I live on the border of Missouri and Kansas. While most of Missouri is Midwestern, the southern part is definitely southern. And while Kansas is Midwestern the western part of the state is well western. So what state to you is the most Midwestern?

To me, a state is midwestern if it had a school in the B1G before Penn State joined.

Among places meeting that criterion, I think Iowa counts as the most midwestern.

Kansas ain't Midwestern.

As someone who was born and raised in Kansas I generally agree, but it gets put on the maps as Midwest. And being raised on the Eastern side of the state we grew up eating a lot of Midwestern dishes.

For me it's probably Minnesota, because of MST3K.

Unfortunately Ohio is the central cross roads intersection of the Midwest and the most culturally melted mix pot of the Midwest.

Colorado. All those "Midwestern" states are clearly in the Mideast not the Midwest

The rust belt is a big constituent in my definition of the Midwest, though perhaps in reality only a Venn diagram. As such I'd place Illinois or Michigan as most Midwestern.

Yeah, this. Like yeah sure back in 700 BC or whatever, when people assumed that 'it ain't gonna go on much longer, so this must be west', but it's almost like new developments and information change things. But you discover, pillage and trade the country to double the size, and west sure as fuck isn't west anymore. I don't care what anyone's grand-grand-grand-grandpappy said about it.

While most of Missouri is Midwestern, the southern part is definitely southern.

🤔 What about the southern part makes southern Missouri southern?

Culturally it is Southern and supported the South in the American Civil War. And you start to see some southern cuisine.

When I think Midwest, I think Iowa. Nothing to do but cornfields and church, and that's why they are polite but weird.

If the primary argument was that the term is historical, I’d be a lot more sympathetic. But the term “the Midwest” originates in 1926, and the explanation is very explicitly that demographically, socially, culturally, etc. everything west of the Mississippi is a rounding error, and so it makes sense to declare the Appalachian mountains the spiritual center of the country and I hate that.

Kassel? Arnhem?

I will always upvote MST3K. When Joel first started on the show, they did a small university circuit. I was fortunate enough to get tickets. They did a little Q&A and then did their show live on some old educational videos from the 1960s or '70s. I've never laughed so hard in part because it was a rated-R show and many of the jokes were completely inappropriate for TV.

10/10!

Sorry to the rest of the Midwest but for me it's Minnesota, Wisconsin, half of Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and like 1/4 of Ohio. The rest doesn't Midwest hard enough lol

Definitely a blurry line, being a border state. The American literary tradition also sometimes lumps Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn in with other novels about the antebellum South, though both take place in Missouri.

If you're just measuring distance on the map, one could make that argument. But keep in mind that the concepts of the eastern and western US center on the east as the origin point. Therefore everything west of the "East" is the "West", and the Midwest is where that boundary begins.

Having spent a lot of time in Colorado, I'd say it's very much culturally and historically where the West proper begins.

A true Midwesterner. Began the comment with an apology

Right, you tell me to keep in mind that the center of the United States is roughly Columbus, Ohio and everything is defined in relation to there, but that is precisely the thing I take issue with. Kansas City is roughly north of the demographic center of the United States, and it should define the eastern border of the midwest.

I see people mentioning Ohio and similar, and I've never been completely clear on it. The Great Lakes kinda have their own thing going on, but I guess it's still a subdivision of the midwest.

For me, it's going to be minnesota/wisconson, probably. "Hot Dish" existing as a term and common food might also have an impact.

It’s the Great Plains for sure. I think when your end the Great Plains, you think of the Great Plains as the Midwest and the Rust belt as the rust belt instead of the rust belt

To be honest the plains folk hold up the friendly midwestern stereotype a lot better than the rust belt does

The racism mostly

Technically Kansas, since it's literally in the middle, I guess

Having lived in both places, I don't think the midwest-nice stereotype holds up for either unless it is use as a pejorative.

It sure ain’t the mountain west…

Officially it is the Midwest. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midwestern_United_States

MinnesooooooooooOooOoOOOtah

Polite, but not nice. Also, every town above 200 population has a bar. And some bars don't even have a town.

"iowa nice" is specifically a thing. It's not actually nice. They're friendly and polite, but will talk mad shit as soon as you're out of hearing range. Wisconsin and Minnesota are actual nice.

That definition of Iowa-nice meets the definition of Midwest-nice as it is used by many folks in and around the Midwest. Superficially nice, but actually mean and unwelcoming.