Delaware: Is it Philly/Balt/DC Sports Country (Newark, New Castle: buy, university)

[Lcoven510]

It is in deed Delawareans....of which I am proud to be one! Born and raised right here in Kent. I sure hope that we don't become homogenized, but I agree that with all the Jersey, PA and New Yorkers that have headed this way, it may be inevitable. Can't say that I blame them, just melancholy about the changes all the influx brings.

[aav amphibs]

Originally Posted by Highpointer

The U.S. Census Bureau categorizes Delaware as a Southern state, so Delaware is part of the South, not the North.

That is a very lame arguement. Census Bureau like most government organizations don't know their butts from a hole in the ground anyway! Lame arguement. Same with this Mason Dixon line. This line doesn't mean nor distinguish anything. Maryland was part of the southern colonies but Maryland touched up to present day Philadelphia in those days, the Mason Dixon line actually ceded more land to Pennsylvania. Though some people use this line to distinguish north and south, it wasn't meant for that. If Maryland is North, so is Delaware, if you consider it south, so is Delaware. They are smack right next to each other. Dover borders Eastern shore of Maryland, which is the most debateable part of southern heritage in Maryland, so I find that far removed from Philadelphia. Wilmington Delaware is a different story. They are much closer and have more ties to Philly.
Delaware, like Maryland fought for the union. Mostly joined into the union than that of the confederacy. They both had personell join the confederacy but most went for the union. The only reason Maryland was considered a southern colony and Delaware a middle colony has more to do with the DUTCH settlement of the ocean based states. Most of Maryland lies in the Chesapeake bay, and in order to get to Baltimore, or Washington from the sea, one must go into the Chesapeake bay, which opens up around Norfolk Virginia, so naturally, most interaction came up via Virginia. The thruway was the Chesapeake Bay. There were hardly good roads leading from Maryland to connecting northern cities. Chesapeake Bay was it and it opens up in southern Virginia going due north to Baltimore, Washington. So ships took longer to reach those ports than Delaware or Philadelphia.
But times have turned, and Maryland, though once a southern colony has taken up more northern roots.
I grew up in the DC area, always thought of it as union turf. I see Virginia plates coming into Maryland, I always viewed them as southern. Maryland I viewed always as a northern state. Eastern shore, and St. Mary's county south is definately more country hick, don't know if I would even classify that as true southerners.
Weather is far from southern warmth. It's cold in Nov-Apr. It really only gets hot and humid in June-Aug. I live in Texas now so don't tell me about the heat in Maryland. Take Maryland to parallel east and you hit New Jersey. Same with Delaware. So how are they classified southern states while Jersey is a northern state? Geographically speaking, Maryland and Delaware are NOT in the southern United States. If I was to tell you to put your finger on the bottom part of a sheet of paper, you wouldn't put your finger in the middle of the page would you? Nor would you put your finger in the top part of the page if I told you to put your finger on the middle part of the page would you?
Also, if water poured in from Virginia into Maryland and it was HOT while water poured in from Pennsylvania that was COLD, the water in Maryland wouldn't be hot nor cold would it? It would be warmer than that coming in from Pennsylvania and colder from that coming in from Virginia right? But it wouldn't be neither hot nor cold.
All these wannabe southerners from Maryland, Delaware should take a trip to Alabama and they would see that they too would think of Alabamians as real country bumpkin hicks. I lived in the deep south, in Jacksonville, Florida. Nothing compared to language and culture of the Maryland that I knew. What a joke to consider them in the same light.
And that chart that shows coastal Maryland all the way up to New York even Connecticut as being humid subtropical is totally ridiculous. Maryland is NOT humid subtropical. It's cold and gloomy most of the year to be honest. Texas is humid subtropical around Houston. Jacksonville Florida is humid subtropical as all of Florida.

[aav amphibs]

Originally Posted by StuckPA

DE is like Jersey...the northern part would seem to side with the Phila teams and southern DE is right near Washington so obviously they'd probably side with them.

Washington is clear across the Chesapeake bay to the west, pretty far away from southern Delaware. To get to Delaware from DC, you have quite a drive.

[doctorjef]

Wtf?

[aav amphibs]

Originally Posted by armx

It is my impression that, traditionally, areas north of the Chesapeake canal identify more with Philadelphia teams and south of the canal (i.e. lower New Castle CO. and Kent & Sussex) with Balto.- D.C teams. Delaware is part of the Del-Mar-Va peninsula by definition. Flatlands are with Maryland and Piedmont w/Philly.

Maryland FLATLANDS? Looks kind of hilly to me, at least in DC area. More like Pennsylvania with the rolling hills.

[aav amphibs]

Originally Posted by toobusytoday

Delaware is an extension of Maryland? Why do you think they call it the DELmarva Peininsula?

I've been in Delmarva. I was in Cape Charles VA, years ago on board ship working near Norfolk across the bay, drove up to Maryland to check out some scenery. I noticed coming into Maryland, had WELCOME sign with the Union flag stamped on it. When I came back the other way into Virginia, had WELCOME sign with confederate stars with the "X". Guess they wanted to make sure you knew you were entering southern territory.
And here I thought the Eastern Shore of MD considered themselves southern. Maybe some do and they make the most noise in the state for the south.

[aav amphibs]

Originally Posted by Lcoven510

As a native Delawarean (and very proud of it!), this is how my family feels about the North/South issue. We live in the Dover area and we feel more alliance with a Southern mentality. As life long residents will tell you, there is a DEFINITE difference of lifestyle below the canal, we are residents of the Delmarva peninsula and above the canal seems to identify more with Philly. Although Dover has become a bit more "urban" over the past several decades (and that is largely in part to the residents who are transplants to this area), if you go a few miles in either direction of town, you will find plenty of the southern Delaware minded, lower slower locals. There has been a little grumbling about the changes and that is to be expected as most people have difficulty with change but overall, its been nice to have a new facelift to the area. When I was younger, we received both Philly and Balitmore stations, then with an adjustment in cable company regions, the Dover area lost all of the Baltimore stations. (Point of interest...I remember when Oprah worked in Baltimore news back in the day). I am personally rooting for the Ravens!

Mmmm...interesting. But sounds more like you don't identify with PHILLY in Dover, but that still doesn't make you SOUTHERN by nature. Maybe more country than living in the big city. Could you and alot of folks be confusing LAYED BACK SMALL TOWNS to being actually SOUTHERN? I can tell you that in the outskirts of the MOHAWK VALLEY in upstate New York, in towns like Verona, Little Falls, Herkimer, there is kind of a country hick mentality in comparison to NYC and points east where there are larger populations. This doesn't make them southern. They even love country music there IMAGINE THAT!!!

[aav amphibs]

To wrap it up here, I say Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Delaware and New York city are all MIDDLE ATLANTIC STATES. Geographically speaking. Cutlure wise, Virginia is definately southern and with its Civil War history, unreputable. Maryland and Delaware, both border states during the Civil War went with the union. Neither of those two states have a star in the confederate flag to their honor. Because, THEY WERE SIDED WITH THE NORTH however you look at it or why.
DELAWARE and MARYLAND, poster child for Middle Atlantic states.

[tech12]

I grew up about 1 mile from the Delaware line in Cecil County, MD. New Castle County and the Wilmington News Journal used to be a little more split on whether it was Philly's or O's territory. Since the O's took a big swoon over the last 15 years, New Castle, along with Cecil County, have become more tied to Philly. My college girlfriend was from Laurel, DE. She grew up an O's fan and her father watched the Red Skins.

I think Delaware's allegiance changes due to the climate.

Ok. Delaware really isn't north or South of the Mason Dixon Line. It gets somewhat convoluted. Maryland, PA, NJ and VA all claimed rights to the colony. Eventually, the "three lower counties of Delaware" were sold to William Penn and it became part of PA. During this time PA and MD had a major border dispute that almost led to a war between the two colonies. Great Britain didn't want a war between the two colonies and 2 British surveyors (Mason and Dixon) had to settle the dispute with a proper acknowledged border. The Mason-Dixon line travels the north/south border between MD and DE, but doesn't travel the east/west border. Why? I don't know. I guess they felt there no need. So Delaware is east of the Mason-Dixon and not north. The Mason-Dixon line ends at the where the MD and PA border stops in Garret County, MD. The Mason-Dixon Line was never created to be a separation between free and slave or north and south. It was created to stop Maryland and Pennsylvania from going to war on each other.

During the Civil War Delaware was treated the same as Maryland, Kentucky and Missouri. Even though Delaware was majority pro Union, it was still a slave state and Confederate sympathizers. More than a few Delaware men fought for the Virginia Army.

According to the US census Delaware and Maryland are both considered Southern states. Honestly, I really think that's the only tie left to the south for both states. They are both Mid-Atlantic states and those states have more to do with the north. Both states also fall within the north eastern "megalopolis" that stretches from DC to Boston.

[pgm123]

In Delaware, we tend to break the state in two at the C&D Canal. Things are blending together, though, so that distinction probably isn't accurate anymore. As far as sports go, Philly country extends way beyond the C&D canal (at least to Dover, from my experience). South of that, it's a mix, but the Redskins are pretty big. I'm not sure if that's because anyone thinks of themselves as near Washington or simply because the Philly zone ran out and the Skins are one of the most popular teams in the country. There are some Ravens fans all over, but not as big as the other two. I'm focusing on football, because although I've met many Redskins fans from Sussex County, I have never met any Wizards, Capitals, Nationals or Orioles fans.