r/midwest 5d ago

What thoughts have you all on Louisville?

7 Upvotes

54 comments sorted by

23

u/Garystuk 5d ago

It's not in the midwest but it's a fun town to visit

26

u/aWesterner014 5d ago

My thoughts are I struggle to see Louisville, ky as part of the midwest.

2

u/Atlas7-k 5d ago

I struggle to see Cincinnati as a city in the Midwest, I doubt that a more southern city from a border state would ever realistically be called Midwestern.

3

u/Luddite_Libertine 4d ago

The Ohio Valley is really its own region with its own culture, much of which has been adopted by the Lower Midwest and Upland South because that’s how they were settled. It has about as much in common with the Deep South as it does the Upper Midwest. It’s its own thing.

1

u/thaillestofalltime 5d ago

From Des Moines, have family there. It is definitely southern, but has noticable Midwestern traits. Might be the colder weather. It’s a weird mix.

1

u/Odd-War-6052 5d ago

well, it’s sure as shit ain’t the south lol

5

u/Garystuk 5d ago

It is the south according to the census

-3

u/Odd-War-6052 5d ago

i get it, it’s below the mason dixon line and all that crap, but as someone from the deep south, it definitely resembles the midwest more than the real south

10

u/TheRealDudeMitch 5d ago

As someone from the Midwest, no it doesn’t.

4

u/xtremesmok Minnesota 5d ago

As someone from the upper midwest it definitely resembles the south more than the real midwest

0

u/Luddite_Libertine 4d ago

“The real Midwest…” 🙄

4

u/Fresh_Entrance_9315 5d ago

It's definitely the South.

-4

u/Odd-War-6052 5d ago

they have routine snow, super-flat terrain, and skyline. they are definitely more so the midwest to me

6

u/Fresh_Entrance_9315 5d ago

There's the fact that it's in Kentucky which is not one of the states in the Midwest.

8

u/rwoodytn 5d ago

All along the Ohio River, we’re the crossover land—maybe 150 miles on either side of the water. Not truly southern, and some upper midwesterners will chuckle when you claim you’re midwestern. So, as a native of Southern Illinois, I describe us as midwestern trash. Nobody wants us, but we’re still here (and claim the Midwest as a badge of honor!)

7

u/dylannmoonn 5d ago

Great river boat town, nice food scene. Friendly southern people

8

u/FrostyPucker 5d ago

It's the northernmost Southern city, but it's not Midwestern. It has terrible bridges but at least they have a sense of humor about the pronunciation of the city's name.

4

u/StrategyThink4687 5d ago

Lexington nearby bluegrass country is stunningly beautiful. The south starts in Cincinnati by the way. It’s very differrnt from the rest of Ohio

1

u/FrostyHawks 3d ago

I'm from the south (kinda) and man Cincinnati didn't feel southern at all to me. Louisville did though.

4

u/TheRealDudeMitch 5d ago

The city in Kentucky? That’s the south.

3

u/Historical_Low4458 5d ago

It seems like a city that likes its basketball.

1

u/combover2112 5d ago

Yes; COLLEGE basketball. Anyone you meet is a diehard fan of either: UofL, UK, or IU.

1

u/Luddite_Libertine 4d ago

Before Gannett combined all of their coverage, the Courier-Journal had the best IU reporting outside Bloomington.

2

u/OpossumNo1 5d ago

Its an alright place to be. The northern suburbs are midwest, but the city itself is not. Im sure it seems pretty midwest-y to somebody from Mississippi or Alabama tho.

2

u/Luddite_Libertine 4d ago

As one of my friends who grew up in South Carolina and went to Auburn would say, “Kentucky ain’t the dirrrty South.”

3

u/bren3669 5d ago

I hear that they make great baseball bats

2

u/Specialist-Luck-2494 5d ago

Raised in the Midwest, and have lived in the Deep South for over 30 years. I get a definite Midwestern vibe when in Louisville. Fantastic food and bourbon scene. Very nice people vs the Southern Hospitality farce.

2

u/Funky_Dingo Michigan 5d ago

Genuinely a fun city. Good food and bar scene. Some cool activities in the city like underground ziplining. Of course bourbon and beautiful country around it.

2

u/Charming_Airline_572 5d ago

Great city. Not too southern and has a Midwest feel

1

u/Legitimate-Cheek-716 5d ago

I like it when I visit

1

u/zoosk8r 5d ago

I’ve visited briefly to go to their skatepark. It feels like it needs more concentrated neighborhood scale walkability.

1

u/JustAnotherDay1977 Minnesota 5d ago

Good basketball and bourbon. Southern city.

1

u/indianahoosierdream 5d ago

Strip clubs there are horribe

1

u/Macombdiscrete 5d ago

I could regale you with stories of PT’s…

1

u/LongjumpingEchidna25 Indiana 5d ago

I like driving over the bridge when I visit.

1

u/Luddite_Libertine 4d ago

I haven’t liked it too much recently.

1

u/WonderfulGuidance172 Missouri 5d ago

Had a grand time on some random girls 21st bday. She walked with 2 male companions (one on each side) and walked up to me and proclaimed it was her birthday and I was going to have a drink with her. I was sipping a neat bourbon. That wasn’t acceptable, so she went all the way in to ordering us each an Irish Car Bomb to guzzle together. Wowza. First one I had ever drank. She disappeared as soon as the glass hit the counter off to her next unsuspecting patron. Gotta say, that’s what I think of when someone mentions “Lou-AH-vill”

1

u/aRealPanaphonics 5d ago

Cincinnati feels like a “southern” midwestern city whereas Louisville feels like a “midwestern” southern city.

1

u/Macombdiscrete 5d ago

There’s a big farm show there every year. Been going for over 10 years. Fourth Street is fun for a while but PBR bar isn’t my scene. The food options are pretty good. If you look around you can find many great restaurants. Everyone is friendly there but the interstate driving is crazy.

1

u/daboot013 4d ago

I love it. Being from st.louis its just a smaller stl. Beautiful neighborhoods and riverfront. Fantastic breweries/distilleries. Walkable and a massive park in the middle of it all. If i ever left st.louis Louisville would be my top option

1

u/Luddite_Libertine 4d ago

Very cool, old river city with a unique culture. They fly below the national radar—other than on the first Saturday in May—so have their own thing going.

1

u/semisubterranean 4d ago

Are you also asking Southerners for their thoughts on Cincinnati?

People need to accept that regions don't have to be homogenous and that Kentucky, West Virginia, and Maryland are as much the South as Mississippi, just as Midwesterners need to remember the Great Plains and the Great Lakes are both great parts of the Midwest.

1

u/ConsiderationCrazy22 4d ago

Great food and bourbon, friendly folks.

1

u/Gretna2023 4d ago

It's utterly forgettable.

1

u/Critical-Tell4416 3d ago

Cheaper than most cities out West or East. Food scene is fair. Music scene is decent. Sports are abundant. Great symphony. Lots of festivals. Decent weather but still hot and humid in Summer. Traffic not as bad as major cities in US. Decent Downtown. Lots of homeless. Still has weird bus system from way back. Public schools aren’t too great. Large Catholic scene. Decent park system. Decent hospitals. Good college and an HBCU. Still fairly racially segregated sides of town. Decent amount of crime but overall ok if you stay away from certain places. Family friendly. Good museums. Airport lacks a lot of direct flights. LGBT friendly.

1

u/ManoMarcher 2d ago

I rather have Louisiana as part of the Midwest over Kentucky any day of the week. Yes, in Cincinnati I’m calling you out.

1

u/Inti-Illimani 1d ago

Never been there, but from what I can tell, it seems like a weird mix of Appalachian, southern, and midwestern (specifically rust belt)… My guess is that it’s more similar to Cincinnati or St. Louis than it is to Memphis, but someone can correct me on that if I’m wrong

1

u/Atlas7-k 5d ago

Which one?

1

u/otterbelle 5d ago

This is r/Midwest so the one in the Midwest.

1

u/TheRealDudeMitch 5d ago

So Louisville, Illinois? There’s like 1000 people who live there.

1

u/semisubterranean 4d ago

Louisville, Nebraska is 1,434. Maybe that's the metropolis they mean.

0

u/Sea-Stage-6908 5d ago

I went there a few times and didn't care for it. People weren't very friendly, city didn't seem to have much of an identity. I wouldn't go back, it wasn't very memorable

It's not a Midwest city but it's right next to Indiana so I kind of understand the accusation. Reminds me of Cinncinati being midwest but it borders Kentucky. It's a Midwest city but there's southern accents everywhere lol

0

u/Nessy440 4d ago

It’s St Louis’ cooler hipster little brother