Upper Midwest

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Regional definitions vary from source to source. The states shown in dark red are often included, while all or portions of the striped and lighter colored states may or may not be considered part of the Upper Midwest.

The Upper Midwest is a region of the United States with no universally agreed-upon boundary, but it almost always lies within the US Census Bureau's definition of the Midwest and includes the states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, and Indiana. Other definitions include North Dakota, South Dakota, Missouri, Ohio, and Iowa.

According the to 2000 US Census, the core states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan total 39,460,846 people and 282,175 square miles (730,830 km²) of land. Including the other states of North Dakota, South Dakota, Missouri, Ohio, and Iowa, the region contains 60,943,336 people and 582,739 square miles (1,509,290 km²) of land. In round numbers, the core states have the same area as France, and the expanded region has the population of France.

[edit] Definitions by government agencies

According to the Library of Congress, the area is a region of the United States that comprised the old Northwest Territory which includes the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota.

The National Weather Service defines the Upper Midwest as the states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, and Wisconsin.

The United States Geological Survey has at least two definitions of the Upper Midwest:

• The USGS Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center considers it to be the six states, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin which comprise the watersheds of the upper Mississippi River and upper Great Lakes.
• The USGS Mineral Resources Program considers the area to be Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.

The ten standard Federal Regions were established by OMB (Office of Management and Budget) Circular A-105, "Standard Federal Regions," in April, 1974, and required for all executive agencies. In recent years, some agencies have tailored their field structures to meet program needs and facilitate interaction with local, state and regional counterparts. Region five is Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio.

[edit] Other definitions

The Association for Institutional Research in the Upper Midwest defines the region as including the states of Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

• The Upper Midwest often includes the rest of Michigan, Iowa, Indiana, Illinois, and sometimes extends further southwest to include Missouri, east to Ohio, and sometimes west to North Dakota and South Dakota, and the parts of Montana east of the Rockies.

• Many call it the part of the Midwest that is not included in the Rust Belt, and north of Chicago^{[citation needed]}. Another possible definition is the Great Lakes states that are not in the region of the original 13 colonies.

• Many consider the Upper Midwest solely the states comprising the Upper Midwestern dialect (or the Minnesotan dialect), that is, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

• The Upper Midwest was the heartland of early 20th century Progressive Party politics, and the region continues to be favorable to the Democratic Party of the United States and moderate Republicans, with Minnesota and Wisconsin favoring each Democratic presidential candidate since 1988 (Minnesota narrowly supported native Walter Mondale in 1984 in an election where Ronald Reagan won every other state). Michigan, Illinois, and Iowa also often favor Democratic candidates. by contrast, the lower Midwest includes swing states such as Ohio and Missouri, and (until 2008) solidly Republican Indiana. The Plains States to the west are heavily Republican in most presidential contests.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] External links

• The History of the Upper Midwest: An Overview
• USGS Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center
• U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) Upper Midwest Mineral Resources Program

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