Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Four million Americans tune in every week to Midwestern raconteur Garrison Keillor's
old-timey radio show,
A Prairie Home Companion.
Listen to the live music, sketches and
storytelling online at
http://prairiehome.publicradio.org
.
Religion
Separation of church and state has been the law of the land ever since the Pilgrims came
ashore in Massachusetts in the early 1600s. Their faith - Protestant Christianity - contin-
ues to be the main one in the East.
Protestantism covers a wide swath of denominations. They fall under two main head-
ings: evangelical Protestants, of which Baptists form the biggest contingent; and main-
line Protestants, such as Lutherans, Methodists and Presbyterians. Evangelicals have the
greater number of worshippers, and that number has grown in recent years: Baptists are
their powerhouse, accounting for one-third of all Protestants and close to one-fifth of the
USA's total adult population. Their numbers stack up in the South. In contrast, Lutherans
(who are concentrated in Minnesota and Wisconsin, as well as the Dakotas) and the other
mainline denominations have experienced declining figures.
Catholicism is the East's second-most-practiced faith. In fact, New England is the
country's most Catholic zone, and the numbers trickle down to the Mid-Atlantic states.
Massachusetts is the most Catholic state, with 45% of residents of that faith. Baltimore is
the country's oldest archdiocese, established in 1789. States with large Latino popula-
tions, such as Florida and Illinois, also support big concentrations of Catholics.
Judaism has a significant presence in the eastern USA. Jews make up roughly 12% of
the population in both south Florida and the New York metro area. The latter is a major
center of Orthodox Judaism and home to more Jews than anywhere outside Tel Aviv.
Also in the East: Muslim Americans cluster in the New York, Chicago and Detroit
metro areas. Hindu Americans bunch in New York and New Jersey, as well as big cities
like Chicago, Washington, DC, and Atlanta.
TV shows like
The Biggest Loser
and Eric Schlosser's book and film
Fast Food Nation
shine a spotlight on the nation's deadly eating habits. Fast food, soft drinks and too
much television have all been vilified in recent years.
Lifestyle
In general, the eastern USA has one of the world's highest standards of living, though
there are some shocking variances by region. At the top end sits Maryland, with a medi-
