# Do states other than New York have an "Upstate"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 30, 2012, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501 "2012-05-30T01:00:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/1 "2012-05-30T01:00:33Z")
You always hear the term Upstate New York, are there other Upstates? I have heard the term downstate a few times but I’m not aware of any Downstate X as a common name for a place. Please enlighten me. ---
**Author:** ![missred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/missred/32/14096_2.png) [@missred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missred)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/2 "2012-05-30T01:08:28Z")
Illinois has a downstate, but I’ve never heard of the northern part being called upstate. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/3 "2012-05-30T01:09:25Z")
According to Wikipedia, there’s an “[Upstate South Carolina](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upstate_South_Carolina)” (The Upcountry) and an “[Upstate California](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upstate_California)” but personally I’ve never heard that term used in reference to anywhere besides New York. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/4 "2012-05-30T01:13:36Z")
Illinois has downstate as a common term. California has a north and south divide. Michigan is a divided state. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/5 "2012-05-30T01:18:26Z")
The people in SC do use upstate to talk about that part of SC ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/6 "2012-05-30T01:19:19Z")
There’s [Upstate Pennsylvania](http://www.visitpa.com/upstatepa). ---
**Author:** ![dan1500](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/34f0e0/32.png) [@dan1500](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dan1500)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/7 "2012-05-30T01:25:52Z")
There’s been an effort to brand northeast Indiana as upstate Indiana around Fort Wayne, but it hasn’t really caught on. ---
**Author:** ![President\_Johnny\_Gentle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5f9b8f/32.png) [@President\_Johnny\_Gentle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/President_Johnny_Gentle)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/8 "2012-05-30T01:25:58Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > The people in SC do use upstate to talk about that part of SC And in fact there’s a [University of South Carolina Upstate](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_South_Carolina_Upstate) branch. I’m not familiar with other uses of “Upstate”, but there’s heavy use of the term “Outstate” in Minnesota. (The opposite is “the Metro” or “the Cities”). ---
**Author:** ![picker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/picker/32/13969_2.png) [@picker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picker)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/9 "2012-05-30T01:32:43Z")
In Wisconsin, we have “Up North”. ---
**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/10 "2012-05-30T01:35:59Z")
In Maine they have “down east.” Virginia has “northern virginia.” ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/11 "2012-05-30T01:43:13Z")
Arkansas has that divide, but we never use the term. It’s jut Northern and Southern. The division is caused by the geography it’s hill country versus mostly flat lands. The former kept most of Northern Arkansas isolated for quite a while. It’s still pretty dadblasted white–though there’s an additional reason for that. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/12 "2012-05-30T01:48:01Z")
NC also has down east which means east of I-95 The dumbest thing is Charlotte only has uptown, they decided the word “downtown” was “too negative” ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/13 "2012-05-30T02:01:07Z")
> [@johnpost](#): > > IMichigan is a divided state. True, but I’ve never heard the term “Upstate” here. There’s “Downstate”, which describes everything in the southern peninsula. There’s “Northern Michigan”, which describes everything in the northern half of the southern peninsula. And then there’s the “Upper Peninsula” aka “UP”, which is the northern peninsula. And yeah, we think it’s funny that we’re north of “Northern Michigan.” ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/14 "2012-05-30T02:10:47Z")
No, it is just New York as used as a common term. I heard it first when I went to college in the South but still with a large New York population. People from upper New York state used that term all the time to distinguish themselves from the very large population of people from New York City and Long Island that were also there but had little in with common otherwise. It makes sense. Northern New York State is closer in culture to New England or the industrial rust-belt depending on the part you are talking about than it is to New York City. A lot of it is quite rural. NYC can be a 6 hour drive and world away if you live in Buffalo or Rochester so they have to head off the confusion when they say they are from ‘New York’ for people that assume they know all about the latest Broadway shows. ‘Upstate’ is the short-hand term they use for it. People from other states have versions of the same problems but not nearly as large. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/15 "2012-05-30T02:17:33Z")
Upstate is so pedestrian. I prefer the terms we use around here, like the [north country](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Hampshire#Geography) and the [northeast kingdom](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northeast_Kingdom). ---
**Author:** ![Pai325](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Pai325](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pai325)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/16 "2012-05-30T02:35:11Z")
> [@missred](#): > > Illinois has a downstate, but I’ve never heard of the northern part being called upstate. As someone who grew up in northern Illinois and now lives downstate, I have to agree with this. ---
**Author:** ![5\_time\_champ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/5/278dde/32.png) [@5\_time\_champ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/5_time_champ)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/17 "2012-05-30T03:04:50Z")
In Missouri we have “outstate,” areas not in either the St Louis or Kansas City metro. ---
**Author:** ![StrangerThanFiction](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f05b48/32.png) [@StrangerThanFiction](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StrangerThanFiction)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/18 "2012-05-30T03:12:13Z")
> [@Pai325](#): > > As someone who grew up in northern Illinois and now lives downstate, I have to agree with this. Yeah, it’s “southern Illinois,” and it’s defined as anything south of I-80 😃 ---
**Author:** ![R.P.McMurphy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7993a0/32.png) [@R.P.McMurphy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/R.P.McMurphy)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/19 "2012-05-30T05:56:19Z")
> [@Athena](#): > > True, but I’ve never heard the term “Upstate” here. > > There’s “Downstate”, which describes everything in the southern peninsula. > > There’s “Northern Michigan”, which describes everything in the northern half of the southern peninsula. > > And then there’s the “Upper Peninsula” aka “UP”, which is the northern peninsula. And yeah, we think it’s funny that we’re north of “Northern Michigan.” As a kid I can remember my confusion as to everything outside of Detroit (when it was the 5th largest city in the US) as “upstate”. Maybe it was “out of state”, can’t actually recall, but there was a clear distinction between Detroit and the rest of Michigan. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501/20 "2012-05-30T06:25:10Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > No, it is just New York as used as a common term. I heard it first when I went to college in the South but still with a large New York population. People from upper New York state used that term all the time to distinguish themselves from the very large population of people from New York City and Long Island that were also there but had little in with common otherwise. > > It makes sense. Northern New York State is closer in culture to New England or the industrial rust-belt depending on the part you are talking about than it is to New York City. A lot of it is quite rural. NYC can be a 6 hour drive and world away if you live in Buffalo or Rochester so they have to head off the confusion when they say they are from ‘New York’ for people that assume they know all about the latest Broadway shows. ‘Upstate’ is the short-hand term they use for it. People from other states have versions of the same problems but not nearly as large. In common usage, Upstate New York is everything north of New York City (which is the entire state except for NYC and Long Island). Northern New York is generally the area north of Albany and Syracuse. So places like Albany, Syracuse, Buffalo, Rochester, Binghamton, and Poughkeepsie are in Upstate New York but aren’t in Northern New York. Western New York is everything to the west of Route 81 (except for the strip that’s in Northern New York). You’ll occasionally hear references to Downstate New York but it’s not a common term. Mainly because the area that would normally be considered Downstate New York falls inside the area that’s commonly called Upstate New York. We realize that makes no sense so we just call the area that should be Downstate New York the Hudson Valley. Central New York is the area between Western New York, Northern New York, and the Hudson Valley. The Catskills are maybe part of Central New York or maybe part of the Hudson Valley. It’s an unsolved mystery. There are no Eastern or Southern parts of New York. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-states-other-than-new-york-have-an-upstate/623501.md?page=2)