What region is the Midwest?

The Midwest is the geographic region of the United States generally defined as the area between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains, north of the Ohio River and south of the Canadian border, encompassing twelve states: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. The U.S. Census Bureau divides the Midwest into the East North Central states (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin) and the West North Central states (Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota). The total population in 2020 was about 68.9 million, roughly 21 percent of the U.S. population.

The Midwest's economy traditionally rested on agriculture and manufacturing. The Corn Belt, running across Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Ohio, Kansas, Nebraska, Missouri, and parts of other states, produces about 75 percent of the nation's corn. The Wheat Belt covers Kansas, North Dakota, South Dakota, and parts of other states. Soybeans, dairy, hogs, and cattle are also major products. Manufacturing built the so-called Rust Belt, including Detroit (automobile manufacturing), Cleveland (steel), Pittsburgh (steel, although Pittsburgh is technically Mid-Atlantic), Chicago (meatpacking, machinery), Akron (rubber), Toledo (glass), and many others. Decline of heavy manufacturing since the 1970s has produced economic transition.

Major cities include Chicago (about 2.7 million city, 9.5 million metropolitan), Detroit (about 4.4 million metro), Minneapolis-Saint Paul (about 3.7 million metro), St. Louis (about 2.8 million metro), Cleveland, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Milwaukee, and Columbus. The Midwest has a continental climate with cold snowy winters, warm humid summers, and significant tornado activity (Tornado Alley runs through Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Texas).

The region was originally home to many Native nations including the Anishinaabe (Ojibwe, Potawatomi, Ottawa), Sioux, Sauk, Fox, Iowa, Pawnee, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Mandan, Hidatsa, and many others. European settlement followed the Northwest Ordinance of July 13, 1787, which organized the territory north of the Ohio River and prohibited slavery there. Statehood arrived in waves: Ohio in 1803, Indiana 1816, Illinois 1818, Missouri 1821, Michigan 1837, Iowa 1846, Wisconsin 1848, Minnesota 1858, Kansas 1861, Nebraska 1867, North and South Dakota 1889. Immigration from Germany, Scandinavia, Poland, and other European countries shaped the region's culture, with German Americans the largest single ancestry group in much of the Midwest.

The Midwest is sometimes called the heartland or the breadbasket of America. It includes the Great Lakes region, the Prairie Pothole region, and the Driftless Area unique to southwestern Wisconsin and adjacent states.