Joe Miner Posted July 19, 2017 Share Posted July 19, 2017 Stemming off of the conversation about the South within the Gettleman thread this let's move on to the Midwest. According to 538 there is even more debate as to which states comprise the region. I'm going with Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska and Missouri. What do you say? Easy. West of Mississippi East of Rockies North of Texas South of south Dakota Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miyagi-Do Karate Posted July 19, 2017 Share Posted July 19, 2017 I would include Western PA in the "Midwest" As a native of Erie I can tell you it's much more of "midwestern" culture than an "eastern" Agreed. I would include WNY too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Miner Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 Agreed. I would include WNY too. No one in the Midwest would. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExiledInIllinois Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 Between Rockies & Appalachians. North of Ohio and Missouri River. South of Canada. Capital being The Quad Cities. No one in the Midwest would. Really the classic "Midwest" is the Old Northwest as defined by the Northwest Ordinance in the Articles of Confederation and reaffirmed in the USC in 1789. "Midwest" has now been expanded to include: "Upper Midwest." BFLo is a "Midwest town" but I wouldn't say it's in the Midwest. It's on cusp. It is west of Appalachians though. Too much coastal influence. Cleveland definitely Midwest. They utilize gridded townships. Northwest Ordinance area (OH, IN, IL, WI, MI) totally heart of Midwestern area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PromoTheRobot Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 West Virginia is neither South, East or Midwest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miyagi-Do Karate Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 No one in the Midwest would. But based on the attitude of the people, industries, and the topography, they are much more Midwest than mid-Atlantic or east coast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Augie Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 It's not like state lines, it's shades of gray. With pockets of different colors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExiledInIllinois Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 Definitely, WI, MI, OH, IN, & IL are the geographical heart of the Midwest. Then count, MN, IA, & MO. Des Moines, St.Louis, Kansas City, all Midwest but in the "K" calling letters of the MS River. BFLo, Pittsburgh both have Midwest traits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DriveFor1Outta5 Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 I think that Buffalonians themselves are the only ones who ever consider Buffalo part of the Midwest. It seems to be a way to identify with a group that we prefer to be part of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Miner Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 Definitely, WI, MI, OH, IN, & IL are the geographical heart of the Midwest. Then count, MN, IA, & MO. Des Moines, St.Louis, Kansas City, all Midwest but in the "K" calling letters of the MS River. BFLo, Pittsburgh both have Midwest traits. Almost none of what you mentioned is the Midwest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoSaint Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 It's interesting seeing how a bunch of WNY, Ohio, and similar fringe residents are reacting to this compared to defining the south Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExiledInIllinois Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 (edited) Almost none of what you mentioned is the Midwest.Huh? Yeah I can see KC being on fringe. But... "none" WI, MI, IL, IN, OH, MN, IA... All Midwest. Des Moines, St.Louis... Classic. You know, there is an "Upper Midwest." To west, the Central Plains, then Inter-Mountain West, Pacific Northwest, West. East is Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Southeast. Then South, Southwest. It's interesting seeing how a bunch of WNY, Ohio, and similar fringe residents are reacting to this compared to defining the south What do you mean? Edited July 20, 2017 by ExiledInIllinois Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Miner Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 Huh? Yeah I can see KC being on fringe. But... "none" WI, MI, IL, IN, OH, MN, IA... All Midwest. Des Moines, St.Louis... Classic. You know, there is an "Upper Midwest." To west, the Central Plains, then Inter-Mountain West, Pacific Northwest, West. East is Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Southeast. Then South, Southwest. What do you mean? Midwest starts at the Mississippi river. Weird that people not in the Midwest are sure they know how to define it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExiledInIllinois Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 Midwest starts at the Mississippi river. Weird that people not in the Midwest are sure they know how to define it. Wow. You gotta be the first I ever heard this from. START @ MS river? LoL. What do you call WI, MI, IL, IN, OH? Even a Midwestern guy like Bob Seeger, from Michigan got it. You are totally clueless. I am taking that Seeger is singing about his Midwestern take on it: "She stood there bright as the sun On that California coast He was a Midwestern boy on his own She looked at him with those soft eyes So innocent and blue..." Yeah... He's singing from a "west of the MS" perspective. Seeger is quintessentially Midwestern and he's from Detroit! You gotta be kidding! Another Midwest reference in his songs: "Yeah, it happens out in Vegas, it happens in Moline..." Moline is EAST of MS River. This is a straight up Google search, do you (Joe Miner) know where MS River is? Try to find it on this map, if you can: Now... I would actually trim this classic map definition of Midwest down to only include area ABOVE or NORTH Missouri River. Rest is more Central Plains. Some of you here are really geographically challenged... I would love to give a test and see where people pencil in the MO River. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miyagi-Do Karate Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 I agree with Exiled. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pine Barrens Mafia Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 Wow. You gotta be the first I ever heard this from. START @ MS river? LoL. What do you call WI, MI, IL, IN, OH? Even a Midwestern guy like Bob Seeger, from Michigan got it. You are totally clueless. I am taking that Seeger is singing about his Midwestern take on it: "She stood there bright as the sun On that California coast He was a Midwestern boy on his own She looked at him with those soft eyes So innocent and blue..." Yeah... He's singing from a "west of the MS" perspective. Seeger is quintessentially Midwestern and he's from Detroit! You gotta be kidding! Another Midwest reference in his songs: "Yeah, it happens out in Vegas, it happens in Moline..." Moline is EAST of MS River. This is a straight up Google search, do you (Joe Miner) know where MS River is? Try to find it on this map, if you can: Now... I would actually trim this classic map definition of Midwest down to only include area ABOVE or NORTH Missouri River. Rest is more Central Plains. Some of you here are really geographically challenged... I would love to give a test and see where people pencil in the MO River. For some reason i don't think of north and south dakota as midwestern. Honestly, it's easy to forget they are there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirby Jackson Posted July 20, 2017 Author Share Posted July 20, 2017 For some reason i don't think of north and south dakota as midwestern. Honestly, it's easy to forget they are there. I'm with you here. They have never crossed my mind as "Midwestern." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExiledInIllinois Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 I agree with Exiled. Yeah, and 100% of people who make a living defining this stuff also agree with us. People simply have no history or concept of it. They forget that the Midwest was once the Northwest. Nothwest Ordinance of 1789 was THEE very first act of Congress (reaffirmed from Articles of Confederation) AND is still law of the land for the area that now are the states of OH (1803), IN (1816), IL (1818), MI (1837), WI (1848), MN (1858). Minnesota is west & east of MS River With Westward Expansion, it became the Midwest. Bizzare that someone would define Midwest as starting @ MS River. MS River is the Y coordinate of the Midwest. Quadrant II of Midwest is west of MS River. I-80 (I-90 east of Lake Michigan) or I-70, debate where you want to put it, is the X coordinate. I say I-80/90 because OH River runs NE to SW giving very little of quadrant IV if you call I-70 the X coord. For some reason i don't think of north and south dakota as midwestern. Honestly, it's easy to forget they are there. Upper Midwest. But I agree. More Plains than anything. But... Midwest is more than geography. It is a culture. Why BFLo, Pitt get tossed in too. My son is @ Univesity of Iowa. Their regional travel for lacrosse is throughout "Midwest"... And a lot into places like S. & N.Dakota. I'm with you here. They have never crossed my mind as "Midwestern." I sort of agree. But since being here and going to Iowa City, it is with in reach. Look @ the JPEG map I posted above. That area on map is "mid-west." Further west, you have Inter-Mountain West. Blame the NCAA Brackets on how it screwed up people like Joe Miner's thinking. Weather maps too. But they are a lot closer on when regionalizing. It's not black and white... Shades of gray exist and you have to not just get fixated on geography. There are cultural elements too to consider. Like the way the towns and communities, roads, etc... Are laid out. Places in that map above all share similar elements on how towns are laid out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUFFALOKIE Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 Wow. You gotta be the first I ever heard this from. START @ MS river? LoL. What do you call WI, MI, IL, IN, OH? Even a Midwestern guy like Bob Seeger, from Michigan got it. You are totally clueless. I am taking that Seeger is singing about his Midwestern take on it: "She stood there bright as the sun On that California coast He was a Midwestern boy on his own She looked at him with those soft eyes So innocent and blue..." Yeah... He's singing from a "west of the MS" perspective. Seeger is quintessentially Midwestern and he's from Detroit! You gotta be kidding! Another Midwest reference in his songs: "Yeah, it happens out in Vegas, it happens in Moline..." Moline is EAST of MS River. This is a straight up Google search, do you (Joe Miner) know where MS River is? Try to find it on this map, if you can: Now... I would actually trim this classic map definition of Midwest down to only include area ABOVE or NORTH Missouri River. Rest is more Central Plains. Some of you here are really geographically challenged... I would love to give a test and see where people pencil in the MO River. I challenge you to any geography/map quiz you want. I am a big map nerd. Can name at least 90% of the countries in the world. I do agree with the map you posted, and I believe you know more than most here on this subject, which is why I wish to challenge. ;-) I love maps! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExiledInIllinois Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 I challenge you to any geography/map quiz you want. I am a big map nerd. Can name at least 90% of the countries in the world. I do agree with the map you posted, and I believe you know more than most here on this subject, which is why I wish to challenge. ;-) I love maps! Yes. And capitals. Rivers, mountains... One of my minors was Geography. Not you BUFFALOKIE... You get it. And no offense, many knowledgeable people out there. But to say Peoria, Illinois or Indianapolis, Indiana is NOT Midwest, that's insane! No cheating. Name the only state in US that is bounded by a river on both East and West sides. Total boundary on each side a river. So that means to enter it from west or east, you have to cross a river. Extra Credit (Easy): Only capital you can't drive to. Well, take a road into it or out of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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