having the New South museum, as well as general vibe, makes it more Southern than not to me; probably a touch more southern than Atlanta, which I'd also probably put in this category).
Louisville (debatable here or the one below)
Less Southern than Southern:
Raleigh
Nashville (more transplants compared with Louisville, and also most of the development is rather recent , giving it a less Southern feel to me overall).
Jacksonville (tough one to place; is Southern somewhat, but mostly has a general Floridian vibe to me, which is a different thing; still by FL standards, it's rather Southern)
Not Southern:
Austin
San Antonio
*I've been to all but Hampton Roads at least in passing.
Calling Hampton Roads "highly southern" is the perfect example of folks on CD generalizing about places they've never been to. I enjoy perusing the threads on CD but know in the back of my mind that alot of the posts are highly suspect. There should be a BS meter to out some of these posters.....
I placed each city in categories with comments if necessary. All cities within a category are more or less comparable in terms of how Southern they feel.
Highly Southern:
Birmingham (archetype of the South)
Memphis
New Orleans (this one is complicated; it's not traditional Southern, but I'd still say it mostly has a Southern feel, but more cosmopolitan and diverse)
Hampton Roads
More Southern than Not:
Richmond
Charlotte (not that Southern, but easy availability of some Southern foods, although not BBQ so much, and having the New South museum, as well as general vibe, makes it more Southern than not to me; probably a touch more southern than Atlanta, which I'd also probably put in this category).
Louisville (debatable here or the one below)
Less Southern than Southern:
Raleigh
Nashville (more transplants compared with Louisville, and also most of the development is rather recent , giving it a less Southern feel to me overall).
Jacksonville (tough one to place; is Southern somewhat, but mostly has a general Floridian vibe to me, which is a different thing; still by FL standards, it's rather Southern)
Not Southern:
Austin
San Antonio
*I've been to all but Hampton Roads at least in passing.
^^^^^^
Hell-to-the-no.
Corrected...
Highly Southern:
Birmingham
Memphis
New Orleans
Nashville
More Southern than Not:
Richmond
Charlotte
Louisville
Raleigh
Jacksonville
Hampton Roads
Not Southern:
Austin
San Antonio
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