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I have always heard people use this term, but I cannot really say that I know what it means. I do not really think of a region as the midwest. The places I think it would be I would categorize as Plains states, Great Lakes states, or Rust Belt.
I have always heard people use this term, but I cannot really say that I know what it means. I do not really think of a region as the midwest. The places I think it would be I would categorize as Plains states, Great Lakes states, or Rust Belt.
?? Are you new to or moving to the USA from another country? The Midwest is the group of states that runs from around Ohio over to North/South Dakota, Nebraska and Kansas, and then from the Canada border to the border of the Southern states.
The plains states are the western area of the Midwest, with the Great Lakes the area around the lakes themselves. Rust Belt isn't really a region as much as a group of industrial cities. Detroit, Toledo, Cleveland, etc. The states they're in aren't really "rust belt" though. Michigan outside of the Detroit area isn't really as "rust belt". Ohio and Indiana have millions of people living in places that have nothing to do with manufacturing and didn't decline.
?? Are you new to or moving to the USA from another country? The Midwest is the group of states that runs from around Ohio over to North/South Dakota, Nebraska and Kansas, and then from the Canada border to the border of the Southern states.
Yeah that's what I'm talking about. What makes it Midwest? Those states don't seem to have much in common to me. East of the Mississippi is Rust Belt and Great Lakes States. West of it are Plains States. Those two regions make sense to me, but I don't really see much commonality between the two sides of the Mississippi. Truthfully I think the northern parts of the east are fairly different from the southern ones.
You're right that the Midwest is divided, but most of us would call Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Illinois the Upper Midwest, not part of the Great Plains (which would be the Dakotas, Nebraska, Kansas, and probably Missouri). Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio would also be in their own group.
But truly, you probably wouldn't be able to tell Ohio countryside from North Dakota or Missouri countryside.
Historically, the term "Midwest" first came into usage to describe the Northwest Territories, when the true northwest opened up, and the old Northwest Territories became a misnomer. The Northwest Territories was the region north of the Ohio River and east of the Mississippi, which included the present states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and a small part of northeastern Minnesota.
Even in Mark Twain's time (mid 1800s), he regarded his northeast corner of Missouri as "The Southwest". He could see Illinois from his house, literally.
It depends on your perspective. The Midwest is the most broadly categorized and most ambiguous region in the United States, and so everyone and his dog has a different idea of what constitutes that area. There are people here in New York who honestly believe that everything west of Philadelphia and east of Las Vegas is the "Midwest."
Growing up in that area, in Michigan, I always felt like the Midwest ended at the Mississippi River...BUT, I know that's not the case for some people.
Go to Google Maps and type in "midwest" for business listings and draw a polygon around the area with the most results...there...that's the Midwest.
Location: Jefferson City 4 days a week, St. Louis 3 days a week
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The Midwest to me is pretty much as it's described by the census bureau. Yes, it's a diverse region, but if you look at the south, that's not exactly a uniform group either. I think the twelve states included by the U.S. Census Bureau is as close to an accurate approximation as you'll get. In Missouri there are many ways to classify it. I usually include all of those states, except that I exclude the extreme western portions of KS, NE, SD, and ND, and also generally exclude the far southern portions of MO. Anything east or north of these areas is either definitively classifiable, or very debatable, which i take as minimum for justifiable inclusions to those who believe they should be included.
I actually will often include the far western portions of Pennsylvania and New York, especially along the Great Lakes. Erie, Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Syracuse, and Rochester, as those are clearly more part of the Rust Belt, and all have virtually nothing in common with the cities of the BOS/WASH corridor. Click on the thumbnail below for a more accurate description. For me it would be this map, except I would exclude all of Oklahoma and move the pink a bit further north into south Kansas to about Wichita's latitude, and the gray a bit farther north into the southernmost portions of Missouri, and the far southern tips of Illinois, Indiana, and SE Ohio. I'd also shift the pink farther south in SE southeast Indiana and into the northern tip of Kentucky to allow Cincy to be included in the yellow area. Other than that, I like this map as a representation. The yellow is a good indication of what is beyond debate Midwestern IMO, although I'd shift the yellow to much further east in KS, NE, SD, and ND.
Last edited by stlouisan; 03-04-2012 at 01:20 PM..
Location: Jefferson City 4 days a week, St. Louis 3 days a week
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Originally Posted by Colts
It depends on your perspective. The Midwest is the most broadly categorized and most ambiguous region in the United States, and so everyone and his dog has a different idea of what constitutes that area. There are people here in New York who honestly believe that everything west of Philadelphia and east of Las Vegas is the "Midwest."
Growing up in that area, in Michigan, I always felt like the Midwest ended at the Mississippi River...BUT, I know that's not the case for some people.
Go to Google Maps and type in "midwest" for business listings and draw a polygon around the area with the most results...there...that's the Midwest.
The South is pretty ambiguous as well. You have a region which stretches from the border of New Mexico to the Atlantic Ocean, from the Gulf of Mexico to the Ohio River, and from Florida all the way up to (IMO) just below DC. You're incorporating the southern Plains, Southern Appalachia, and the Deep South together....all with enough cultural similarities, some which are transitional between the southwest and south, and the south and north, but many, many differences as well.
Location: Jefferson City 4 days a week, St. Louis 3 days a week
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Originally Posted by steel03
You're right that the Midwest is divided, but most of us would call Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Illinois the Upper Midwest, not part of the Great Plains (which would be the Dakotas, Nebraska, Kansas, and probably Missouri). Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio would also be in their own group.
But truly, you probably wouldn't be able to tell Ohio countryside from North Dakota or Missouri countryside.
I don't agree that Illinois is the Upper Midwest. Maybe the parts at Iowa's latitude, but even then, I'm not comfortable with calling Iowa the Upper Midwest. Iowa, Northern Illinois, Northern Indiana, and Northern Ohio are more central Midwest than anything else. The Upper Midwest I consider to be Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. I also wouldn't agree with Missouri being the Great Plains...Iowa is more Great Plains than Missouri. Missouri has more in common with Illinois than it does with Kansas IMO. As far as telling ND apart from Ohio, I strongly disagree. You can tell the Plains states apart from the Midwest easily..much less trees, much bigger sky, and much more sparsely populated. I've never felt the kind of isolation in any state east of the Great Plains that I have west of them.
Last edited by stlouisan; 03-04-2012 at 02:17 PM..
You're right that the Midwest is divided, but most of us would call Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Illinois the Upper Midwest, not part of the Great Plains (which would be the Dakotas, Nebraska, Kansas, and probably Missouri). Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio would also be in their own group.
But truly, you probably wouldn't be able to tell Ohio countryside from North Dakota or Missouri countryside.
The countryside of Ohio and North Dakota are very different. In the great plains it's much drier and thus not a lot of trees etc - very different than Ohio.
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