Maryland a southern state (Baltimore, Frederick: 2013, house, income)

[hitek]

Originally Posted by Hamish Forbes

Well . . . I don't know a way to say this any more delicately than the following: interest in donks, high-risers, and big chrome wheels may have more to do with social class and educational level than with North v South. I have seen some really strange machines in New York and as far north as Maine, machines that would be right at home in the most backward parts of North Carolina (my state) or Alabama.

In the north, people drive and customize Audi/Volkswagons, BMWs, Hondas, Volvos, and Saabs. Those are the popular vehicles in the north not Boxed Caprices, Crown Victorias, Towncars, etc lol. Those vehicles have a big following in the south from Maryland on down. Even a lot of people in Maryland wear Dreadlocks with gold teeth. Thats definetly a southern thing. Another thing is that alot of people drive pick ups down there and love college football lol

[westsideboy]

College Football is not big at all in Maryland. Ask poor Ralph Friedgan why he lost his job despite putting competitive teams on the field, ticket sales, ticket sales, ticket sales.

In fact, the only part of the state that is into college football is Western Maryland, where the Mountaineers are clearly the most popular team. Many people don't realize Cumberland is equadistant from Hagerstown and Morgantown, WV.

As for the pickup trucks, I think you would see them in any rural area, North, South, East, West.

I find the rest of what you say very interesting though, and good evidence that Maryland doesn't fit as well with the Northeast as many of our posters try to claim. You don't see many souped up cars in Western Maryland at all, plenty of jacked up trucks though.

[pcity]

Originally Posted by hitek

In the north, people drive and customize Audi/Volkswagons, BMWs, Hondas, Volvos, and Saabs. Those are the popular vehicles in the north not Boxed Caprices, Crown Victorias, Towncars, etc lol.

I think that's more of an urban vs suburban thing. There are plenty of American luxury cars in northern urban areas (NYC and Philly at least), while the suburbs go for the imports.

[pcity]

Originally Posted by westsideboy

College Football is not big at all in Maryland. Ask poor Ralph Friedgan why he lost his job despite putting competitive teams on the field, ticket sales, ticket sales, ticket sales.

In fact, the only part of the state that is into college football is Western Maryland, where the Mountaineers are clearly the most popular team. Many people don't realize Cumberland is equadistant from Hagerstown and Morgantown, WV.

As for the pickup trucks, I think you would see them in any rural area, North, South, East, West.

I find the rest of what you say very interesting though, and good evidence that Maryland doesn't fit as well with the Northeast as many of our posters try to claim. You don't see many souped up cars in Western Maryland at all, plenty of jacked up trucks though.

Western MD is Appalachia- fits in better with western Virginia, West Virginia, western Pennsylvania and parts of western New York than either the Northeast or South.

[westsideboy]

Originally Posted by pcity

Western MD is Appalachia- fits in better with western Virginia, West Virginia, western Pennsylvania and parts of western New York than either the Northeast or South.

Yup.

[Steelers10]

Originally Posted by westsideboy

College Football is not big at all in Maryland. Ask poor Ralph Friedgan why he lost his job despite putting competitive teams on the field, ticket sales, ticket sales, ticket sales.

In fact, the only part of the state that is into college football is Western Maryland, where the Mountaineers are clearly the most popular team. Many people don't realize Cumberland is equadistant from Hagerstown and Morgantown, WV.

I think Marylanders are into College Football, just not mediocre college football which the Terrapins have a penchant of providing. The state of Maryland puts out pretty good prep football players; Penn State historically raided Maryland and Virginia for "speed" players like many Northern schools do in the South (particularly Florida). And a couple of weeks ago the University of Virginia football program signed three times as many Marylanders as the Terrapins did. This just says more of the ineptitude of the Terrapins football program than anything else. And when you think about, the ACC is a comparatively weak football conference, especially in comparison to the SEC. Having gone to school in NY state, there never seemed to be much question that the DMV football players were southerners ("Ay yo, why doo deez guys talk so friggin' slow?")

Originally Posted by westsideboy

I find the rest of what you say very interesting though, and good evidence that Maryland doesn't fit as well with the Northeast as many of our posters try to claim. You don't see many souped up cars in Western Maryland at all, plenty of jacked up trucks though.

You ain't lyin'! Twenty-two inch rims and rear wheel drive "heavies" don't do well on slick, hilly, mountainous, rugged surfaces. The salt thrown on the roads every year don't help much either. Having eight cylinders helps though.

Folks, keep in mind that time is also a major factor here. Before the federal government went into deficit spending and developed a massive bureaucracy that attracted a lot of transplants from the north (thus causing suburban sprawl in Central Maryland and Northern Virginia) Maryland was quite southern. I am amazed that when you sift through the suburban ooze into Charles County, how typical of a Tidewater Southern town "downtown" Waldorf is.

Even though they are both within Appalachia, if you go to the Pittsburgh forum and suggest any similarities with Hagerstown, people there go into cardiac arrest about how "southern" even this part of Maryland is. Just because Maryland is not identical to Georgia doesn't mean it is not Southern. Maryland, Virginia, Florida, and Texas could all be considered Southern. But because they are on the periphery of the South they are naturally going to possess characteristics of adjacent regions.

[Tiger Beer]

Going on the 'Maryland is a southern state' theme.

Would you say that Maryland is more like PENNSYLVANIA or more like VIRGINIA?

I kind of feel it has more in common with Pennsylvania and their cities, than Virginia and their cities. But, I don't live in Maryland, so curious how all of you who do live there, would think of it in those terms.

[westsideboy]

Originally Posted by Steelers10

I think Marylanders are into College Football, just not mediocre college football which the Terrapins have a penchant of providing. The state of Maryland puts out pretty good prep football players; Penn State historically raided Maryland and Virginia for "speed" players like many Northern schools do in the South (particularly Florida). And a couple of weeks ago the University of Virginia football program signed three times as many Marylanders as the Terrapins did. This just says more of the ineptitude of the Terrapins football program than anything else. And when you think about, the ACC is a comparatively weak football conference, especially in comparison to the SEC. Having gone to school in NY state, there never seemed to be much question that the DMV football players were southerners ("Ay yo, why doo deez guys talk so friggin' slow?")




You ain't lyin'! Twenty-two inch rims and rear wheel drive "heavies" don't do well on slick, hilly, mountainous, rugged surfaces. The salt thrown on the roads every year don't help much either. Having eight cylinders helps though.

Folks, keep in mind that time is also a major factor here. Before the federal government went into deficit spending and developed a massive bureaucracy that attracted a lot of transplants from the north (thus causing suburban sprawl in Central Maryland and Northern Virginia) Maryland was quite southern. I am amazed that when you sift through the suburban ooze into Charles County, how typical of a Tidewater Southern town "downtown" Waldorf is.

Even though they are both within Appalachia, if you go to the Pittsburgh forum and suggest any similarities with Hagerstown, people there go into cardiac arrest about how "southern" even this part of Maryland is. Just because Maryland is not identical to Georgia doesn't mean it is not Southern. Maryland, Virginia, Florida, and Texas could all be considered Southern. But because they are on the periphery of the South they are naturally going to possess characteristics of adjacent regions.

Gotta disagree about point #1. Maryland is pro football state. We have the Skins in DC, the Colts then the Ravens in Baltimore and of course the legions of Steeler fans as you head into the mountains. College football has always been peripheral, much like it is in most of the upper south. UVA, UNC, NC State, Wake Forest, and Duke are all about at MD's level on the field and in fan support year in and year out. Only VA Tech and WVU out in the Appalachians have big college football followings.

Now college basketball, that is something different entirely. We are ACC country and people, like myself, live and die with our Terps (mostly dying this year) This again, puts us well in line with the other upper south states. Don't forget before Glendening's big tobacco farm buyout Maryland could have been called the top of tobacco road. College football doesn't really take over until you get to South Carolina. Both Clemson and USC have big followings and south of there it gets even crazier.


Steeler10, what do people in Pittsburgh think of Cumberland as?

[NYMTman]

Pittsburghers sound southern to me.

[Steelers10]

Originally Posted by westsideboy

Steeler10, what do people in Pittsburgh think of Cumberland as?

That's a good question! I live in Maryland too and I don't recall Cumberland ever coming up in conversation before. But that's okay, we've got a few yinzers at work and definitely a lot of South Central and some SW Pennsylvanians. I'll have to ask them after the long weekend. From my perspective, the look of Cumberland as a railroad town (especially the elevated portion of I-68 over downtown) doesn't look "southern" under any circumstances. Cumberland actually reminds me of a really small Syracuse or Watertown in New York. That is even more northern than what I've seen in small cities in Pennsylvania. But Cumberland kind of has a look of its own.

Originally Posted by NYMTman

Pittsburghers sound southern to me.

A lot of Upland Southerners migrated to the city to help form "Pittsburghese". But the "Upland South" is synonymous with "Appalachia" and many would argue that it is not "Southern". However, I consider central, eastern, and southern West Virginia to be decidedly southern.