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Midwestern United States
Midwestern United States
The Midwest, American Midwest | |
|---|---|
 This map reflects the Midwestern United States as defined by the Census Bureau.[1] | |
| Subregions | |
| Country | United States |
| States | as defined by the Census Bureau.[1] Regional definitions might vary slightly among sources. |
| Largest metropolitan areas | |
| Largest cities | |
| Area | |
• Total | 750,522 sq mi (1,943,840 km2) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 68,985,454 |
| • Density | 92/sq mi (35/km2) |
| Demonym | Midwesterner |
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The Midwestern United States (also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest) is one of the four census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau. It occupies the northern central part of the United States.[1] It was officially named the North Central Region by the U.S. Census Bureau until 1984.[2] It is between the Northeastern United States and the Western United States, with Canada to the north and the Southern United States to the south.
The U.S. Census Bureau's definition consists of 12 states in the north central United States: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. The region generally lies on the broad Interior Plain between the states occupying the Appalachian Mountain range and the states occupying the Rocky Mountain range. Major rivers in the region include, from east to west, the Ohio River, the Upper Mississippi River, and the Missouri River.[3] The 2020 United States census put the population of the Midwest at 68,995,685.[4] The Midwest is divided by the U.S. Census Bureau into two divisions. The East North Central Division includes Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin, all of which are also part of the Great Lakes region. The West North Central Division includes Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Nebraska, and South Dakota, several of which are located, at least partly, within the Great Plains region.
Chicago is the most populous city in the American Midwest and the third-most populous in the United States. Chicago and its suburbs, colloquially known as Chicagoland, form the largest metropolitan area with 10 million people, making it the fourth-largest metropolitan area in North America, after Greater Mexico City, the New York metropolitan area, and Greater Los Angeles. Other large Midwestern cities include Columbus, Indianapolis, Detroit, Milwaukee, Kansas City, Omaha, Minneapolis, Wichita, Cleveland, Cincinnati, St. Paul, St. Louis, and Des Moines. Large midwestern metropolitan areas include Metro Detroit, Minneapolis–St. Paul, Indianapolis Metropolitan Area, Greater St. Louis, Greater Cincinnati, the Kansas City metro area, the Columbus metro area, and Greater Cleveland.
The region's economy is a mix of heavy industry and agriculture, with extensive areas forming part of the United States' Corn Belt. Finance and services such as medicine and education are becoming increasingly important. Its central location makes it a transportation crossroads for river boats, railroads, autos, trucks, and airplanes. Politically, the region is composed of swing states, and therefore is heavily contested and often decisive in elections.[5][6]
- ^ a b c "Census Regions and Divisions of the United States" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved October 24, 2016.
- ^ "History: Regions and Divisions". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
- ^ Hobbs, Joseph John (2009). World Regional Geography. Cengage Learning. p. 662. ISBN 978-0-495-38950-7. Retrieved June 13, 2017.
- ^ "Change in Resident Population of the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico: 1910 to 2020" (PDF). Census.gov. United States Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 26, 2021. Retrieved April 27, 2021.
- ^ Black, Earl; Black, Merle (2008). Divided America: The Ferocious Power Struggle in American Politics. Simon and Schuster. p. 209. ISBN 9781416539056.
- ^ Jensen, Richard J. (1971). The Winning of the Midwest: Social and Political Conflict 1888–1896. University of Chicago Press. p. 15. ISBN 9780226398259.
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