West Virginia Gives Us The Finger

As has been noted here previously, Michigan is the most anthropomorphic state in the Union. We Michiganians are proud to show you where we live (or where we're from) by pointing to a spot on our hand.

I also think Florida is anthropomorphic... but I"m not going there.

However, in a recent NPR Wait Wait Don't Tell Me blog post about the Senators drawing their home states, Ian Chillag pointed out that his home state of West Virginia can also be represented by the human hand:

We have a unique way of representing our geography: you take your left hand, stick your thumb out to the side, and stick up your middle finger. There it is, The Mountain State, staring you in the face. It's especially useful for explaining West Virginia geography to someone who just cut you off in traffic.

Lost Highways

In Michigan I grew up less than a mile from Dixie Highway, a four lane thoroughfare running through the Township. As a kid, I thought it funny that our highway was named for a Civil War song... It wasn't until many years later that I understood that this was just one part of a series of roads and highways connecting the Midwest with the South; from Sault St. Marie all the way to Miami.


The Dixie Highway was part of the National Auto Trail; an attempt in the early days of automobiles to connect state roads and highways into an cross-county system. It was first proposed in 1914, and was planned, built and expanded from 1915 to 1927 by the Dixie Highway Association, a group of individuals, businesses, local, and state governments. The route was marked with signs, sometimes painted on trees and telephone poles. The symbol for the highway was a red stripe.



The highway was inspired by the success of another inter-state highway, the Lincoln Highway, connecting Times Square in New York City with Lincoln Park in San Francisco.



Dozens of these named highways were developed all over the country. Eventually, they were superseded by the U.S. Highway and later the Interstate Highway systems. Some of the roads that were the Dixie Highway, became US-25 and I-75.

Very little remains of these "Lost Highways". Many states still have roads named Dixie Highway. Here in Ohio there remain two stretches that run north and south of Dayton. For those interested in tracing the paths of these old National Auto Trails can purchase a copy of this poster published by Mark R. Everhart:



"Lost Highways" depicts 48 major Named Auto Trails along with their corresponding pole marker signs on a full-color 22.5” X 28” poster on smooth 80# stock. Below is some of detail of the poster showing Michigan and Ohio, criss-crossed by named highways, including Dixie, Lincoln and the National Road:



The Lincoln Highway, previously on Cartophilia

Emily Wicks: The Fifty United States and their Mottos

Emily Wick has posted her linocuts and paintings on her "Two Eyeballs Galleries", including the beautifully cartographic The Fifty States and Their Mottos,a composite of 50 individual linocuts:



From the artist's statement:

I began making linoleum prints in 2003 and began studying classical realism under master painter David Hardy in 2006. I like to carve lino blocks while I am relaxing. I enjoy painting so I can slow down and learn this ancient magical trade of optical illusions. Seeing Things Differently to see a new world is my purpose: both imagination AND reality are important ingredients.

In addition, Emily Wick is a filmmaker and blogs about food!

Posters, original linocuts, and T-Shirts are also available.

HT to Orange!

Michigan Mittens

Can too much ever be said about the "mittenmorphic" State of Michigan? Who else can say they were born carrying a map of their home state? In a Say Yes! to Michigan post last Spring, I demonstrated how to create a map of Michigan with two hands:








The clever folks at Michigan Mittens are now offering special mittens with a map of a Michigan peninsula on each hand. Never get lost in Michigan AND keep your hands warm! Now you can have it all!

Michigan's Superior Peninsula

In his book, Lost States: Real Quests for American Statehood (discussed earlier this week) Michael Trinklein discussed the proposed State of Superior. Composed of Michigan's Upper Peninsula and portions of Northern Wisconsin, this state would presumably give the attention this region deserves, but is not getting from Lansing or Madison.



While the proposal gained some traction among "Yoopers" in the 1960s and `70s, it never came to a formal vote. Although they do have their own flag:



Some residents of the U.P. have an inflated view of their region's importance (as seen in this postcard):



(See other inflated views)

Additional map postcards with views of pleasant peninsulas:







Speaking of the Keweenaw Peninsula... For those of us of a certain age, who grew up in or near Detroit, we remember TV Weatherman, Sonny Elliot, and his special recognition of the Keweenaw Peninsula... ("Right... spweeeeet!... here...") Watch this video just past the two minute mark:





As you can see, his very first weathermap of Michigan lopped off the Keweenaw, and he had to add it on... In later years he made sure his (higher-tech) weather maps always had a detachable Keweenaw. He was also famous for coining new weather terms: cloudy and cool = "clool"!

Frowny Michigan

Princess Sparkle Pony responds to the recent announcement that the McCain campaign has "pulled out of Michigan":



I like it because is uses the mittenmorphic shape of Michigan in a new way. Eyes and eyebrows! I love it!

Warning: Princess Sparkle Pony is a political humor blog that my Republican friends will not likely find amusing.

#269

Obumper Stickers

The folks at Bumperactive.com, a custom bumper sticker printing company, are offering 52 state-specific (including D.C. and Puerto Rico) Barack Obama campaign bumper stickers. Sadly, only two of them include maps in their design:



In a previous post, I discussed the "mittenmorphic" attributes of the state of Michigan, as well as the old "Say Yes to Michigan" tourism advertising campaign.

Are there any other good examples of the clever use of maps in campaign advertising? Obama or McCain?

Mmmmm... Beer Maps

My favorite Pacific Northwest blogger, Michael5000, sent this photo to me the other day:



"Thought of you on a beer run yesterday -- this is a new (to me, at least) product of Deschutes brewery; the faux topo map on the six-pack carton is a version of the company logo (which you can see on the handle). Reasonably well done, I thought -- a good addition to your collection of carto-marketing?"

A good addition indeed! In fact Mr. 5000 inspired me to seek out further examples of maps on beer. I made a special trip to my favorite beer and wine shop that specializes in designer and craft brews from microbreweries around the country and picked up four six-packs of beer that I had never tried before, based solely on the fact that they included a map in their package design. Its a tough job, but I'm willing to go the extra mile, for you, my carto-friends.

Here are two from Colorado: This India Pale Ale from Avery features a map of the trade route to India that made the British Empire. In contrast, this Jackman American Pale Ale from the Left Hand Brewing Company shows what makes America great: Motorcycles! (With a background of a map of western states, including Colorado.)

And two from Bell's Brewery in Michigan. Bell's Lager of the Lakes features an early explorer's map of the Great Lakes region, while their Third Coast Beer gives us a view of Michigan's upper peninsula and the Keeweenaw Peninsula on Lake Superior and Oceania County on Michigan's Lake Michigan coast. The Great Lakes are often referred to as America's "third coast".

While these beers provide excellent use of maps in their packaging design, they were only fair, if somewhat disappointing in flavor. I cannot recommend cartography as the best criteria for beer selection... but I'm willing to keep trying

Sunrise Over Lake Huron

The American holiday, Labor Day, is coming up on Monday, September 1. Why do we celebrate workers in September? Because May Day is just too "socialist"... By moving it to September, we can all ignore the reason for the holiday, and just celebrate a long weekend at the end of Summer... But that's a topic for another blog.

This year, the 51st annual Mackinac Bridge Walk will take place in Michigan. Every Labor Day since 1958, one side of the bridge has been closed to traffic and the general public are allowed to cross the five-mile span on foot from St. Ignace to Mackinaw City. Traditionally, the State Governor has led the march.

Ten years ago, on Labor Day 1998, I particpated in the Mackinac Bridge walk.



I arrived in Mackinaw City late the night before, and attempted to sleep in my car, with little success. However, I was able to catch, in the early hours before dawn, one of the first busses to St. Ignace. They started the walk before sunrise and the timing was perfect. I was about halfway across the bridge when the sun began to rise over Lake Huron. It was spectacular!



I bought the commemorative t-shirt, and some Mackinaw City Fudge and prepared to head home.



The shirt, I thought, needed a bit more, so I stopped in a T-Shirt shop and had them add this Michigan map to the back.

#242

Say Yes! to Michigan

The most anthropomorphic of the United States is Michigan, with its lower peninsula shaped like a mittened hand. (The second most anthropomorphic state is Florida... but I'm not going there...) In much the same way that Texas is in love with its shape, and likes to use it everywhere in design, Michigan loves to flaunt its handy shape... In addition, Michiganians are fortunate to always carry a map of their state.

Unless of course, you happen to live in Michigan's upper peninsula... then you have to do something like this:

In the late 1980's to early 1990's, the Michigan Department of Tourism used as its slogan, "Say Yes! To Michigan." It was a silly slogan, accompanied by an insipid jingle (that is stuck in my head as I type). I was living in Michigan at the time, so I don't know how widespread the campaign was in other states, but the emphasis in-state was to encourage folks to spend their vacation money at home. Without a doubt, Michigan is a "Water Winter Wonderland" (an even earlier slogan) with much to offer to the outdoors enthusiast.

Meijer is a supermarket chain, founded in Michigan and based in the midwest. In conjunction with the Michigan Travel Bureau, Meijer produced a series of state travel maps and events brochures. I saved as many examples as I could find...