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Day 14, Explanations
Sep. 18th, 2013 12:04 pmYesterday, in reading the book on The Wicker Man, the British author identified Oregon as in "the Midwest." Now, in fairness, it is the middle of the states on the West Coast, but, just, no.
However, that got me to thinking about my parents and geography and how geography isn't really taught any more (tomorrow, I may talk about one of my colleagues at the travel agency who is an Ur example of this), hence, the poll.
Mom was born and educated in California. Her parents were originally Texans who had driven the wooden road from Gallup to the California border on their honeymoon so that grandpa could take a job in Imperial valley. Since Mom has always been concerned about being mistaken for an Okie (my apologies, this is a direct quote), I should add that this was several years before the Great Depression or the Dustbowl.
Dad was born and educated in Virginia. His family on his mother's side had been in Virginia since, no lie, 1607, and his father's family had been on the Eastern Shore of Maryland since the Constitution was signed.
I don't remember how we got on the subject, it was probably while I was learning US geography through a 50 piece puzzle in first grade, but there was a definite difference of opinion about what constituted the Midwest.
To Dad, any state west of Pennsylvania (i.e., no coast to its East), was Midwestern. Former Confederate states were, sort of, Southern, but, for instance, Dad tended to lump Kentucky into the Midwest rather than the South for most things. Arkansas and Missouri were also a little different. Florida was its own thing, a sentiment many, including me and Mom, share. Ohio was definitely in the Midwest.
For Mom, anything East of the Mississippi was back East, although it could also be the South. Ohio was not in the Midwest, though I think Indiana and Michigan were included, mostly.
They both agreed that the West began around the Rockies, Colorado being the major demarcation for it. The Southwest wasn't as much of a region then (far less populated until the late 1960s) and was part of the West. This is backed up by the way the Painted Desert was used in Westerns.
Oklahoma could go either way, West or Midwest, depending upon the story being told. The Dakotas were mostly part of the West -- see Deadwood, Calamity Jane, and Bill Hickock -- but were acknowledged to be geographically Midwestern. Actually, Dad's favorite description of North Dakota, originating with the DC DJs Trumbull and Core in the mid-70s, was "Baja Manitoba."
Looking at yesterday's answers, about two-thirds agree with Mom that Ohio is in the Midwest. Fewer agree with her and Dad's designation for Texas as Western. The majority agree with me that it's Southern, something I got from third grade social studies, but there are substantial divisions on Texas.
And my own confusion is also somewhat exposed. I don't think Ohio's in the Midwest, but I'm absolutely sure that Cleveland is. *G*
However, that got me to thinking about my parents and geography and how geography isn't really taught any more (tomorrow, I may talk about one of my colleagues at the travel agency who is an Ur example of this), hence, the poll.
Mom was born and educated in California. Her parents were originally Texans who had driven the wooden road from Gallup to the California border on their honeymoon so that grandpa could take a job in Imperial valley. Since Mom has always been concerned about being mistaken for an Okie (my apologies, this is a direct quote), I should add that this was several years before the Great Depression or the Dustbowl.
Dad was born and educated in Virginia. His family on his mother's side had been in Virginia since, no lie, 1607, and his father's family had been on the Eastern Shore of Maryland since the Constitution was signed.
I don't remember how we got on the subject, it was probably while I was learning US geography through a 50 piece puzzle in first grade, but there was a definite difference of opinion about what constituted the Midwest.
To Dad, any state west of Pennsylvania (i.e., no coast to its East), was Midwestern. Former Confederate states were, sort of, Southern, but, for instance, Dad tended to lump Kentucky into the Midwest rather than the South for most things. Arkansas and Missouri were also a little different. Florida was its own thing, a sentiment many, including me and Mom, share. Ohio was definitely in the Midwest.
For Mom, anything East of the Mississippi was back East, although it could also be the South. Ohio was not in the Midwest, though I think Indiana and Michigan were included, mostly.
They both agreed that the West began around the Rockies, Colorado being the major demarcation for it. The Southwest wasn't as much of a region then (far less populated until the late 1960s) and was part of the West. This is backed up by the way the Painted Desert was used in Westerns.
Oklahoma could go either way, West or Midwest, depending upon the story being told. The Dakotas were mostly part of the West -- see Deadwood, Calamity Jane, and Bill Hickock -- but were acknowledged to be geographically Midwestern. Actually, Dad's favorite description of North Dakota, originating with the DC DJs Trumbull and Core in the mid-70s, was "Baja Manitoba."
Looking at yesterday's answers, about two-thirds agree with Mom that Ohio is in the Midwest. Fewer agree with her and Dad's designation for Texas as Western. The majority agree with me that it's Southern, something I got from third grade social studies, but there are substantial divisions on Texas.
And my own confusion is also somewhat exposed. I don't think Ohio's in the Midwest, but I'm absolutely sure that Cleveland is. *G*
