I noticed in the Strangest State Borders thread that everyone divides the 48 contiguous states into regions a bit differently. For example, some people think Texas as a southwestern state, but I think of it as more associated with Louisiana and Arkansas. Reply with how you divide the states into regions below. Kinda interested to see how people divide the states differently.
Here's where I divide the states:
Northeast: Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, West Virginia, Washington DC
Southeast: Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee
Mid-South: Louisiana, Arkansas, Texas, Oklahoma
Midwest: Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri
High Plains: North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana
West: Arizona, California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Utah, Nevada
Quote from: CoreySamson on December 29, 2020, 04:07:49 PM
I'll give this a shot:
QuoteNortheast: Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, West Virginia, Washington DC
Southeast: Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, West Virginia, Kentucky, Arkansas, Louisiana
Mid-SouthSouthwest: Louisiana, Arkansas, Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona.
Midwest: Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, Kansas
High PlainsWest: North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Utah, Alaska
WestPacific Coast: Arizona, California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Hawaii
And here's another take:
New England: ME, NH, VT, MA, CT, RI
Mid-Atlantic: NY, NJ, PA, MD, DE, DC, VA, WV
South: KY, TN, NC, SC, GA, FL, AL, MS, LA
Midwest: OH, IN, MI, IL, WI, MN, ND, SD, NE, IA, KS, MO
Mid-South: TX, OK, AR
Mountain States: AZ, NM, UT, CO, WY, MT, ID, NV
Pacific States: CA, OR, WA, AK, HI
I remember getting into an argument one time with someone that tried telling me that Michigan is in the Northeast, I told him he's wrong it's in the Midwest. That's just how you'd divide them I guess.
We've so done this before.
Quote from: Rothman on December 29, 2020, 08:16:00 PM
We've so done this before.
Yeah, it always devolves into Midwesterners being ignored trying to set east coasters straight who insist ND/SD/NE/KS aren't part of the Midwest.
Quote from: TheHighwayMan394 on December 29, 2020, 08:20:08 PM
Quote from: Rothman on December 29, 2020, 08:16:00 PM
We've so done this before.
Yeah, it devolves into Midwesterners being ignored by east coasters insisting ND/SD/NE/KS aren't Midwest.
...and no one agrees on MO.
Traitors: Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, Texas
Non-traitors: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, Minnesota, California, Oregon
New: Oklahoma, Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, Washington, Alaska, Hawaii
Quote from: cabiness42 on December 29, 2020, 08:52:26 PM
Traitors: Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, Texas
Non-traitors: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, Minnesota, California, Oregon
New: Oklahoma, Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, Washington, Alaska, Hawaii
I bet this is the beginning of the end of this thread. X-( :no: :angry:
The proper way to do this is to start with the Big Four™: the Northeast, the Midwest, the South, and the West. And then, if you so desire, break it down into sub-regions from there.
Northeast
New England: Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Vermont
Mid Atlantic: New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania
Midwest
Great Plains: North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas
Upper Midwest: Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin
Rust Belt: Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio
South
South Atlantic: Virginia, West Virginia*, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida
Deep South: Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi
Mid-South: Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas
West
Mountain West: Montana, Wyoming, Colorado
Pacific Northwest: Washington, Oregon, Idaho**
Southwest: California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah***
Other
Alaska, Hawaii
*I don't like West Virginia being included here, but don't know of a good alternative. An option might be to include both West Virginia and Kentucky under "Rust Belt".
**I stand to be corrected here, but I believe Idaho is considered PNW in most cases. It could also be considered part of the Mountain West.
***Utah is surprisingly hard to classify. Mountain West? Southwest? It doesn't fit neatly anywhere, but makes the most sense as part of the Southwest IMO.
Quote from: webny99 on January 08, 2021, 11:18:49 AM
**I stand to be corrected here, but I believe Idaho is considered PNW in most cases. It could also be considered part of the Mountain West.
Generally people in Idaho and neutral third party observers consider Idaho to be part of the "Northwest" - the added modifier "Pacific" is sometimes used but that typically pisses people off that live west of the Cascades in Washington/Oregon and do not want to be associated with us rednecks east of the mountains, and certainly not those as far east as Idaho.
Quote from: webny99 on January 08, 2021, 11:18:49 AM
**I stand to be corrected here, but I believe Idaho is considered PNW in most cases. It could also be considered part of the Mountain West.
***Utah is surprisingly hard to classify. Mountain West? Southwest? It doesn't fit neatly anywhere, but makes the most sense as part of the Southwest IMO.
Utah and Idaho both should be Mountain West as far as I'm concerned. At least in Salt Lake, we identify way more with places like Denver or Boise than Las Vegas or anything in AZ, CA, or NM. Things may be different down in St George but that's true of the vast majority of the rest of the state.
Northeast:
ME, NH, VT, MA, RI, CT, NY, NJ, PA, MD, DC, DE, VA, WV
Midwest:
OH, IN, IL, MI, WI, MN, IA, MO, KY
Great Plains:
ND, SD, NE, KS, OK
South:
NC, SC, GA, FL, AL, MS, LA, AR, TN, TX
Southwest:
NM, AZ, NV
Rockies:
CO, UT, MT, WY
Pacific:
HI, CA, OR, WA, AK
Quote from: webny99 on January 08, 2021, 11:18:49 AM
Rust Belt
MN and WI are just as rusty as MI and OH. Also PA.
Quote from: GaryV on January 08, 2021, 12:23:34 PM
Quote from: webny99 on January 08, 2021, 11:18:49 AM
Rust Belt
MN and WI are just as rusty as MI and OH. Also PA.
The Twin Cities metro, which is over half of MN's population, is not rusty.
Quote from: 1 on January 08, 2021, 12:25:53 PM
Quote from: GaryV on January 08, 2021, 12:23:34 PM
Quote from: webny99 on January 08, 2021, 11:18:49 AM
Rust Belt
MN and WI are just as rusty as MI and OH. Also PA.
The Twin Cities metro, which is over half of MN's population, is not rusty.
On the flip side, the definition for some reason usually stops at Milwaukee when it should continue along the Lake Michigan shore up through Green Bay into the western UP, then west from Marquette along Lake Superior to Duluth and St. Louis County, and then northeast past the Lake/Cook County border in Minnesota to the ghost town of Taconite Harbor.
Northeast
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont
Mid-Atlantic
Washington D.C., Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and eastern West Virginia
Southeast
Alabama, Florida, Georgia, southern Mississippi, southeast Louisiana, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Tennessee
Moderator: florida
Midwest - Great Lakes
Michigan, northern Illinois, northern Indiana, northern Ohio, Wisconsin, eastern Minnesota, northwestern Pennsylvania, and western New York
Ohio Valley
Kentucky, southern Ohio, southern Indiana, southern Illinois, southwestern Pennsylvania, and central West Virginia
Mid-South
Texas, Arkansas, northern Mississippi, western Louisiana, and western Tennessee
Central States
Oklahoma, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, the Dakotas, Missouri, and western Minnesota
Mountain West
Arizona, Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming
Pacific Southwest
California, Nevada, and Hawaii
Northwest
Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and Alaska
Quote from: webny99 on January 08, 2021, 11:18:49 AM
The proper way to do this is to start with the Big Four™: the Northeast, the Midwest, the South, and the West. And then, if you so desire, break it down into sub-regions from there.
Northeast
New England: Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Vermont
Mid Atlantic: New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania
Midwest
Great Plains: North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas
Upper Midwest: Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin
Rust Belt: Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio
South
South Atlantic: Virginia, West Virginia*, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida
Deep South: Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi
Mid-South: Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas
West
Mountain West: Montana, Wyoming, Colorado
Pacific Northwest: Washington, Oregon, Idaho**
Southwest: California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah***
Other
Alaska, Hawaii
*I don't like West Virginia being included here, but don't know of a good alternative. An option might be to include both West Virginia and Kentucky under "Rust Belt".
**I stand to be corrected here, but I believe Idaho is considered PNW in most cases. It could also be considered part of the Mountain West.
***Utah is surprisingly hard to classify. Mountain West? Southwest? It doesn't fit neatly anywhere, but makes the most sense as part of the Southwest IMO.
Kentucky is definitely not "Deep South." And no part of Kentucky, except possibly portions of Boyd and Greenup counties, give off any "Rust Belt" vibes. Neither does West Virginia, save the northern panhandle generally and Weirton specifically.
Also, I reject any assertion that Kentucky is part of the Midwest. Even the more midwestern-like parts of the state, the Purchase area and other portions of the western part of the state, have more in common with the South or Southeast than the midwest.
Quote from: Scott5114 on January 08, 2021, 03:03:00 PM
Northeast
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont
Thank you. Anyone saying NY, NJ and PA is Mid-Atlantic is just looking at Wikipedia...or updating Wikipedia themselves.
Quote from: jeffandnicole on January 08, 2021, 03:52:43 PM
Quote from: Scott5114 on January 08, 2021, 03:03:00 PM
Northeast
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont
Thank you. Anyone saying NY, NJ and PA is Mid-Atlantic is just looking at Wikipedia...or updating Wikipedia themselves.
Scott5114 wasn't replying seriously. (Look carefully; something slipped by in the copy and paste.)
Quote from: 1 on January 08, 2021, 03:55:04 PM
Quote from: jeffandnicole on January 08, 2021, 03:52:43 PM
Quote from: Scott5114 on January 08, 2021, 03:03:00 PM
Northeast
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont
Thank you. Anyone saying NY, NJ and PA is Mid-Atlantic is just looking at Wikipedia...or updating Wikipedia themselves.
Scott5114 wasn't replying seriously. (Look carefully; something slipped by in the copy and paste.)
That looks suspiciously like how the states are split up in the AA Roads Forum regional boards. :bigass:
Quote from: 1 on January 08, 2021, 12:25:53 PM
Quote from: GaryV on January 08, 2021, 12:23:34 PM
Quote from: webny99 on January 08, 2021, 11:18:49 AM
Rust Belt
MN and WI are just as rusty as MI and OH. Also PA.
The Twin Cities metro, which is over half of MN's population, is not rusty.
The Iron Range is. Literally.
Quote from: 1 on January 08, 2021, 03:55:04 PM
Scott5114 wasn't replying seriously. (Look carefully; something slipped by in the copy and paste.)
Quote from: Scott5114 on January 08, 2021, 03:03:00 PM
...
Moderator: florida
...
Hmm... I've never heard of that region before :bigass:
Quote from: webny99 on January 08, 2021, 08:44:07 PM
Hmm... I've never heard of that region before :bigass:
It might corresponded to a historical region (even though the region itself wasn't called Moderator), but I can't tell if this conflict was one land vs. another land or not. Even if it is, it's not in Florida.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regulator—Moderator_War (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regulator%E2%80%94Moderator_War)
Quote from: 1 on January 08, 2021, 03:55:04 PM
Quote from: jeffandnicole on January 08, 2021, 03:52:43 PM
Quote from: Scott5114 on January 08, 2021, 03:03:00 PM
Northeast
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont
Thank you. Anyone saying NY, NJ and PA is Mid-Atlantic is just looking at Wikipedia...or updating Wikipedia themselves.
Scott5114 wasn't replying seriously. (Look carefully; something slipped by in the copy and paste.)
Yeah, but no one in NJ considers NJ a Mid-Atlantic state.
Four regions and eight sub-regions:
Northeast
New England: ME, NH, VT, MA, CT, RI
North Atlantic: NY, PA, NJ, MD, DE, DC
Southeast
Near South: VA, NC, SC, WV, KY, TN
Deep South: GA, FL, AL, MS, LA, AR
Midwest
Plains: ND, SD, NE, KS, IA, MO
Great Lakes: MN, WI, IL, IN, MI, OH
West
Southwest: OK, TX, NM, AZ, NV, CA, HI
Northwest: CO, UT, WY, MT, ID, WA, OR, AK
Quote from: thspfc on January 08, 2021, 09:32:05 PM
Four regions and eight sub-regions:
Northeast
New England: ME, NH, VT, MA, CT, RI
North Atlantic: NY, PA, NJ, MD, DE, DC
Southeast
Near South: VA, NC, SC, WV, KY, TN
Deep South: GA, FL, AL, MS, LA, AR
Midwest
Plains: ND, SD, NE, KS, IA, MO
Great Lakes: MN, WI, IL, IN, MI, OH
West
Southwest: OK, TX, NM, AZ, NV, CA, HI
Northwest: CO, UT, WY, MT, ID, WA, OR, AK
I think this is pretty right on for me. Except I don't say Southeast, just South.
Chris
Quote from: hbelkins on January 08, 2021, 03:40:46 PM
Kentucky is definitely not "Deep South." And no part of Kentucky, except possibly portions of Boyd and Greenup counties, give off any "Rust Belt" vibes. Neither does West Virginia, save the northern panhandle generally and Weirton specifically.
Also, I reject any assertion that Kentucky is part of the Midwest. Even the more midwestern-like parts of the state, the Purchase area and other portions of the western part of the state, have more in common with the South or Southeast than the midwest.
Well, if it's not Deep South, not Rust Belt, and not Midwest (which I agree with), then what is it?
Typically when you hear "Deep South" you think Alabama/Mississippi. I struggle to justify including any states on the Atlantic as part of the Deep South; to me it's just as much an east/west axis as it is a north/south one. That is, it's only "deep" if it's far enough away from both the "North" (Northeast/Midwest)
and the Atlantic Ocean.
Kentucky and Tennessee certainly share some characteristics of traditional Deep South states like Alabama; there are some key differences, too, but I'm just not sure what other sub-region to put Kentucky under.
Quote from: Rothman on January 08, 2021, 08:10:44 PM
Quote from: 1 on January 08, 2021, 12:25:53 PM
Quote from: GaryV on January 08, 2021, 12:23:34 PM
Quote from: webny99 on January 08, 2021, 11:18:49 AM
Rust Belt
MN and WI are just as rusty as MI and OH. Also PA.
The Twin Cities metro, which is over half of MN's population, is not rusty.
The Iron Range is. Literally.
I didn't necessarily mean that MN/WI/IA cannot be considered part of the Rust Belt. Certainly the areas near the Great Lakes are.
I could've just called the whole works the Great Lakes region instead of the Rust Belt, but then that leaves the question of what to do with IA/MO. Iowa could possibly fit in with the Great Plains region. Missouri is similar to Kentucky in that it's hard to classify. It seems too far north to be part of the Mid-South, but it's not really a Plains state, either.
Quote from: TheHighwayMan394 on December 29, 2020, 08:20:08 PM
Quote from: Rothman on December 29, 2020, 08:16:00 PM
We've so done this before.
Yeah, it always devolves into Midwesterners being ignored trying to set east coasters straight who insist ND/SD/NE/KS aren’t part of the Midwest.
My Texan friends just call Minnesota "Canada"
To me, the Rust Belt seems to be defined by old industrial areas near the Great Lakes, and tough to assign it to state borders. Lake and Porter counties of IN, sure. Indianapolis, not so much. Cleveland and Akron, OH, sure. Cincinnati, maybe, maybe not. Racine and Milwaukee, WI, of course. Hayward, WI or the UP of Michigan, more woodsy than rusty. Chicago/Rockford/Peoria/Decatur, IL, sure. Carbondale, IL? Nope.
Quote from: Rick Powell on January 08, 2021, 10:47:51 PM
To me, the Rust Belt seems to be defined by old industrial areas near the Great Lakes, and tough to assign it to state borders. Lake and Porter counties of IN, sure. Indianapolis, not so much. Cleveland and Akron, OH, sure. Cincinnati, maybe, maybe not. Racine and Milwaukee, WI, of course. Hayward, WI or the UP of Michigan, more woodsy than rusty. Chicago/Rockford/Peoria/Decatur, IL, sure. Carbondale, IL? Nope.
I agree, the Rust Belt is not a region, it's a coastline. Though the upper peninsula is definitely part of the Rust Belt.
Quote from: thspfc on January 09, 2021, 08:27:48 AM
Quote from: Rick Powell on January 08, 2021, 10:47:51 PM
To me, the Rust Belt seems to be defined by old industrial areas near the Great Lakes, and tough to assign it to state borders. Lake and Porter counties of IN, sure. Indianapolis, not so much. Cleveland and Akron, OH, sure. Cincinnati, maybe, maybe not. Racine and Milwaukee, WI, of course. Hayward, WI or the UP of Michigan, more woodsy than rusty. Chicago/Rockford/Peoria/Decatur, IL, sure. Carbondale, IL? Nope.
I agree, the Rust Belt is not a region, it's a coastline. Though the upper peninsula is definitely part of the Rust Belt.
In my experiences in the UP, US 41 seems to form a pretty neat dividing line between the Rust Belt part and the non-Rust Belt part.
Quote from: webny99 on January 08, 2021, 08:44:07 PM
Quote from: Scott5114 on January 08, 2021, 03:03:00 PM
...
Moderator: florida
...
Hmm... I've never heard of that region before :bigass:
Florida is the state that moderates the Southeast.
As a meteorology major, we always had these kind of arguments as to what constitutes "Mid Mississippi Valley" and "Intermountain West" among my colleagues.
Personally, for the states, I do 8 regions that go like this:
New England: ME, NH, VT, MA, RI, CT
Mid Atlantic: NY, NJ, PA, DE, MD, VA, DC
South: NC, SC, GA, FL, AL, MS, TN, LA, AR
Midwest: OH, KY, WV, IN, MI, IL, WI, MO, IA, MN
Great Plains: ND, SD, NE, KS, OK, TX
Mountain: NM, CO, WY, MT, UT
Northwest: WA, OR, ID, AK
Southwest: AZ, CA, NV, HI
As for the Mid MS Valley, I always argue that it is from Memphis to Davenport.
Quote from: jeffandnicole on January 08, 2021, 09:02:04 PM
Quote from: 1 on January 08, 2021, 03:55:04 PM
Quote from: jeffandnicole on January 08, 2021, 03:52:43 PM
Quote from: Scott5114 on January 08, 2021, 03:03:00 PM
Northeast
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont
Thank you. Anyone saying NY, NJ and PA is Mid-Atlantic is just looking at Wikipedia...or updating Wikipedia themselves.
Scott5114 wasn't replying seriously. (Look carefully; something slipped by in the copy and paste.)
Yeah, but no one in NJ considers NJ a Mid-Atlantic state.
Nor does anyone in the Mid-Atlantic.
Quote from: Scott5114 on January 09, 2021, 01:50:11 PM
Quote from: webny99 on January 08, 2021, 08:44:07 PM
Quote from: Scott5114 on January 08, 2021, 03:03:00 PM
...
Moderator: florida
...
Hmm... I've never heard of that region before :bigass:
Florida is the state that moderates the Southeast.
Nicely done.
Quote from: Takumi on January 09, 2021, 08:26:40 PM
Quote from: jeffandnicole on January 08, 2021, 09:02:04 PM
Yeah, but no one in NJ considers NJ a Mid-Atlantic state.
Nor does anyone in the Mid-Atlantic.
Nobody except for Wikipedia:
Quote from: WikipediaThe Middle Atlantic states, commonly shortened to Mid-Atlantic states, is a region of the United States generally located in the overlap between the Northeastern and Southeastern States. Its exact definition differs upon source, but the region usually includes New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Washington, D.C., Virginia, and West Virginia.
To me, it's a subset of the Northeast. Thus it's possible for New Jersey to be part of
both the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic.
Into counties.
Now on what the topic actually is, from what I've read I'd put Kentucky and West Virginia on their own, undefined transitional region, especially the former.
I divided mine with subcategories as well.
Northeast:
Upper NE/New England - ME, NH, VT, MA, CT, RI, NY
Mid-Atlantic - PA, NJ, MD, DE, DC, VA, WV
South:
Southeast - NC, SC, GA, FL, TN, AL, KY
South Central - LA, AR, OK, TX, MS
Midwest:
Great Lakes - IL, IN, WI, MI, OH
Great Plains - ND, SD, NE, KS, MO, IA, MN
West:
Mountain West - AZ, NM, CO, UT, NV, WY, ID, MT
Pacific West - AK, HI, CA, OR, WA
WV is Northeast?
Um. No.
Quote from: Rothman on January 12, 2021, 12:19:14 AM
WV is Northeast?
Um. No.
It's one of those states that's hard to place for me. It's not Midwest and its position makes it not in the South (I had a hard time placing
Kentucky in the south. For me the south really begins at the KY/TN and VA/NC borders but Kentucky isn't a Midwest state either...). Plus, though culturally different, it looks much neater when visually dividing the states on a map. WV fits real nice on a map with the mid-Atlantic states, especially with the panhandle being wedged between MD and VA. I'd make a 9th category but I'm not fond of odd numbers :spin:
In 2021, red and blue :P
Ohio Region
Ohio
Non-Ohio Region
47 other states
Beyond Non-Ohio Region
Alaska & Hawaii