I know we all have our own ways of dividing the North Central region into subregions.

I tend to see the region around the Great Lakes as the Midwest and the line of states from ND to Okla as the Great Plains. That's just my paradigm.

Culturally and historically I tend to see the Midwest as free states. I don't see KY as part of the region, and have an iffy attitude towards MO's midwestern status. Again, that's just me.

I suppose that my real picture of the Midwest comes from looking at the footprint of the Big Ten conference before the eastern interloppers from Penn State came aboard.

So, in that sense, to me the Midwest is the central Great Lakes states: OH, MI, IN, IL, WI, MN.....plus inland IA.

I don't know if others see it that way. As part of my thinking, I see a close relationship between Iowa and the Great Lakes/Midwestern states. It is in the same tier of states as Minnesota, well part of our region. And as I said, MO might have fit the mode if it had been a free state. Meanwhile, climatically and culturally, I see Iowa as different from the tier of Great Plains states that run from ND to OK: Iowa has more rainfall and lacks the vast open spaces of the higher and drier western ends of those states.

Is this just my goofy scheme of things or does anyhone else see a special link Iowa has with the Great Lakes region?

^I totally agree. I tend to see the midwest in much the same respects.