Should be a part of this map. Ports of Duluth and Superior in Wisconsin are considered the world's largest freshwater ports. They're located on Lake Superior and connect to the Atlantic Ocean through the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence Seaway. The Port of Duluth-Superior is the largest tonnage port on the Great Lakes, handling around 35 million tons of cargo and almost 900 ships each year. It also supports more than 7,800 jobs and generates over $1.4 billion in business revenue
Fr. Duluth/Superior are solid rustbelt cities that have overcome a lot of economic catastrophes, twin cities too. It's a good video but MN is great lakes/rust belt. I'll rock the boat further and say WV should also have been included 😄
Yes, Toronto or more appropriately, Southern Ontario should be included in the "North American" factory. The auto and manufacturing sector of the region is fully integrated with factories of the Great Lakes "Mega-Region". One only has to look at the number of ON licensed tractor trailers occupying space on the interstate highways to see this.
@@chirsd666 sending a big "hello" from Oshawa, Ontario, just a few blocks away from General Motors of Canada's assembly plant here. Great video, Geoff!🙂
Population wise it absolutely should, and two different countries GDP which is intermingled mainly there is very important globally. So both sides of the lakes do also depend on each other for every type of endeavor. 👽🗿👽🗿👽
@@universaljustice7376its weird but linguistically and culturally STL always gets lumped in w the rest of the region when talking about it. they share the accent, the manufacturing, the trade network, etc. it probably served as some sort of stopping point between the great lakes and mississippi back in the day.
Central Place theory The transitional midsized metros have to be a certain size, and so a good place to start is to look at the congressional district map, and SW WI is closer to the least populated 89 of 435.
I think this is in reference to direct economic ties via branch offices for corporations etc. Like leaving Lake Superior out as to be included more to the Northern Midwest Region (when it's a major part of the GL Region).
I moved here from Texas I'm right at the Michigan Indiana Ohio border and I've been a welder for Dexter axle for 5 years factory work has been good to me but a lot of companies around here are focusing on 40 hours a week and nobody can take care of a family on 40 hours a week
@@JunkerDriver999 the Lifestyle/ economy is great but people around here are a lot more private and kept to themselves in such a way you'll understand no one cares about anyone but themselves
@@matthewstonecipher4674 Wow. I was born in Dallas, and now I live in Memphis. I always felt that is how it is up that way. Plus I would not make it, I hate cold weather.
Not to diminish its importance, but of the 19 cities that are mentioned (10 major and 9 minor), none of them are on Lake Superior. Very little industry and population compared to the others. I understand that it's the biggest, deepest and has the most water, just explaining what the video is about.
Ohio academic here - we also sometimes refer to the Great Lakes region as the ‘Brain Belt’ (a play on Rust Belt). The Great Lakes house some of the world’s top medical and research facilities: Cleveland Clinic, Mayo Clinic, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, University of Chicago, Northwestern University, University of Pittsburgh, University of Michigan, and The Ohio State University, among others are all world leaders across fields of science, engineering & medicine. Their close proximity to each other drives collaboration and innovation among some of the countries best minds! Not to mention that 6 of the 11 U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory directorates are headquartered at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, OH: The 711th Human Performance Wing, The School of Aerospace Medicine, Materials and Manufacturing, Sensors, Aerospace Systems, and Airman Systems. Researchers at these directorates collaborate with Wright State University (which is right across the street) making it a major hub for aerospace engineering, aerospace medicine, materials, and defense research. So much going on in the Great Lakes!
You could take a boat from Denver, CO to the Atlantic Ocean via the Platte River, the Missouri River, the Mississippi River, the Illinois River, the Des Plaines River, Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, and the St Lawrence River. In the route, you would pass Omaha, Kansas City, St. Louis, Chicago, Milwaukee, Detroit, Cleveland, Buffalo, Toronto and Montreal. What a journey. I think the US, Germany and UK are great examples of how extensive internal waterways=industrialization.
Look portage Wisconsin. They used to come up lake Michigan to the fox river...walk a couple blocks in portage to the Wisconsin River and from there to the Mississippi
I would include Toronto, as well as all of Southern Ontario as part of the Great Lakes Megaregion. Canada is America's biggest trading partner with 25% of that trade going through the Detroit-Windsor border crossing. That alone would make Southern Ontario an integral, if not critical, part of how the megaregion has become so successful and will continue to do so in the foreseeable future.
Of course Toronto should be included! Any time I meet someone from Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland, etc., I say that we're "Great Lakes People". Forget the border, it's the same place in the world with the same climate, geography and vegetation. As a Torontonian, I sometimes think it's funny how mentally we see ourselves as more "Eastern" (AL East, Eastern Conference, Atlantic Divison) instead of what we truly are, which is Midwestern.
The Gordie Howe bridge is just being finished up between Windsor and Detroit. It attests to the amount of goods and services and traffic that cross this area from Canada to the United States. During Covid, the borders were shut and this caused a great financial hardship for both our countries. The bridge is named after our famous hockey player Gordie Howe. And one of Canada’s sports has been taken up by the United States with great enthusiasm. I would also like to include Hamilton Ontario. It is just around the bay from Toronto, but for many years was the powerhouse of the steel industry. It now seems to have become a hub of Toronto but it is a different city. Anyway, great video. Thanks, a bunch from Ottawa.🇨🇦
Hey Geoff. Enjoy your channel. I live in Detroit. Met my husband in Toronto. The border is not an obstacle. We have many friends in Canada. Toronto is definitely a Great Lakes powerhouse city.
Another underrated point about the Great Lakes region has to do with shipping. Ships move raw materials and cargo on the lakes throughout the year extremely efficiently. Also, because of the lack of salt, many of these ships are 50-100 years old and have lots of service life left so resources arent being wasted on cutting them up for scrap/recycling anywhere near as often as ocean-going ships. People also often don't realize that, when needed, ships can get to the ocean from the Great Lakes as well if needed.
It’s not a major metro but I would think Duluth, Minnesota would be included in this zone, since so much of the iron production in that area was moved via ship on Lake Superior
I'm also native here, thank you for showing the strength of those wonderful lakes, we share a lot of fresh water from the retreating glaciers. Winter and our wonderful rivers are a pride here and yes Toronto is very much a part of us, culturally, historically and they are further south than Seattle and Minneapolis!
It's literally the most populated Megaregion in the United States, and yes, Toronto is recognized as being a part of it. The most commonly accepted list of cities considered to be part of The Great Lakes Megaregion includes: Buffalo, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Detroit, Erie, Fox Cities, Grand Rapids, Hamilton, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Louisville, Madison, Milwaukee, Minneapolis-Saint Paul, Montreal, Ottawa, Pittsburgh, Quebec City, Rochester (MN), Rochester (NY), Sarnia, Sault Ste. Marie, Niagara Falls, St. Louis, Sudbury, Syracuse, Toledo, Toronto, Twin Ports, Wheeling, and Windsor.
@@LyleAshbaugh yeah I’m from Minnesota and several companies have their headquarters in that metro area, including target Best Buy, Dairy Queen, holiday gas stations great clips, Caribou, coffee, and others
@@ajerjavec4723 There's a big difference in the service industry (as you mentioned) and the manufacturing sector. Apples and oranges. If you mentioned 3M, that's different.
@@erinbrew9675 I only mention the companies I am more familiar with, but you’re right 3m is in the metro area so why he didn’t talk about Saint Paul Minneapolis metro the piping associated with the Great Lake region is beyond me
I definitely agree! If St. Louis and Cincinnati are included, then the Twin Cities should be as well. He also missed including the Syracuse / Central NY metro, and perhaps as far east as Utica and north into Watertown, NY. l've lived in Buffalo 45 years, but grew up in Syracuse. It was a big maufacturing city through to the 80s. Large international manufacturers like Carrier Air Conditioning, General Electric, and Crouse Hinds (where the first timed traffic lights were produced) were located in Syracuse until manfacturing started to be offshored. Additionally, Micron will soon start building a new semiconductor fabrication facility (as a result of the CHIPS Act) in suburban Syracuse that's estimated to create 50k new jobs for NY State. Syracuse should very definitely be included in the Great Lakes industrial region!
That part of Ontario was just Laurentian Peninsula from Toronto on down to Detroit and into Buffalo. Yes, that should be included into the same built as the United States even though it’s another country it’s economy is intricate linked, and in many cases, most of the heavy industry in Canada is located there.
You can't separate Akron and Cleveland as 2 distinct metro areas. That's like separating Newark, NYC, Stamford CT and Long Island in to 4 separate metro areas. Akron and Cleveland share some if the same suburbs. The total Cleveland/Akron metro area is more like 3 million people.
@@trackguy4038 1 trillion dollars worth of economic activity is dependent on the Cleveland Cliff's mine outside of Ishpiming, and until the 1960's that's where most US copper came from. Also a lot of lumber is harvested and processed along the shores of the great lakes in the UP. So yeah, especially historically that region has been essential for the US industrial revolution. But there's no auto manufacturing happening there. Grand Rapids is a furniture manufacturing hub, not part of the big 3 ecosystem. Midland in the north is the Dow Chemical company town. But they're both considered part of the region, so IDK why you wouldn't include the UP.
I was wondering why you did not include Duluth Minnesota, since without the taconite the steel mills in the lower lakes would starve. The production of taconite ore is not manufacturing, true. But it is sourced up there and travels across the lakes in the huge bulk carrier lake boats (some of which are in excess of 1000 feet in length) to feed the steel mills. That sort of activity is unique to that region.
Most likely because the region as described appears to be using the same borders as from the "megalopolis" maps. Essentially Deluth isn't part of the continuous swath of suburban development and its engulfed farmlands that is being used to draw the rest of the region. Ultimately everywhere with a port on the lakes should be part of the great lakes economic region, along with everyone in the watershed. The lakes give us our water, stable climate, and energy efficient means of transporting goods around. (And a ton of hydro power)
Great video Geoff! I think what you could have pointed out was that the Great Lakes megaregion was sandwiched between the coal fields in West Virginia, Kentucky, and Southern Illinois, and the iron mines in northern Michigan and Minnesota, which fueled the steel and auto industries.
As a former Michigander I too question the accuracy of this video. He should've included part of Minnesota, Northern Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.
Minneapolis is definitely part of the great lakes region but by definition of megaregion....where it's a continuous area of urban development, it may not be a part of it due to the fact of a large area of unpopulated space is between Madison and the twins?? I'm guessing
Nothing like abundant fresh water for sustenance and transportation. I've lived all of my life in southern Ontario. The surrounding lakes have a huge moderating affect on our weather, never too cold, never too hot. The agriculture in this area is rich. The giant horse shoe from the Niagara region, around the west end of Lake Ontario, through Mississauga and Toronto, on to Oshawa, is an economic engine power house to say the least. Combine this with some very sweet social institutions and low crime issues and this is a very nice place to call home.
I guess it depends on who you ask. I'm from Western NY, so Southern Ontario weather to me is pretty normal. A person from further north in Canada might actually think its warm there. Ottawa is plenty cold that's for sure. Much more so than Toronto or anywhere along the horseshoe. Second coldest capital city on earth next to Ulan Bataar.
Not to mention all cities on the great lakes get all the benefits of being ports with access to the world ocean, with none of the downsides. (No tides, can't be invaded, the lakes don't have rising "sea levels", no hurricane storm surges, ect.) Geographically the region has everything going for it in terms of supporting industry, which is why it was such a global powerhouse. Its government policies mixed with corporate greed that earned it the name of "rust belt".
Good video thanks. More on this area and the Canal systems please. Lake Superior should be included. Avoid the music with odd voice, distracting. Impressive channel.
Yes: Toronto (and Southern Ontario) should be included. Last summer I went to Toronto, and even though we weren't actually in Toronto at first, we passed by an industrial part of Hamilton, which had giant silos close to the bridge we were stuck in traffic on, as well as a massive steel mill across the bay.
great lakes include Lake Ontario, hell it should count as its development and density rivals some American states. Though idk if they should add Lake Superior’s Thunder Bay, still a big manufacturing area of Mass Transit Vehicles, also did use to build ships too
Southern Ontario is a manufacturing powerhouse. You just have to drive along the 401,402,403, QEW the see the amount of industry in this region. This region's economy enmeshed with America's Great Lakes region as evidenced by trucks and transports at the border Crossings in Sarnia-Port Huron, Detroit-Windsor, Buffalo-Niagara.
I live near Buffalo and have driven the QEW from Ft. Erie to Toronto quite frequently over the years. Tons of industry along the way. Hamilton very much a blue collar town like Buffalo. I always considered Toronto to be more cosmopolitan, but still plenty of industry in and around there as well.
I think it would be super cool if you made your next video about the Northwoods region of the Great lakes. Maybe about potential growth opportunities for the future, or something. That area is super dope to me. Great video again, chief! Thanks for the content.
We live in metro Detroit and we go to Toronto way more frequently than Chicago. Toronto and southern Ontario are integral to the Great Lakes region, not to mention all the areas around Lake Superior and northern Lake Michigan and northern Lake Huron, which seem to have been left out for some reason.
Aww, you included the Bluewater Bridge/Sarnia in your footage. That's my hometown. Left along time ago, but I always go home for a visit in the summer so I can enjoy the lake. 😊❤
How could you not include Toronto? Yes, there's a border, but as someone that works in manufacturing, I'm making constant phone calls across the border and formerly had to make biweekly visits. We're so connected it's ridiculous. Once my team's out, I'd even rather cheer for other Great Lakes sports teams than other Canadian teams.
One reason is the decline in the American Great Lakes region even as suggested slight while the Canadian Great Lakes region has been growing quickly. NEW large scale infastructure is continuous. I agree there is considerable integration in manufacturing but at the same time look at the numbers of manufacturing plants in the US abandoned and how many new in Canada. Not suggesting this is virtue or anything like that but it is fact. I suspect you would be in the minority supporting American teams over Canadian.
*Should be a part of this map. Ports of Duluth and Superior in Wisconsin are considered the world's largest freshwater ports. They're located on Lake Superior and connect to the Atlantic Ocean through the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence Seaway. The Port of Duluth-Superior is the largest tonnage port on the Great Lakes, handling around 35 million tons of cargo and almost 900 ships each year. It also supports more than 7,800 jobs and generates over $1.4 billion in business revenue*
I was so impatient... Thx you for making this video I appreciate your your expert reviews, research and hard work that you put in this. I gather I know people have so much potential as I get from watching these videos
Geoff , I enjoy your videos and not big on complaints but the repeated loop of music I found to be distracting . Thank you for sharing and listening .😊
As a Kentuckian in the Cincinnati metro, I really thought he was going to say Louisville and Lexington, Ky could make an addition, then I remembered it’s a video on Toronto
Grew up in Louisville. I was so confused looking at the thumbnail like Great Lakes??? We’re 6 hrs away from there lmfao. Always thought it was the south
If there was actually any doubt, Canada absolutely gets into the club just for their Mr. Lightfoot writing that famous ballad about the iron-ore ship that wrecked on a trip from Superior WI to a steel mill on Lake Erie.
Toronto should be included in the Great Lakes Mega Region for cultural ties in the 1970's alone. One prime example: Rush. The greatest Canadian Rock band/ power trio started off relatively slowly in their home town of Toronto. But as they toured places like Rochester New York, Cleveland, Detroit and Chicago, even Quad Cities Iowa.... And great lakes radio stations on the US side began playing their songs... They established a regional bedrock of fiercely loyal fans ... And allowed them to become " probably your favorite rock band's favorite rock band" in North America. Secondly around the same time. The revolution in Comedy that was Saturday Night Live in New York, simply could not have happened without the two branches of Second City Improv in Chicago and Toronto. Second City spawned greats like Belushi, Akroyd, Bill Murray, John Candy and on and on. SCTV became a major canadian comedy program that had a huge cult following in the Great Lakes region.
Though a lot of manufacturing has certainly been relocated from the region and outsourced to other regions and countries, a lot of the manufacturing in the Great Lakes rust belt had simply been automated to the point where you only need a fraction of the workforce as once did. Case in point Gary, IN poster child of rust belt decline still has one of the largest steel mills in the country it only needs to employ like 1/10 the workforce it once did. Also, with white flight to suburbs combined with modern manufacturing plants needeing a larger physical footprint, a lot of factories needed more space thus relocated to the suburban fringe. That’s what happened with Detroit. Sure, the big three started building new factories first in the south then overseas, and stagnated due to foreign competition from the German and Japanese automakers, but what factories remain in Metro Detroit relocated from the city proper to suburbs further out.
Glad you like it! You wouldn’t argue Lake Tahoe? Maybe the Hudson Valley? I remember when Lake Erie was beat up more than [my home in] New Jersey. I’m glad to see that you love it 😀
Southwestern Ontario from Oshawa to Windsor MOST CERTAINLY belongs in this category since it supplies the North American market with trucks made at GM's Oshawa and Ford's Oakville facilities... In fact, I'd argue it's now the beating heart of the Great Lakes megaregion both culturally and economically... After all Toronto is now the 3/4th largest film and TV hub on the continent after Los Angeles, Vancouver, and most times even New York the city it "imitoots exartly" on screen in everything from Kick Ass to The Boys...
With the background music, one of my favorite videos ☺️ but honestly, you need occasionally here and there a second of a break while talking 😅 not only before switching to the next topic 😅
In addition to the Twin Cities, Duluth/Superior, & Thunder Bay that other commentors have mentioned, Sault Ste. Marie is also a critical asset to the region. While it may not seem as obvious as Chicago, it's arguably just as important as a transit hub. More than 90% of the iron for domestically made high-strength steel comes through the Soo Locks, making that waterway the backbone of the entire region's manufacturing industry.
I come from peoria, il. A city in central il that is still pretty big in manufacturing today. And even our small suburbs and small farm towns surrounding all usually have one or two factories in them. This area has consistently changed and revived itself through revenvition over the history of america. And i think anyone who believes we wont again is crazy.
Really interesting video! I would've liked to see Lake Superior and Minnesota covered more heavily. Lake Superior has tons of shipping and industry around Duluth, Minnesota and Superior, Wisconsin.
Duluth and Superior as many others have mentioned. Also about 3.5 hours northeast along the shore of Lake Superior is Thunder Bay, a major manufacturing site of paper and depressing news. Hauled many paper and pulp out of the mill there and heard much about their drug and policing problems. If including Minnesota because that same Superior shores, let's not forget Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, maker of 8210 N95 mask and much, much more. Although it's a bit far from the lakes.
Crossing the Canadian border is definitely not a problem. Cross-border traffic is so heavy that a third major motor vehicle bridge from Ontario to Michigan is nearing completion. There are two more across the Niagara River. There's a railway tunnel under the Detroit River. The auto plants in southwestern Ontario are all integrated into a common Canadian-American auto industry served by Ontario Highway 401. Highway 401 is also used by American trucks as a shortcut around Lake Erie to New York state. But thanks for considering Canada, Most American videos about the Great Lakes here don't mention Canada at all.
As someone who lives in the Great Lakes region, I don't think of places like St. Louis, or central Indiana and central/southern Ohio to be a part of the region. Midwest, certainly. Great Lakes? Definitely not.
@@agent1.618 Agreed completely. It's not even a knock on those areas. It's just a different vibe, but at the same time, hard to put into words for a non-Great Lakes person... for me at least.
As someone who was born, raised and still lives in Hamilton, Ontario, considered at one time the steel production capital of Canada, aka Canada's Pittsburgh, at the "horseshoe" of Lake Ontario, the entire Southern Ontario region is part of the a massive economic region that straddles both Canada and the U.S. Steel that was made in Hamilton in form or another helped to build the World Trade Center among thousands of North American infrastructure projects. The close connection still continues today via auto manufacturing, Honda Civics for the North American market are made in Aliston Ontario north of Toronto, but the engines that go in them are made in Ohio and shipped to the Canadian plant. Every Dodge Charger and Challenger in North America, including the police pursuit versions, are made in Brampton, just west of Toronto.
I remember long ago in grade school first hearing the word "mnemonic." To remember all the great lakes (if asked on a test) we were given the mnemonic- HOMES (Huron-Ontario-Michigan-Erie-Superior). The great lakes was MY very FIRST mnemonic! It helps still on some crossword puzzles too! I still use it to name them all ( I live in Texas). The phrase "last but not least," certainly serves Superior well in HOMES as a perfect example of that phrase.
Just a few things I was hoping to learn more about - What geologic and climate phenomena led to the lakes’ creation? How did the relative location of the huge resource deposits (coal, iron ore, etc.) make this success possible? How did (if at all) the Ohio and Mississippi rivers facilitate this growth? Thanks for a great channel.
Absolutely a yes for Toronto, as well as Montreal and Quebec since there is so much trade, commercial and leisure interactions, and the Toronto region is similar in nature
I understand the reason for the subdivision but I want you to include all the Great Lakes. Lake Superior! Duluth is important for resources to make all that steel. And include the Canadian areas. The area around the Great Lakes. They are so special!
I would also add the upper Mississippi basin, and the big and small cities along the Mississippi river. This is where the manufacturing centers meet the agricultural hubs...it's no mistake Caterpillar, Deere, and CNH, are all located within 200 miles of each other.
The City of Toronto, Hamilton, Brampton, Pickering, Windsor, and other cities in the GTA is located in the Great Lakes region. This ideal location to trade with Chicago, Milwaukee, Detroit, and Cleveland made Toronto the largest city in Canada. Awesome, eh!
Not just Toronto but all of Southern Ontario and the Montreal/Quebec City where 60% of the Canadian population lives in the Laurentian corridor. All Canadian provinces trade more with their American counterparts then they do with each province.
To be fair if your going to include Toronto with an * I would do the same for Montreal as well because of the trade that happens in the region and being a kid that grow up in Detroit. Montreal does have a lot of culture similarities except for language but in turns of an economic zone
Toronto and northern ontario should be included in this as the entire shoreline of the great lakes is dotted with Steel Mills, including my local one in Sault Ste Marie tying them all together via an international port system thanks to the Soo Locks and other lock systems leading to the St Lawrence.
Wouldnt have built a 6 billion dollar Gordie Howe international bridge if Ontario wasnt a partner in the region. Different country yes, but very much linked and open for business
this video was very interesting and educational and codensed to a proper lenght to get the nescessary informations without being to long or exhausting. my only complaint would be the choice of the background music. despite it´s low volume, the singing voice collided with the narration of the video. instrumental music without any singing would be much better. greetings from Germany. keep the good work up and please have my subscription.
I live in Chicago and I think Toronto should be included in the mega-region. I visited Toronto in 2019 and liked it. I am kinda jealous of those islands they have just off the shoreline.
A THIRD of the Canadian population lives in Southern Ontario, and half of the population lives in Southern Ontario plus the St Lawrence seaway. Making this only about the US is a bit of a fail.
On if Toronto should be included in the great lakes mega region. I would say yes. Even with the US/Canadian border in the area, if you are in Detroit or Buffalo or over in the Southwest tip of Ontario, you can see how integrated the areas are. Plates from each side of the border everywhere. The Windsor/Detroit crossing is one of the busiest in the world.
Aral lake grows and shrinks with centuries. When water receded in the recent drying up, they found a pier and boats remnants at the new water edge that was flooded earlier.
I think that the green line should extend past Dubuque all the way to Waterloo. John Deere has a large presence in Waterloo and Cedar Falls along with their many suppliers. Caterpillar and 3M have a sizeable presence in Iowa as well. In between Waterloo and Dubuque are a few areas like Dyersville with manufacturing . They are in my opinion an extension of the great lakes region. You drive 5 hours east of Dubuque and you're past Chicago either in Michigan or half way through Indiana and an hour or so from Ohio. you go 5 hours west of Dubuque and you're probably still in Iowa.
The economic connection between Toronto and the US Great Lakes megaregion is undeniable, but as you say the border does have a significant effect. In reality, Toronto is part of a different megaregion, i.e the Windsor-Quebec City corridor. Really these are two neighbouring megaregions rather than one big one.
As someone who works in Detroit, we have lots of people who work here that live in Canada. We even have a few people from Montreal that work here temporarily. So yes Toronto should be part of the reigion. Plus the twin cities in Minnesota should be part of the reigon too.
I agree that river city St Louis belongs in the Great Lakes Megaregion, but it is ironic that the reversal of the the Chicago River plays a role in this. The resulting change in river flow created a direct water connection between Chicago and St Louis, but was originally strongly opposed by St Louis.
The Great Lakes Megaregion includes the Rust Belt and Southwestern Ontario where population density is even. Also, Lake Superior is very urban around it except for Duluth and Thunder Bay.
The Northern half of the lower peninsula gets quite rural real fast, and the upper peninsula is even more rural. In fact the largest city in the Northern Lower peninsula has 15,000 people with a region of just under 100,000
Southern Ontario is an economic powerhouse. It should definitely be included. Its economy is larger than Pennsylvania’s or Michigan’s. It’s also culturally much closer to any Great Lake state than it is to Montreal - an example you gave - regardless of the international border.
I'm an urban planner in the Great Lakes region, and it's my opinion that in the coming decades the area is going to see a huge boom, particularly if some reform happens to our zoning and taxation laws. The area has a huge geographic advantage, and its main disadvantages are either temporary and human caused or winter. Our main problem is in most cities here, we have restrictice zoning codes and punitive tax codes that are holdovers from the backwards 1960s and 70s. I know that sounds funny, but in terms of urban policy, those decades were tremendously poorly managed. A land value tax replacing property and sales tax and a liberalized zoning code (which would lead to great transit) alone would turn Chicago into a global megacity over the course of a few decades. All of the other problems planners and engineers are already working hard on (and working hard at begging politicians for funds)
Should be a part of this map. Ports of Duluth and Superior in Wisconsin are considered the world's largest freshwater ports. They're located on Lake Superior and connect to the Atlantic Ocean through the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence Seaway. The Port of Duluth-Superior is the largest tonnage port on the Great Lakes, handling around 35 million tons of cargo and almost 900 ships each year. It also supports more than 7,800 jobs and generates over $1.4 billion in business revenue
@@kloss213 They have live-cams all year round!
@@kloss213 but wasn't the St. Lawrence seaway responsible for the invasion of the Zebra muscle which was brought in by ocean going vessels?
@@garyfeltman4482 Also sea lamprey and many many more.
Basically if not for Duluth Port, the rest of Great Lakes ports and its manufacturing bases would be much and much smaller.
Fr. Duluth/Superior are solid rustbelt cities that have overcome a lot of economic catastrophes, twin cities too. It's a good video but MN is great lakes/rust belt. I'll rock the boat further and say WV should also have been included 😄
Yes, Toronto or more appropriately, Southern Ontario should be included in the "North American" factory. The auto and manufacturing sector of the region is fully integrated with factories of the Great Lakes "Mega-Region". One only has to look at the number of ON licensed tractor trailers occupying space on the interstate highways to see this.
@@chirsd666 sending a big "hello" from Oshawa, Ontario, just a few blocks away from General Motors of Canada's assembly plant here. Great video, Geoff!🙂
Population wise it absolutely should, and two different countries GDP which is intermingled mainly there is very important globally. So both sides of the lakes do also depend on each other for every type of endeavor. 👽🗿👽🗿👽
It should be part of the Quebec City - Windsor corridor not the Great Lakes mega region
@@chirsd666 nah gtfo. No one cares about Snow Mexico
Toronto is part of Québec-Windsor mega region.
If St. Louis is a Great Lakes Metro then failing to have the Twin Cities or Twin Ports seems weird...
STL is not a Great Lakes city
Nor is Cincy and Indy
@@universaljustice7376its weird but linguistically and culturally STL always gets lumped in w the rest of the region when talking about it. they share the accent, the manufacturing, the trade network, etc. it probably served as some sort of stopping point between the great lakes and mississippi back in the day.
Central Place theory
The transitional midsized metros have to be a certain size, and so a good place to start is to look at the congressional district map, and SW WI is closer to the least populated 89 of 435.
I agree to leave out MN and Lake Superior but add St. Louis makes no sense
I think this is in reference to direct economic ties via branch offices for corporations etc. Like leaving Lake Superior out as to be included more to the Northern Midwest Region (when it's a major part of the GL Region).
As a native to this area, really looking forward to this! An area filled with blue-collar, hard-working people, that's for sure.
I moved here from Texas I'm right at the Michigan Indiana Ohio border and I've been a welder for Dexter axle for 5 years factory work has been good to me but a lot of companies around here are focusing on 40 hours a week and nobody can take care of a family on 40 hours a week
@@matthewstonecipher4674 how do you like it over Texas?
@@JunkerDriver999 the Lifestyle/ economy is great but people around here are a lot more private and kept to themselves in such a way you'll understand no one cares about anyone but themselves
@@matthewstonecipher4674 Wow. I was born in Dallas, and now I live in Memphis. I always felt that is how it is up that way. Plus I would not make it, I hate cold weather.
Damn right, im one of them 👍🏾🇺🇸👍🏾🇺🇸
I'm only 4 minutes in, but not highlighting Lake Superior is driving me bonkers. It's the most superior lake!!
We're keeping it a secret from China
Thank youuu
Not to diminish its importance, but of the 19 cities that are mentioned (10 major and 9 minor), none of them are on Lake Superior. Very little industry and population compared to the others. I understand that it's the biggest, deepest and has the most water, just explaining what the video is about.
@@erinbrew9675 Duluth/Superior has more cargo go through it than any other port on the Great Lakes
@@joeyg024 The video is about manufacturing in the region, not transportation.
Ohio academic here - we also sometimes refer to the Great Lakes region as the ‘Brain Belt’ (a play on Rust Belt). The Great Lakes house some of the world’s top medical and research facilities: Cleveland Clinic, Mayo Clinic, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, University of Chicago, Northwestern University, University of Pittsburgh, University of Michigan, and The Ohio State University, among others are all world leaders across fields of science, engineering & medicine. Their close proximity to each other drives collaboration and innovation among some of the countries best minds!
Not to mention that 6 of the 11 U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory directorates are headquartered at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, OH: The 711th Human Performance Wing, The School of Aerospace Medicine, Materials and Manufacturing, Sensors, Aerospace Systems, and Airman Systems. Researchers at these directorates collaborate with Wright State University (which is right across the street) making it a major hub for aerospace engineering, aerospace medicine, materials, and defense research.
So much going on in the Great Lakes!
You could take a boat from Denver, CO to the Atlantic Ocean via the Platte River, the Missouri River, the Mississippi River, the Illinois River, the Des Plaines River, Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, and the St Lawrence River. In the route, you would pass Omaha, Kansas City, St. Louis, Chicago, Milwaukee, Detroit, Cleveland, Buffalo, Toronto and Montreal. What a journey.
I think the US, Germany and UK are great examples of how extensive internal waterways=industrialization.
You just figured out how you're going to make it big on youtube.
Look portage Wisconsin. They used to come up lake Michigan to the fox river...walk a couple blocks in portage to the Wisconsin River and from there to the Mississippi
Didn't you ever hear of the book by William Least Heat Moon called River Horse? He went from coast to coast, only portaging at the continental divide.
I would include Toronto, as well as all of Southern Ontario as part of the Great Lakes Megaregion. Canada is America's biggest trading partner with 25% of that trade going through the Detroit-Windsor border crossing. That alone would make Southern Ontario an integral, if not critical, part of how the megaregion has become so successful and will continue to do so in the foreseeable future.
Of course Toronto should be included! Any time I meet someone from Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland, etc., I say that we're "Great Lakes People". Forget the border, it's the same place in the world with the same climate, geography and vegetation. As a Torontonian, I sometimes think it's funny how mentally we see ourselves as more "Eastern" (AL East, Eastern Conference, Atlantic Divison) instead of what we truly are, which is Midwestern.
The Gordie Howe bridge is just being finished up between Windsor and Detroit. It attests to the amount of goods and services and traffic that cross this area from Canada to the United States. During Covid, the borders were shut and this caused a great financial hardship for both our countries. The bridge is named after our famous hockey player Gordie Howe. And one of Canada’s sports has been taken up by the United States with great enthusiasm. I would also like to include Hamilton Ontario. It is just around the bay from Toronto, but for many years was the powerhouse of the steel industry. It now seems to have become a hub of Toronto but it is a different city. Anyway, great video. Thanks, a bunch from Ottawa.🇨🇦
Hey Geoff. Enjoy your channel. I live in Detroit. Met my husband in Toronto. The border is not an obstacle. We have many friends in Canada. Toronto is definitely a Great Lakes powerhouse city.
I am from Cleveland, and this is FACT. Everyone in the Great Lakes region never leaves out Toronto in this region...and I mean NEVER
as a michigander, I commend you for this! the great lakes are beautiful, powerful and influential
Another underrated point about the Great Lakes region has to do with shipping. Ships move raw materials and cargo on the lakes throughout the year extremely efficiently. Also, because of the lack of salt, many of these ships are 50-100 years old and have lots of service life left so resources arent being wasted on cutting them up for scrap/recycling anywhere near as often as ocean-going ships. People also often don't realize that, when needed, ships can get to the ocean from the Great Lakes as well if needed.
It’s not a major metro but I would think Duluth, Minnesota would be included in this zone, since so much of the iron production in that area was moved via ship on Lake Superior
I'm also native here, thank you for showing the strength of those wonderful lakes, we share a lot of fresh water from the retreating glaciers. Winter and our wonderful rivers are a pride here and yes Toronto is very much a part of us, culturally, historically and they are further south than Seattle and Minneapolis!
Dang you left out Duluth and the Iron range of Minnesota
Exactly, to not mention the Ports of Duluth and Superior is a bit lazy and somewhat disrespectful. (And I’m in Chicagoland!)
Now we're a Megaregion? That's funny, they were calling us the rust belt.
💙 From Detroit
It's literally the most populated Megaregion in the United States, and yes, Toronto is recognized as being a part of it.
The most commonly accepted list of cities considered to be part of The Great Lakes Megaregion includes:
Buffalo, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Detroit, Erie, Fox Cities, Grand Rapids, Hamilton, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Louisville, Madison, Milwaukee, Minneapolis-Saint Paul, Montreal, Ottawa, Pittsburgh, Quebec City, Rochester (MN), Rochester (NY), Sarnia, Sault Ste. Marie, Niagara Falls, St. Louis, Sudbury, Syracuse, Toledo, Toronto, Twin Ports, Wheeling, and Windsor.
Why didn’t you talk about Minneapolis/Saint Paul metro area isn’t that traditionally connected to the Great Lakes region?
@@ajerjavec4723 you’re right. It’s a miss
@@LyleAshbaugh yeah I’m from Minnesota and several companies have their headquarters in that metro area, including target Best Buy, Dairy Queen, holiday gas stations great clips, Caribou, coffee, and others
@@ajerjavec4723 There's a big difference in the service industry (as you mentioned) and the manufacturing sector. Apples and oranges. If you mentioned 3M, that's different.
@@erinbrew9675 I only mention the companies I am more familiar with, but you’re right 3m is in the metro area so why he didn’t talk about Saint Paul Minneapolis metro the piping associated with the Great Lake region is beyond me
I definitely agree! If St. Louis and Cincinnati are included, then the Twin Cities should be as well. He also missed including the Syracuse / Central NY metro, and perhaps as far east as Utica and north into Watertown, NY. l've lived in Buffalo 45 years, but grew up in Syracuse. It was a big maufacturing city through to the 80s. Large international manufacturers like Carrier Air Conditioning, General Electric, and Crouse Hinds (where the first timed traffic lights were produced) were located in Syracuse until manfacturing started to be offshored. Additionally, Micron will soon start building a new semiconductor fabrication facility (as a result of the CHIPS Act) in suburban Syracuse that's estimated to create 50k new jobs for NY State. Syracuse should very definitely be included in the Great Lakes industrial region!
That part of Ontario was just Laurentian Peninsula from Toronto on down to Detroit and into Buffalo. Yes, that should be included into the same built as the United States even though it’s another country it’s economy is intricate linked, and in many cases, most of the heavy industry in Canada is located there.
And the whole peninsula is further South than South Dakota. 👽🗿👽🗿👽
You can't separate Akron and Cleveland as 2 distinct metro areas. That's like separating Newark, NYC, Stamford CT and Long Island in to 4 separate metro areas. Akron and Cleveland share some if the same suburbs. The total Cleveland/Akron metro area is more like 3 million people.
Surprised that you don't include Lake Superior or Michigan's Upper Peninsula on the map.
Is there manufacturing in Michigan's Upper Peninsula? Any farming up there too?
@@trackguy4038 1 trillion dollars worth of economic activity is dependent on the Cleveland Cliff's mine outside of Ishpiming, and until the 1960's that's where most US copper came from. Also a lot of lumber is harvested and processed along the shores of the great lakes in the UP. So yeah, especially historically that region has been essential for the US industrial revolution. But there's no auto manufacturing happening there. Grand Rapids is a furniture manufacturing hub, not part of the big 3 ecosystem. Midland in the north is the Dow Chemical company town. But they're both considered part of the region, so IDK why you wouldn't include the UP.
I was wondering why you did not include Duluth Minnesota, since without the taconite the steel mills in the lower lakes would starve.
The production of taconite ore is not manufacturing, true. But it is sourced up there and travels across the lakes in the huge bulk carrier lake boats (some of which are in excess of 1000 feet in length) to feed the steel mills. That sort of activity is unique to that region.
Most likely because the region as described appears to be using the same borders as from the "megalopolis" maps.
Essentially Deluth isn't part of the continuous swath of suburban development and its engulfed farmlands that is being used to draw the rest of the region.
Ultimately everywhere with a port on the lakes should be part of the great lakes economic region, along with everyone in the watershed. The lakes give us our water, stable climate, and energy efficient means of transporting goods around. (And a ton of hydro power)
Mining iron ore, smelting it, then making it into taconite IS in fact manufacturing.
Great video Geoff! I think what you could have pointed out was that the Great Lakes megaregion was sandwiched between the coal fields in West Virginia, Kentucky, and Southern Illinois, and the iron mines in northern Michigan and Minnesota, which fueled the steel and auto industries.
Im surprised Minnesota was not included
Me too, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan- especially the UP were vital for copper and lumber resources as the country industrialized.
As a former Michigander I too question the accuracy of this video. He should've included part of Minnesota, Northern Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.
Minneapolis is definitely part of the great lakes region but by definition of megaregion....where it's a continuous area of urban development, it may not be a part of it due to the fact of a large area of unpopulated space is between Madison and the twins?? I'm guessing
@@letitiajeavons6333if you think that the upper peninsula of Michigan should be included, you must be from there.
yes, this was a bad oversight. Nobody in the region leaves out Minnesota and the twin cities.
Nothing like abundant fresh water for sustenance and transportation. I've lived all of my life in southern Ontario. The surrounding lakes have a huge moderating affect on our weather, never too cold, never too hot. The agriculture in this area is rich. The giant horse shoe from the Niagara region, around the west end of Lake Ontario, through Mississauga and Toronto, on to Oshawa, is an economic engine power house to say the least.
Combine this with some very sweet social institutions and low crime issues and this is a very nice place to call home.
Never too cold? Yeah, right
@@fjp3305 Lmao
@@fjp3305 southern ontario is same temp as det or buffalo
I guess it depends on who you ask. I'm from Western NY, so Southern Ontario weather to me is pretty normal. A person from further north in Canada might actually think its warm there. Ottawa is plenty cold that's for sure. Much more so than Toronto or anywhere along the horseshoe. Second coldest capital city on earth next to Ulan Bataar.
@digitalfootballer9032 Moved to Ottawa from Southwestern Ontario. Can confirm: Ottawa can get really fucking cold.
Access to large amounts of fresh water. Which is essential to manufacturing.
Not to mention all cities on the great lakes get all the benefits of being ports with access to the world ocean, with none of the downsides. (No tides, can't be invaded, the lakes don't have rising "sea levels", no hurricane storm surges, ect.)
Geographically the region has everything going for it in terms of supporting industry, which is why it was such a global powerhouse. Its government policies mixed with corporate greed that earned it the name of "rust belt".
Good video thanks. More on this area and the Canal systems please. Lake Superior should be included. Avoid the music with odd voice, distracting. Impressive channel.
Yes: Toronto (and Southern Ontario) should be included. Last summer I went to Toronto, and even though we weren't actually in Toronto at first, we passed by an industrial part of Hamilton, which had giant silos close to the bridge we were stuck in traffic on, as well as a massive steel mill across the bay.
great lakes include Lake Ontario, hell it should count as its development and density rivals some American states.
Though idk if they should add Lake Superior’s Thunder Bay, still a big manufacturing area of Mass Transit Vehicles, also did use to build ships too
Southern Ontario is a manufacturing powerhouse. You just have to drive along the 401,402,403, QEW the see the amount of industry in this region. This region's economy enmeshed with America's Great Lakes region as evidenced by trucks and transports at the border Crossings in Sarnia-Port Huron, Detroit-Windsor, Buffalo-Niagara.
I live across by that bridge near industrial zone. Amazing area, beach and access to everything
I live near Buffalo and have driven the QEW from Ft. Erie to Toronto quite frequently over the years. Tons of industry along the way. Hamilton very much a blue collar town like Buffalo. I always considered Toronto to be more cosmopolitan, but still plenty of industry in and around there as well.
I think it would be super cool if you made your next video about the Northwoods region of the Great lakes. Maybe about potential growth opportunities for the future, or something. That area is super dope to me. Great video again, chief! Thanks for the content.
We live in metro Detroit and we go to Toronto way more frequently than Chicago. Toronto and southern Ontario are integral to the Great Lakes region, not to mention all the areas around Lake Superior and northern Lake Michigan and northern Lake Huron, which seem to have been left out for some reason.
Aww, you included the Bluewater Bridge/Sarnia in your footage. That's my hometown. Left along time ago, but I always go home for a visit in the summer so I can enjoy the lake. 😊❤
How could you not include Toronto? Yes, there's a border, but as someone that works in manufacturing, I'm making constant phone calls across the border and formerly had to make biweekly visits. We're so connected it's ridiculous. Once my team's out, I'd even rather cheer for other Great Lakes sports teams than other Canadian teams.
One reason is the decline in the American Great Lakes region even as suggested slight while the Canadian Great Lakes region has been growing quickly. NEW large scale infastructure is continuous. I agree there is considerable integration in manufacturing but at the same time look at the numbers of manufacturing plants in the US abandoned and how many new in Canada. Not suggesting this is virtue or anything like that but it is fact. I suspect you would be in the minority supporting American teams over Canadian.
*Should be a part of this map. Ports of Duluth and Superior in Wisconsin are considered the world's largest freshwater ports. They're located on Lake Superior and connect to the Atlantic Ocean through the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence Seaway. The Port of Duluth-Superior is the largest tonnage port on the Great Lakes, handling around 35 million tons of cargo and almost 900 ships each year. It also supports more than 7,800 jobs and generates over $1.4 billion in business revenue*
I was so impatient... Thx you for making this video I appreciate your your expert reviews, research and hard work that you put in this. I gather I know people have so much potential as I get from watching these videos
Geoff , I enjoy your videos and not big on complaints but the repeated loop of music I found to be distracting . Thank you for sharing and listening .😊
This is one of your best presentations, Geoff. I learned so much. Thank you and God bless you.
As a Kentuckian in the Cincinnati metro, I really thought he was going to say Louisville and Lexington, Ky could make an addition, then I remembered it’s a video on Toronto
I thought he would at the very least mention Louisville. Considering the map he shows literally goes down to the Louisville metro area.
Ohio still loves you 👽🗿👽🗿👽🇺🇸
You are mid south
Grew up in Louisville. I was so confused looking at the thumbnail like Great Lakes??? We’re 6 hrs away from there lmfao. Always thought it was the south
Absolutely great video buddy. Keep up the good work. Ill try to keep watching.
I live in Toledo we are south of Det. I love living here!! Thank you for this video!! ❤❤❤
What is enteresting is if you take a settlement map of where germans settled its almost exactly the same as this megaregion map.
If there was actually any doubt, Canada absolutely gets into the club just for their Mr. Lightfoot writing that famous ballad about the iron-ore ship that wrecked on a trip from Superior WI to a steel mill on Lake Erie.
Edmund Fitzgerald 🎼
Subbed 👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾 MI UAW here. We need more manufacturing here and in Canada. We have a good working relationship when politicians dont get in the way
Toronto should be included in the Great Lakes Mega Region for cultural ties in the 1970's alone. One prime example: Rush. The greatest Canadian Rock band/ power trio started off relatively slowly in their home town of Toronto. But as they toured places like Rochester New York, Cleveland, Detroit and Chicago, even Quad Cities Iowa.... And great lakes radio stations on the US side began playing their songs... They established a regional bedrock of fiercely loyal fans ... And allowed them to become " probably your favorite rock band's favorite rock band" in North America.
Secondly around the same time. The revolution in Comedy that was Saturday Night Live in New York, simply could not have happened without the two branches of Second City Improv in Chicago and Toronto. Second City spawned greats like Belushi, Akroyd, Bill Murray, John Candy and on and on. SCTV became a major canadian comedy program that had a huge cult following in the Great Lakes region.
Though a lot of manufacturing has certainly been relocated from the region and outsourced to other regions and countries, a lot of the manufacturing in the Great Lakes rust belt had simply been automated to the point where you only need a fraction of the workforce as once did. Case in point Gary, IN poster child of rust belt decline still has one of the largest steel mills in the country it only needs to employ like 1/10 the workforce it once did.
Also, with white flight to suburbs combined with modern manufacturing plants needeing a larger physical footprint, a lot of factories needed more space thus relocated to the suburban fringe. That’s what happened with Detroit. Sure, the big three started building new factories first in the south then overseas, and stagnated due to foreign competition from the German and Japanese automakers, but what factories remain in Metro Detroit relocated from the city proper to suburbs further out.
I live on Lake Erie. I’ve traveled the world extensively. It’s the best place to live on the planet.
Glad you like it! You wouldn’t argue Lake Tahoe? Maybe the Hudson Valley? I remember when Lake Erie was beat up more than [my home in] New Jersey. I’m glad to see that you love it 😀
Southwestern Ontario from Oshawa to Windsor MOST CERTAINLY belongs in this category since it supplies the North American market with trucks made at GM's Oshawa and Ford's Oakville facilities... In fact, I'd argue it's now the beating heart of the Great Lakes megaregion both culturally and economically... After all Toronto is now the 3/4th largest film and TV hub on the continent after Los Angeles, Vancouver, and most times even New York the city it "imitoots exartly" on screen in everything from Kick Ass to The Boys...
My Edge came from the Oakville plant
With the background music, one of my favorite videos ☺️ but honestly, you need occasionally here and there a second of a break while talking 😅 not only before switching to the next topic 😅
In addition to the Twin Cities, Duluth/Superior, & Thunder Bay that other commentors have mentioned, Sault Ste. Marie is also a critical asset to the region. While it may not seem as obvious as Chicago, it's arguably just as important as a transit hub. More than 90% of the iron for domestically made high-strength steel comes through the Soo Locks, making that waterway the backbone of the entire region's manufacturing industry.
I love your content! It's super engaging and educational. Thanks for sharing this knowledge! 🌟📚
I come from peoria, il. A city in central il that is still pretty big in manufacturing today. And even our small suburbs and small farm towns surrounding all usually have one or two factories in them. This area has consistently changed and revived itself through revenvition over the history of america. And i think anyone who believes we wont again is crazy.
Really interesting video! I would've liked to see Lake Superior and Minnesota covered more heavily. Lake Superior has tons of shipping and industry around Duluth, Minnesota and Superior, Wisconsin.
Cleveland ROCKS!
Southern Ontario and Minnesota and Superior are all solidly in this region too.
Duluth and Superior as many others have mentioned. Also about 3.5 hours northeast along the shore of Lake Superior is Thunder Bay, a major manufacturing site of paper and depressing news. Hauled many paper and pulp out of the mill there and heard much about their drug and policing problems.
If including Minnesota because that same Superior shores, let's not forget Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, maker of 8210 N95 mask and much, much more. Although it's a bit far from the lakes.
Crossing the Canadian border is definitely not a problem. Cross-border traffic is so heavy that a third major motor vehicle bridge from Ontario to Michigan is nearing completion. There are two more across the Niagara River. There's a railway tunnel under the Detroit River. The auto plants in southwestern Ontario are all integrated into a common Canadian-American auto industry served by Ontario Highway 401. Highway 401 is also used by American trucks as a shortcut around Lake Erie to New York state. But thanks for considering Canada, Most American videos about the Great Lakes here don't mention Canada at all.
As someone who lives in the Great Lakes region, I don't think of places like St. Louis, or central Indiana and central/southern Ohio to be a part of the region. Midwest, certainly. Great Lakes? Definitely not.
as a Cleveland native, the perception of places like Cincinnati has always been more "southern" as opposed to "Midwest". certainly not "Great Lakes".
@@agent1.618 Agreed completely. It's not even a knock on those areas. It's just a different vibe, but at the same time, hard to put into words for a non-Great Lakes person... for me at least.
As someone who was born, raised and still lives in Hamilton, Ontario, considered at one time the steel production capital of Canada, aka Canada's Pittsburgh, at the "horseshoe" of Lake Ontario, the entire Southern Ontario region is part of the a massive economic region that straddles both Canada and the U.S. Steel that was made in Hamilton in form or another helped to build the World Trade Center among thousands of North American infrastructure projects. The close connection still continues today via auto manufacturing, Honda Civics for the North American market are made in Aliston Ontario north of Toronto, but the engines that go in them are made in Ohio and shipped to the Canadian plant. Every Dodge Charger and Challenger in North America, including the police pursuit versions, are made in Brampton, just west of Toronto.
I remember long ago in grade school first hearing the word "mnemonic." To remember all the great lakes (if asked on a test) we were given the mnemonic- HOMES (Huron-Ontario-Michigan-Erie-Superior). The great lakes was MY very FIRST mnemonic! It helps still on some crossword puzzles too! I still use it to name them all ( I live in Texas). The phrase "last but not least," certainly serves Superior well in HOMES as a perfect example of that phrase.
Thank you for again going over Mt region with a new video🎉🎉👌
Just a few things I was hoping to learn more about -
What geologic and climate phenomena led to the lakes’ creation?
How did the relative location of the huge resource deposits (coal, iron ore, etc.) make this success possible?
How did (if at all) the Ohio and Mississippi rivers facilitate this growth?
Thanks for a great channel.
2:23 i swear this and hot wings are like the only 2 things my city is known for lol
Absolutely a yes for Toronto, as well as Montreal and Quebec since there is so much trade, commercial and leisure interactions, and the Toronto region is similar in nature
Thanks Geoff - you videos are well done and I enjoy them lots!
I understand the reason for the subdivision but I want you to include all the Great Lakes. Lake Superior!
Duluth is important for resources to make all that steel.
And include the Canadian areas. The area around the Great Lakes. They are so special!
I would also add the upper Mississippi basin, and the big and small cities along the Mississippi river. This is where the manufacturing centers meet the agricultural hubs...it's no mistake Caterpillar, Deere, and CNH, are all located within 200 miles of each other.
The discovery of natural gas from The Trenton Field in the 1880s in Indiana was largely responsible for industrial development in the region.
Yes include SW Ontario and Toronto. They are a big part of this region. This is coming from someone in the USA
I’m from eastern Iowa and the three cities included in his map are Davenport, Clinton, and Dubuque. Still lots of manufacturing occurring there.
The City of Toronto, Hamilton, Brampton, Pickering, Windsor, and other cities in the GTA is located in the Great Lakes region. This ideal location to trade with Chicago, Milwaukee, Detroit, and Cleveland made Toronto the largest city in Canada. Awesome, eh!
Not just Toronto but all of Southern Ontario and the Montreal/Quebec City where 60% of the Canadian population lives in the Laurentian corridor. All Canadian provinces trade more with their American counterparts then they do with each province.
To be fair if your going to include Toronto with an * I would do the same for Montreal as well because of the trade that happens in the region and being a kid that grow up in Detroit. Montreal does have a lot of culture similarities except for language but in turns of an economic zone
Toronto and northern ontario should be included in this as the entire shoreline of the great lakes is dotted with Steel Mills, including my local one in Sault Ste Marie tying them all together via an international port system thanks to the Soo Locks and other lock systems leading to the St Lawrence.
Another bonus living in the Great Lakes region (columbus) is you don’t have to worry about any natural disasters.
Central Ohio has plenty of tornadoes, unlike cities closer to the Great Lakes.
@@qpdpd Blizzards are natural disasters. Ask the folks in Buffalo.
If we had high speed rail connecting all these cities we would be unstoppable.
@@Michael-rr7um Facts
Pipe dream Republicans would call it socialist ideas.
Wouldnt have built a 6 billion dollar Gordie Howe international bridge if Ontario wasnt a partner in the region. Different country yes, but very much linked and open for business
this video was very interesting and educational and codensed to a proper lenght to get the nescessary informations without being to long or exhausting. my only complaint would be the choice of the background music. despite it´s low volume, the singing voice collided with the narration of the video. instrumental music without any singing would be much better.
greetings from Germany. keep the good work up and please have my subscription.
You forgot to mention, that Erie,Pennsylvania is the ONLY city in PA to actually be on the Great Lakes..
Basically belongs to Pittsburgh c'mon
@cookinbricks NO, we don't 🙂...127 miles apart with different identities...
@cookinbricks Erie even has it's own Metropolitan area of 270,000 people..
@@cookinbricksnope
I live in Chicago and I think Toronto should be included in the mega-region. I visited Toronto in 2019 and liked it. I am kinda jealous of those islands they have just off the shoreline.
A THIRD of the Canadian population lives in Southern Ontario, and half of the population lives in Southern Ontario plus the St Lawrence seaway. Making this only about the US is a bit of a fail.
Well done Geoff
The Hudson River should be connected to the Great lakes
On if Toronto should be included in the great lakes mega region. I would say yes. Even with the US/Canadian border in the area, if you are in Detroit or Buffalo or over in the Southwest tip of Ontario, you can see how integrated the areas are. Plates from each side of the border everywhere. The Windsor/Detroit crossing is one of the busiest in the world.
Aral lake grows and shrinks with centuries. When water receded in the recent drying up, they found a pier and boats remnants at the new water edge that was flooded earlier.
Come on now. The Soviet Union killed the Aral Sea deliberately. It’s a toxic mess now x somehow worse than the Salton Sea
I think that the green line should extend past Dubuque all the way to Waterloo. John Deere has a large presence in Waterloo and Cedar Falls along with their many suppliers. Caterpillar and 3M have a sizeable presence in Iowa as well. In between Waterloo and Dubuque are a few areas like Dyersville with manufacturing . They are in my opinion an extension of the great lakes region. You drive 5 hours east of Dubuque and you're past Chicago either in Michigan or half way through Indiana and an hour or so from Ohio. you go 5 hours west of Dubuque and you're probably still in Iowa.
hmm well i guess the question is whether Waterloo is more economically integrated with the great lakes region or not
The economic connection between Toronto and the US Great Lakes megaregion is undeniable, but as you say the border does have a significant effect. In reality, Toronto is part of a different megaregion, i.e the Windsor-Quebec City corridor. Really these are two neighbouring megaregions rather than one big one.
Don’t miss Lake Superior and Canada too the city of Toronto
Absolutely! Especially since the Gordie Howe bridge will opening next year 🏗️🛣️🎉
Really great and interesting video. Thanks!
9:11 I didn't know this about the current economics even though I live in the region.
As someone who works in Detroit, we have lots of people who work here that live in Canada. We even have a few people from Montreal that work here temporarily. So yes Toronto should be part of the reigion.
Plus the twin cities in Minnesota should be part of the reigon too.
Love your shirt! Are you also a model railroader?
I agree that river city St Louis belongs in the Great Lakes Megaregion, but it is ironic that the reversal of the the Chicago River plays a role in this. The resulting change in river flow created a direct water connection between Chicago and St Louis, but was originally strongly opposed by St Louis.
The Great Lakes Megaregion includes the Rust Belt and Southwestern Ontario where population density is even. Also, Lake Superior is very urban around it except for Duluth and Thunder Bay.
Canada ( primarily southern Ontario) should be included. The cross border business trade is gigantic!
Nearly moved there after college (Wisconsin) , kinda wish I had. Now I’m in ultra rural and remote northern coastal California.
I don't understand how you came up with these boundaries. Like that little spot in Iowa. Why isn't all of Michigan included?
The megaregion is about industry, manufacturing and population. The Quad Cities region has more than the northern half of Michigan.
The Northern half of the lower peninsula gets quite rural real fast, and the upper peninsula is even more rural. In fact the largest city in the Northern Lower peninsula has 15,000 people with a region of just under 100,000
Really nice video but the background music was distracting
Southern Ontario is an economic powerhouse. It should definitely be included. Its economy is larger than Pennsylvania’s or Michigan’s. It’s also culturally much closer to any Great Lake state than it is to Montreal - an example you gave - regardless of the international border.
When I travel, people say I live in the midwest, I correct them and say, I live in the great lakes region
I'm an urban planner in the Great Lakes region, and it's my opinion that in the coming decades the area is going to see a huge boom, particularly if some reform happens to our zoning and taxation laws. The area has a huge geographic advantage, and its main disadvantages are either temporary and human caused or winter. Our main problem is in most cities here, we have restrictice zoning codes and punitive tax codes that are holdovers from the backwards 1960s and 70s. I know that sounds funny, but in terms of urban policy, those decades were tremendously poorly managed. A land value tax replacing property and sales tax and a liberalized zoning code (which would lead to great transit) alone would turn Chicago into a global megacity over the course of a few decades. All of the other problems planners and engineers are already working hard on (and working hard at begging politicians for funds)