Outlier regions in your state that are the least similar to most of the state

[Dirt Roads]

What region of your state is the black sheep? For some, it's obvious (West Virginia eastern panhandle).

That may have true back in my day, but today the opposite seems to be true:  the Eastern Panhandle is the place to be in West Virginia (the six largest high schools in the state); and the rest of the state is trying to catch up.  Maybe John Denver wasn't wrong about the roughly 14 miles of the Blue Ridge being indicative of the entire state.

[Scott5114]

75% of the population of my state lives in one county.

[Rothman]

75% of the population of my state lives in one county.

Yeah, I've been wondering about which region is actually the "outlier."  An outlier is a region outside of the norm.  So, why is the UP of Michigan the outlier and not the LP?  Why is Clark County the outlier and not the rest of the state?

Could be we're just finding difference rather than "outliers."

[TheHighwayMan3561]

I would say MN's version of Forgottonia is the western "horn" region that juts into South Dakota.

[GaryV]

So, why is the UP of Michigan the outlier and not the LP?

Maybe because it's roughly 3% of the population?

[hbelkins]

For Kentucky, I'd nominate two separate regions.

1.) Everything west of the Cumberland River/Land Between the Lakes. It's almost a Deep South/Delta feel compared to the rest of the state.

2.) Northern Kentucky (Boone, Kenton, and Campbell counties). I know the "Florence Y'All" water tower is considered to be a gateway to the South, but that whole area gives off Ohio vibes, given that it's in Cincinnati's metro area.

If you want to talk about other identifiers such as socioeconomic, political, sports team loyalties, etc., that opens up a whole bunch of other discussions.

[LilianaUwU]

The outliers in Québec are definitely the areas with majority English speakers, such as near the US border in the Eastern Townships and along the Ottawa River. I'd argue the weirdest such area is Grosse-Île on the Magdalen Islands, essentially a segregated village of English speakers.

[Rothman]

So, why is the UP of Michigan the outlier and not the LP?

Maybe because it's roughly 3% of the population?

So, why is the UP of Michigan the outlier and not the LP?

Maybe because it's roughly 3% of the population?

Wouldn't that mean that the outlier in states would just be rural areas?

[Roadgeekteen]

So, why is the UP of Michigan the outlier and not the LP?

Maybe because it's roughly 3% of the population?

So, why is the UP of Michigan the outlier and not the LP?

Maybe because it's roughly 3% of the population?

Wouldn't that mean that the outlier in states would just be rural areas?

For an example of what I'm looking for in this, the outlier region in Arizona would be the Navajo nation as they have a different language and culture from most of the state. So most states don't have a region that speaks a different language, but this is kind of what I'm going for.

[GaryV]

So, why is the UP of Michigan the outlier and not the LP?

Maybe because it's roughly 3% of the population?

Wouldn't that mean that the outlier in states would just be rural areas?

OK, because it's less than 1/3 the state area? And that 1/3, and 3% population, is different from the rest of the state.

[Rothman]

So, why is the UP of Michigan the outlier and not the LP?

Maybe because it's roughly 3% of the population?

Wouldn't that mean that the outlier in states would just be rural areas?

OK, because it's less than 1/3 the state area? And that 1/3, and 3% population, is different from the rest of the state.

So, Clark County, NV would be the outlier in NV...?

[thspfc]

For a user who was discontented with this topic to the point of opening it and voicing their discontent for it (as opposed to scrolling past), a certain user seems to be very involved in this thread.

[flan]

For North Dakota the obvious answer to me is the Turtle Mountains. The plateau rises about 500 feet above the surrounding flat prairie and it's pretty heavily wooded compared to the rest of the state. The eastern part is also a reservation so it's different politically from most of the rest of ND. For a rural area in North Dakota, it's fairly densely populated, especially in the reservation. It lies on the border with Manitoba so it's somewhat geographically isolated, although Lake Metigoshe and the Peace Gardens are two tourist draws.

[Roadgeekteen]

For a user who was discontented with this topic to the point of opening it and voicing their discontent for it (as opposed to scrolling past), a certain user seems to be very involved in this thread.

And said user still hasn't answered the question for his home state of New York.

[Sctvhound]

York and Lancaster County in South Carolina is one. Especially north of the Catawba River. In the Charlotte TV market and don't have a SC station on cable except for WIS-TV's newscasts, and even that was dropped a few years ago.

Also is more into the Charlotte sports teams than the South Carolina college teams unlike everywhere else in the state.

Still only 50 or so miles from Rock Hill to the northern Columbia suburbs like Blythewood.

[Flint1979]

The Upper Peninsula of Michigan is a lot like the Nothern Lower Peninsula just with a lot less population. The difference with the Nothern L.P. and Southern L.P. is that the Southern L.P. is a lot more populated. About half the state is a forest and you don't even have to go Up North to go the lake, there are about 400 lakes in Oakland County alone. But in answering the question I'd say the Upper Peninsula is the answer.

[Dirt Roads]

There's North Carolina, then there is Ocracoke.   Ocracoke is so isolated that the road was originally paved by the U.S. Navy in the early 1940s.  The residents there were still drinking out of cisterns until the late 1970s.

Once upon a time, there was also nearby Portsmouth Island but alas, only Ocracoke has survived.

[tman]

I would say MN's version of Forgottonia is the western "horn" region that juts into South Dakota.

I feel like anything southwest of I-94 in Minnesota (roughly half of the state) has more in common with Iowa and the Dakotas (seemingly actually flatter than much of Iowa/the Dakotas, but defined by row crops and small towns). Minnesota is interesting as the part that's like what people conceptualize the state to be (lakes/trees or the Twin Cities metro) isn't too much of the state. There's a lot of the state that is not at all "lakes and trees" and is instead ag-driven and anchored by towns like Marshall, Albert Lea, Worthington, etc. Growing up there gave me a different perspective than most who assume most of the state is like the Brainerd lakes area or similar.

[Rothman]

I would say MN's version of Forgottonia is the western "horn" region that juts into South Dakota.

I feel like anything southwest of I-94 in Minnesota (roughly half of the state) has more in common with Iowa and the Dakotas (seemingly actually flatter than much of Iowa/the Dakotas, but defined by row crops and small towns). Minnesota is interesting as the part that's like what people conceptualize the state to be (lakes/trees or the Twin Cities metro) isn't too much of the state. There's a lot of the state that is not at all "lakes and trees" and is instead ag-driven and anchored by towns like Marshall, Albert Lea, Worthington, etc. Growing up there gave me a different perspective than most who assume most of the state is like the Brainerd lakes area or similar.

"On the edge of the prairie" = Lake Wobegon...

[Rothman]

There's North Carolina, then there is Ocracoke.   Ocracoke is so isolated that the road was originally paved by the U.S. Navy in the early 1940s.  The residents there were still drinking out of cisterns until the late 1970s.

Once upon a time, there was also nearby Portsmouth Island but alas, only Ocracoke has survived.

I've been to Portsmouth Island. 

Remoteness is an interesting way to define what an outlier is.  So...Gosnold for MA?  What's remote for NY?  Shelter Island? Clare?  Do dinky, hard-to-get-to townships count as regions?

[kurumi]

We've been to Jackson and the national parks, but some may contend that we haven't been to Wyoming.

[flan]

I would say MN's version of Forgottonia is the western "horn" region that juts into South Dakota.

I feel like anything southwest of I-94 in Minnesota (roughly half of the state) has more in common with Iowa and the Dakotas (seemingly actually flatter than much of Iowa/the Dakotas, but defined by row crops and small towns). Minnesota is interesting as the part that's like what people conceptualize the state to be (lakes/trees or the Twin Cities metro) isn't too much of the state. There's a lot of the state that is not at all "lakes and trees" and is instead ag-driven and anchored by towns like Marshall, Albert Lea, Worthington, etc. Growing up there gave me a different perspective than most who assume most of the state is like the Brainerd lakes area or similar.

I agree. Most of my Minnesota experience as a young child was in the Red River Valley, so for a while I thought of MN as just being ND but with more trees. Moving to the Cities didn't do much to change that because I-94 in MN is still mostly farmland. In my mind the 'outlier' part of MN is the North Shore/Boundary Waters region because, with the exception of Duluth, it's pretty sparsely populated in addition to the obvious geographic differences from the rest of the state. And Duluth, while not small, is a drop in the bucket compared to the Cities, and it's very different from other large non-metro cities in MN both in topography and industry. I've also traveled around the northeastern part of the state much less than everywhere else which probably contributes to that division in my mind.

[Great Lakes Roads]

From my perspective, SW Indiana was a region that I felt like it was an outlier to Indiana, especially before I-69 was built between Indy and Evansville. My first visit to Evansville was in 2019 thanks to I-69 being completed between Martinsville and Evansville via Bloomington!

[Rothman]

I would say MN's version of Forgottonia is the western "horn" region that juts into South Dakota.

I feel like anything southwest of I-94 in Minnesota (roughly half of the state) has more in common with Iowa and the Dakotas (seemingly actually flatter than much of Iowa/the Dakotas, but defined by row crops and small towns). Minnesota is interesting as the part that's like what people conceptualize the state to be (lakes/trees or the Twin Cities metro) isn't too much of the state. There's a lot of the state that is not at all "lakes and trees" and is instead ag-driven and anchored by towns like Marshall, Albert Lea, Worthington, etc. Growing up there gave me a different perspective than most who assume most of the state is like the Brainerd lakes area or similar.

I agree. Most of my Minnesota experience as a young child was in the Red River Valley, so for a while I thought of MN as just being ND but with more trees. Moving to the Cities didn't do much to change that because I-94 in MN is still mostly farmland. In my mind the 'outlier' part of MN is the North Shore/Boundary Waters region because, with the exception of Duluth, it's pretty sparsely populated in addition to the obvious geographic differences from the rest of the state. And Duluth, while not small, is a drop in the bucket compared to the Cities, and it's very different from other large non-metro cities in MN both in topography and industry. I've also traveled around the northeastern part of the state much less than everywhere else which probably contributes to that division in my mind.

Hm.  Makes me think about how the Iron Range and the North Shore are different.  They are, beyond just topography.

Come to think of it, MN is just another example of how defining an "outlier" is difficult.  I mean, the plains are a huge part of the state, while the North Woods are as well.  Not sure how you choose which one gets to be the "norm" against an outlier is defined.

Having lived in the Twin Ports, it's probably more influenced by where one lives and thinking that it is the norm rather than the place halfway across the state... 

[hbelkins]

The Upper Peninsula of Michigan is a lot like the Nothern Lower Peninsula just with a lot less population. The difference with the Nothern L.P. and Southern L.P. is that the Southern L.P. is a lot more populated. About half the state is a forest and you don't even have to go Up North to go the lake, there are about 400 lakes in Oakland County alone. But in answering the question I'd say the Upper Peninsula is the answer.

Probably not quite as controversial of a topic as "How do you define Upstate NY," but I've often wondered what marks the dividing line for "Up North" in Michigan.