Do you know anybody who has never left their home state?

[webny99]

But I was replying to the assertion that the rural West is where one would be more likely to never leave the state.  I don't doubt for a second what you're saying, because it agrees with what I was saying:  that never leaving the state is actually less likely in the rural West than in, say, Appalachia or the deep South.

OK, gotcha. I thought you were contrasting a rural area to an urban one. But yes, there is also variance even within different types of rural areas.

[SkyPesos]

I know someone that never even crossed into neighboring Kentucky or Indiana before despite being less than 25 miles from either border.

[dkblake]

The short answer for me is No, although I did have some peers in high school that had never been on a plane which I found bizarre.

I didn't go on a plane until my early twenties; it helps to have a dad who was super afraid of heights and loved to drive everywhere.

[vdeane]

Heck, going to college in the North Country, I knew people who would go to Canada whenever they needed to fly somewhere, since Montréal was closer and more economical than Syracuse.

[webny99]

Heck, going to college in the North Country, I knew people who would go to Canada whenever they needed to fly somewhere, since Montréal was closer and more economical than Syracuse.

Same in areas of northern MN, ND, and MT that are closer to a Canadian hub than an American one.

Then there's Buffalo, which doesn't have the airport issue, but I'd bet more people from the Buffalo area have been to Canada than PA.

[1995hoo]

Since I live in the DC area, it would be exceptionally unusual to find someone who's never been across state lines, even just from DC to Maryland or Virginia (or vice versa). With that said, in the summer of 2019 I worked with a fellow who clearly didn't get out much–he was adamant, completely certain, that there is no speed limit anywhere in the USA higher than 55 mph. (Based on his mannerisms and other things he said, I concluded he actually believed that and wasn't just trying to troll us.) I therefore wouldn't be surprised to hear that he had never left DC, especially seeing as how there was a 65-mph speed limit immediately across the river in the I-395 express lanes beginning near the Pentagon (now a variable speed limit zone usually posted at 65).

I hope you showed him a photo of an 85 MPH sign from TX-130.

I don't remember whether I did. The other colleagues who were present were as surprised as I was at his comment and we all piled on a bit.

[webny99]

Since I live in the DC area, it would be exceptionally unusual to find someone who's never been across state lines, even just from DC to Maryland or Virginia (or vice versa). With that said, in the summer of 2019 I worked with a fellow who clearly didn't get out much–he was adamant, completely certain, that there is no speed limit anywhere in the USA higher than 55 mph. ...

I hope you showed him a photo of an 85 MPH sign from TX-130.

I don't remember whether I did. The other colleagues who were present were as surprised as I was at his comment and we all piled on a bit.

It's conceivable that he really could believe it if he hasn't done much traveling since 1995. Even so, wow.

[Rothman]

Heck, going to college in the North Country, I knew people who would go to Canada whenever they needed to fly somewhere, since Montréal was closer and more economical than Syracuse.

Same in areas of northern MN, ND, and MT that are closer to a Canadian hub than an American one.

Then there's Buffalo, which doesn't have the airport issue, but I'd bet more people from the Buffalo area have been to Canada than PA.

Feel bad for people that feel they have to fly Air Canada...ouch in terms of prices.

[webny99]

Heck, going to college in the North Country, I knew people who would go to Canada whenever they needed to fly somewhere, since Montréal was closer and more economical than Syracuse.

Same in areas of northern MN, ND, and MT that are closer to a Canadian hub than an American one.

Then there's Buffalo, which doesn't have the airport issue, but I'd bet more people from the Buffalo area have been to Canada than PA.

Feel bad for people that feel they have to fly Air Canada...ouch in terms of prices.

The few times I flew in/out of Canada, I used WestJet. That was a long time ago now, though. Never used Air Canada.

[jmacswimmer]

Since I live in the DC area, it would be exceptionally unusual to find someone who's never been across state lines, even just from DC to Maryland or Virginia (or vice versa). With that said, in the summer of 2019 I worked with a fellow who clearly didn't get out much–he was adamant, completely certain, that there is no speed limit anywhere in the USA higher than 55 mph. (Based on his mannerisms and other things he said, I concluded he actually believed that and wasn't just trying to troll us.) I therefore wouldn't be surprised to hear that he had never left DC, especially seeing as how there was a 65-mph speed limit immediately across the river in the I-395 express lanes beginning near the Pentagon (now a variable speed limit zone usually posted at 65).

I hope you showed him a photo of an 85 MPH sign from TX-130.

I don't remember whether I did. The other colleagues who were present were as surprised as I was at his comment and we all piled on a bit.

How could he have missed the nearby I-366, posted at 85 MPH? 

[kphoger]

Since I live in the DC area, it would be exceptionally unusual to find someone who's never been across state lines, even just from DC to Maryland or Virginia (or vice versa). With that said, in the summer of 2019 I worked with a fellow who clearly didn't get out much–he was adamant, completely certain, that there is no speed limit anywhere in the USA higher than 55 mph. (Based on his mannerisms and other things he said, I concluded he actually believed that and wasn't just trying to troll us.) I therefore wouldn't be surprised to hear that he had never left DC, especially seeing as how there was a 65-mph speed limit immediately across the river in the I-395 express lanes beginning near the Pentagon (now a variable speed limit zone usually posted at 65).

When I lived in southern Illinois, I once told my co-workers that I got a speeding ticket for going 77 in a 65 zone while coming back through Kansas.

–  Really?  On the Interstate?  I've never seen anyone pulled over for less than 80.

–  No, not on the Interstate.  On a two-lane highway.

–  But you said the speed limit was 65.

–  Yes, it was.

–  But 65 is for Interstates.

–  Not in Kansas.

–  * mind blown *

How could he have missed the nearby I-366, posted at 85 MPH?

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[formulanone]

Not everyone likes to travel, and some people have no interest in what happens elsewhere, some people might not have the same sense of curiosity (or the means) that we seem to enjoy. I meet people who are afraid of flying all the time.

I've met two adults (though one much older than another) that claimed they'd never had a reason to leave their respective states. Both told me all their family members lived within a limited range and they had no interest in travel.

I asked one of them about a restaurant in a town 10-12 miles away, and he told me he'd only been to the town once decades ago and had no reason to return. Both lived/worked in towns which was near the center of the state.

I suppose there's a certain philosophy to that; if you're content and happy with what you know and where you are, why waste the time and money if there's no emotional return on the investment?

[kphoger]

I suppose there's a certain philosophy to that; if you're content and happy with what you know and where you are, why waste the time and money if there's no emotional return on the investment?

The question is this:  Is traveling to other places a benefit to one's life that he or she ought to pursue?

It's similar to the question of whether art, music, or sports should be an integral part of school even if a particular student doesn't really feel like engaging in them.  Or the question of whether reading is beneficial to a person beyond the mere content consumed.

[webny99]

The question is this:  Is traveling to other places a benefit to one's life that he or she ought to pursue?

I'm not sure there's an objective answer to that, but I'd certainly say yes. There's no better way to expand your horizons than by getting away from your usual circumstances.

... Or the question of whether reading is beneficial to a person beyond the mere content consumed.

OK, we're getting off-topic, but... I read so much when I was younger that I don't even enjoy it that much anymore. I can't even read individual words anymore, only whole sentences and paragraphs at a time. This makes it really hard to focus when trying to read anything longer than an article, email, or forum post.

[kphoger]

I'm not sure there's an objective answer to that, but I'd certainly say yes. There's no better way to expand your horizons than by getting away from your usual circumstances.

I never expected an objective answer, only a subjective one.   

[GaryV]

Mark Twain:  "Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime."

That said, while I don't know any personally, I'm sure there are many thousands (millions?) of babies born in the last few months that haven't left their home states.

[kphoger]

That said, while I don't know any personally, I'm sure there are many thousands (millions?) of babies born in the last few months that haven't left their home states.

Which is also true of any other year.

[Sctvhound]

I know people in the Columbia area who drive to Charlotte (55-85 miles away) just to go to the airport. Because Columbia's airport has very few direct flights outside of the major hubs. A few in the Augusta area (still in SC) drive all the way to ATL for flights.

Outside of Charleston and to a lesser extent Greenville/Spartanburg, Atlanta and Charlotte are the major options for a lot of SC travelers to fly out.

[STLmapboy]

Being in a city right next to Illinois, I don't know anyone who has never left Missouri.

[andrepoiy]

I live and grew up in a relatively upper-middle class area, and pretty much all my classmates have been outside of the province, so the first time I heard about people who never left the province was pretty surprising to me.

But I guess, people with less money have more important things to spend that money on than travel.

[dlsterner]

It can certainly depend on the era in which you lived.  Travel is so much easier today than, say, 100 years ago.

No way to confirm this, but I can imagine people like my paternal grandparents (born 1887 and 1893) might have never left their state.  They were simple people, and their families had all stayed in the same area for several generations.  My grandmother never drove; not sure about my grandfather.  I'm sure they never traveled anywhere by air.  Quite possibly never anywhere by rail.

[bulldog1979]

My grandmother used to tell of people in Cheboygan, Michigan, who had never seen the Mackinac Bridge. Now, it's 15 miles up US 23 to Mackinaw City, but you can see the silhouette of the bridge from Gordon Turner Park at the mouth of the Cheboygan River in the city, especially at sunset.

[TheGrassGuy]

The short answer for me is No, although I did have some peers in high school that had never been on a plane which I found bizarre.


For NYC, my estimate would be as follows:

25% have never left the city
25% have been to Jersey, Connecticut, or both, but never been north of the 42nd parallel
25% go upstate every summer to the Catskills or Adirondacks
25% have lived and/or traveled outside the Northeast

I think the first 25% is a little too big

[Rothman]

The short answer for me is No, although I did have some peers in high school that had never been on a plane which I found bizarre.


For NYC, my estimate would be as follows:

25% have never left the city
25% have been to Jersey, Connecticut, or both, but never been north of the 42nd parallel
25% go upstate every summer to the Catskills or Adirondacks
25% have lived and/or traveled outside the Northeast

I think the first 25% is a little too big

I think the whole distribution is off.

[Hot Rod Hootenanny]

From Forbes Magazine, back in 2019...
https://www.forbes.com/sites/lealane/2019/05/02/percentage-of-americans-who-never-traveled-beyond-the-state-where-they-were-born-a-surprise/