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There are southern influences in much of the midwest. Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and southern Michigan seem to have the most southern influence of all midwest areas because those places were the destination of southerners moving north for jobs in the early 20th century. Alot of the auto workers in Detroit were southern transplants, heck there are several old country songs that reference this fact. To this day there are blue collar suburbs of Detroit that seem to have a bit of a southern drawl to them. There is one city down that way called Taylor Michigan, people jokingly call it "taylortucky". This is due to the large number of people who moved there from Kentucky during the mass migration north. I live out in the center of Michigan far from Detroit and the automotive areas, and even here many people I know (myself included) are the decendents of people who moved north during the boom days of Michigan. Having said that, the midwest is still the midwest. No part of Ohio, Indiana, or Illinios is southern. Just because there are southern influences does not mean ANY part of the midwest is south of Mason Dixon. (as pointed out earlier, mason dixon seperates only Maryland and Pa anyway) Here in Michigan we may have some historical southern influence, (like Il, Ind and Ohio do) but your much more likely to hear the phrase youbetcha, than Yall. After all, this IS the midwest, so its midwest culture that is dominant.
Growing up, I've heard Lansing referred to as Lansingtucky before.
I have seen a map of Illinois where the Mason-Dixon lines runs through it. It has been many years ago and have not been able to find it on the internet, but it cuts through the south edge of Alton, Illinois -- thus making everything south of that south of the Mason-Dixon line, including Edwardsville, Collinsville, Granite City, Carbondale, Cairo, etc. south of it; and everything north of Alton including Godfrey, Jerseyville, Springfield, etc. north of the Mason-Dixon line. I think it cuts almost straight across the state there to somewhere close to Vincennes, IN. I think I saw it in the Museum on Broadway in Alton, Illinois, but am not sure. There used to be an old Civil War prison where State Street meets Broadway near the riverroad, and that was in the north. Prior to the civil war, Alton was instrumental in the "Underground Railroad." The underground railroad was a technically was a theoretical route for runaway slaves to be ushered to the north and freedom, but it also is comprised of miles and miles of tunnels that run all under Alton, which just making it to Alton alone was not enough to assume freedom, even though it is a northern state on most general maps. Thus, Illinois was bisected by the Mason-Dixon line, and freedom for slaves was not assumed until they reached just north of Alton, Illinois, above the Mason-Dixon line.
Consider where that line is located between PA and MD today. The inverse effect, if anything, is what I have experienced, traveling away from Baltimore northwest, once you get into Pennsylvania, that's when the confederate flags begin to emerge.
That could be the Gettysburg effect. Gettysburg is northwest of Baltimore, and they have lots of Civil War reenactments there. I imagine there are plenty of Sons of Confederate Veterans there.
I drove through Somerset, Bedford and Blair Counties in southcentral Pennsylvania about three weeks ago, and I saw zero Confederate flags anywhere.
Once you get below I-70 you start hearing a true Southern accent in states like Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio.
I dont know why people keep insisting that anything below I-70 in Missouri is the South.
It most certainly is NOT. In SE Mo, one has to go all the way down to Cape Girardeau to get any sense of the South at all.
North of that, SE Mo is solidly Midwestern.
I dont know why people keep insisting that anything below I-70 in Missouri is the South.
It most certainly is NOT. In SE Mo, one has to go all the way down to Cape Girardeau to get any sense of the South at all.
North of that, SE Mo is solidly Midwestern.
You didn't get the memo? Rural areas in Northern states are now part of the South.
IMO Illinois does have southern Characteristics. Cairo is far closer to Memphis than Chicago. Not to mention it's south of Paducah! Always felt southern influence in Indiana too.
I think "the south" is pretty much defined as either where slavery was promoted all the way up to the civil war, and where the Jim Crow Laws prevailed after the Civil War all the way through 1964 when they were laid to rest by president Lyndon Johnson. St. Louis was an active participant in the Jim Crow Laws, and turned down legislation against black lynching even as late as 1922. I don't know how anyone might possibly even consider that it is not part of what is determined as "the South." The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow. A National Struggle . The Congress | PBS
I think "the south" is pretty much defined as either where slavery was promoted all the way up to the civil war, and where the Jim Crow Laws prevailed after the Civil War all the way through 1964 when they were laid to rest by president Lyndon Johnson. St. Louis was an active participant in the Jim Crow Laws, and turned down legislation against black lynching even as late as 1922. I don't know how anyone might possibly even consider that it is not part of what is determined as "the South." The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow. A National Struggle . The Congress | PBS
I grew up in the STL area, its NOT southern, and neither is Missouri, save for the bootheel.
You dont even know what you dont know.....
How much time have you spent there?
New York had Jim Crow laws, that fits in with your definition of the South, doesnt it?
Last edited by kshe95girl; 10-13-2010 at 06:59 PM..
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It's called the I-80.
