Maryland, My Maryland - State Heritage? (Baltimore, Frederick: gated, vs, safe)

[JDCATONSVILLE]

Peoples interpretation of what represents "true southerness" varies as much as people themselves do. I worked for years with a gentlemen that moved to Maryland form east Texas and he constantly refered to the people of Maryland as "yankees" and he would always insist that I move south becuase I would fit in, and when I would tell him that we are south he would laugh and say "you may be southern but this state sure ain't". Well after 37 years I moved further north to north central Wisconsin and I'm always being kidded about my southern accent and the foods I like to eat, etc., all things that make me a southern boy in their eyes. With all that being said I still do feel southern and I feel as if I always will, regardless of what anyone's interpretation might be for what is "true southern" or not. The part that still makes me laugh is that history itself has shown that Maryland was a southern state and the culture that stems from that backs this up, so if someone says that Maryland "ain't southern" or it's just like New York must need to go back to school and bone up on their history a little. And as far as sweet tea goes that's all we drank and I still do. But you can't get a good glass of tea from a resteraunt, especially from none of those chain resteraunts...you have to brew it yourself.

[peaceperson]

I live in Baltimore MD and consider myself Mid Alantic. If you want to say north or south people in Baltimore county and myself some what say we are northern because we are so different then other Southern people. Also I only know one person that knew the state's song name but didn't know the rest. Where I live we are not very patriotic.

[mica]

There is NO debate. It is a southern state!, period. Not that it really matters one way or the other.

JDCATONSVILLE has it right.

Baltimoreans attacked northern troops, Lincoln imprisoned political leaders in BMore and stationed Federal troops on 'Federal Hill' with cannons aimed at the harbor to prevent any southern sympathy uprising.

The State song is about southern sympathy.

However, the area is so watered down by transplants it has lost a lot of its flavor.

Nobody would argue Virginia is not a southern state. Go to Fairfax county and see how 'southern' it is.

[KeyserSoze]

Originally Posted by mica

the area is so watered down by transplants it has lost a lot of its flavor.

Therein lies the problem. Maryland has attracted people from all over the world, and diversity is something that is not often associated with "southerness", even though it exists in big cities of the South, most notably the booming Sunbelt cities.

[Merlander]

Originally Posted by mica

Nobody would argue Virginia is not a southern state. Go to Fairfax county and see how 'southern' it is.

Huh??

[slowlane]

Not sure what you mean. Fairfax County is highly untypical of the rest of the state of Virginia nowadays. Although Fairfax's highways, high-schools, recreational parks, and streets bear the names of Confederate generals and leaders, their meaning is totally lost on most of its current-day multi-ethnic residents who come from all over the globe. The rest of Virginia outside the DC suburbs still identifies as southern in heritage - even to the very northernmost town of Winchester.

And places like Cambridge, MD may seem culturally southern - but surely not Montgomery County MD by any stretch of the imagination - LOL.

[mica]

My comment was regarding MD not being considered 'culturally' southern. Neither is FFX county or several of the more northern counties of VA.

[cpterp]

Niiiccceee. It's the monthly Maryland North/South debate . From my experience most people are solidly fixed in their opinions on this issue, but the majority of Marylanders believe it is North[east]ern. Maryland has many traces of a Southern past, and at one point could rightfully be called a Southern state, but Maryland, as well as Delaware and DC (and NoVa), have quickly transformed into almost solidly Northeastern states.

In the quanitifable catgories of: density, politics, economy, location (right along the NE Corridor), wealth, transportation, and religion Maryland solidly aligns itself with the Northeast. Historically (as in the past) it was a slave state and produced tobacco, and there's a few Lee statues around which would make Maryland more Southern. Although the provisos to these would be that Maryland (and Delaware) was the only Southern state with a reducing number of slaves at the time of Civil War (50% of blacks were free), tobacco production has long since been halted in the state (CT produces more), and Maryland stayed with the Union despite some internal opposition.

...and I'll leave it at that...until next month...

[KeyserSoze]

Well if you tell yourself something long enough, it tends to be true in your line of thought.

[VioletMemory]

Originally Posted by ReluctantGardenStater

If any Marylanders out there follow some of the topics discussed in the General U.S. forum, particularly those pertaining to which state belongs to which region, you know that one of the topics discussed ad nauseum is whether Maryland is a Northern or Southern state. Maryland and Delaware are grouped into the South by the U.S. Census Bureau, but I have always considered it Northern, most people in the North consider it Northern, most people in the South consider it Northern, and I have always believed most Marylanders considered themselves Northern. So what is the point of this post?

I don't know how many of you are familiar with the state anthem, but the original "Maryland, My Maryland" is a beautiful and prideful song. I'm not sure how well known it is amongst modern Marylanders. But I was wondering if the song is generally known or played in the Maryland of today? I'm interested in learning a bit about the level of Southern influence, if any, exists in Maryland, and whether the anthem and the state's history in general during the war era are still controversial to this day?


YouTube - Maryland, My Maryland

LOL no, we are not southerners here.
1.We don't have southern accents, though I am biased since my parents are southerners and the accent and culture has picked up on me.
2.If you ask for sweet tea, you would get funny looks
3.We are NOT part of the "Bible Belt" -which is mainly composed of the southern states
4.We are mostly liberal
5.We have more in common with other northeastern states like - PA, NJ, and NY. Then we do with Deep South states like Mississippi or Alabama.

The bolded part in your message raises volumes...
Slavery in the United States is nothing to be proud of.