Midwest States - Which City is Closest? Quiz | Geography

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Which of these Illinois cities is closest to the Missouri border?

Answer: Springfield

Springfield is the capital of Illinois, the Land of Lincoln, and is about 100 miles from St. Louis, Missouri. Chicago is about 295 miles from St. Louis and is the third largest city in the U.S., with about 2.8 million people. Aurora is a suburb of Chicago and is 274 miles from St. Louis. Rockford is located on the banks of the Rock River in far northern Illinois and is about 250 from the nearest Missouri border. (DireWolf74)

2. Which of the following four Indiana cities is closest to the Ohio River?

Answer: Evansville

Evansville is located on the Ohio River and is called "River City". Indianapolis is the capital of Indiana, and is one of the largest state capitals, with over 780,000 people in 2000. Bloomington, with under 70,000, boasts having Indiana University, and that tends to raise the school-year residents up by over 30,000 people. (Dedicated to Ciucci & GoND by Spaudrey/JMElston)

3. The four answers listed are cities from the state of Iowa. If you could pick any location from Nebraska to reach one of them, which city would you reach first?

Answer: Council Bluffs

Council Bluffs lies directly on the Missouri River, the official border of Nebraska-Iowa. Des Moines, the capital city of Iowa, lies about 130 miles from Council bluffs. Cedar Rapids, known as the 'City of Five Seasons', lies another 114 miles from Des Moines. And Davenport, the birthplace of blues man Bix Beiderbecke, adds another 72 miles to the trip, ending you on the opposite side of Iowa from Nebraska. (Spaudrey)

4. Of the four Kansas cities listed, which one would you reach first when traveling from Oklahoma?

Answer: Wichita

Wichita is south of the other three cities. So you would reach it first from Oklahoma. In 2008, MSN Real Estate ranked Wichita the number one most affordable city. In 2008, "Money Magazine" ranked it the number nine best place to live in the US. Kansas City, Kansas, like Overland Park, is a satellite city of Kansas City, Missouri. Topeka is the capital of Kansas. (Dedicated to Acannon1585 & Sociolopath by JMElston)

5. Of these Michigan cities, which is closest to Lake Michigan?

Answer: Grand Rapids

Grand Rapids is the most western of the four listed cities and is closest to Lake Michigan. Lansing is one of those Midwest capitals that doesn't rank high among the state's populous cities. Detroit is by far the largest Michigan city, being more populated than the next six Michigan cities combined in 2000. (Dedicated to Destimina & Mariboo by Spaudrey/JMElston)

6. Which of these four cities in Minnesota is closest to Lake Superior?

Answer: Duluth

Duluth is a port on Lake Superior. Minneapolis and St. Paul create the "Twin Cities", and collectively they had over 650,000 people in 2000. Their Metropolitan area was over a million. Rochester, Minnesota is a quickly growing city, and it the home to the famed Mayo Clinic. (Dedicated to Eunice2 & 800m_Man by Spaudrey/JMElston)

7. Name the Missouri city that is closest to the Ozark Mountains.

Answer: Branson

In the foothills of the Ozarks, Branson is a popular vacation destination in the Midwest with 50 live musical theaters, Silver Dollar City theme park and multiple golf courses and recreation areas. The Ozark Mountains cover southern Missouri and northwest Arkansas.

Kansas City sits on the Kansas border it shares the Missouri River with Kansas City, Kansas. St. Louis is on the Illinois border and is home to the delta where both the Missouri River and the Meramac River reach the Mississippi River. Jefferson City in the heart of Missouri is the state capitol--and one can find the Missouri River rolling through it as well.

8. If you traveled directly from Colorado, which of these four Nebraska cities would you come to first?

Answer: Lincoln

Lincoln is the capital of Nebraska. Since Lincoln is west of the other three cities mentioned, you would arrive there from Colorado first. Omaha is the largest city in Nebraska. Bellevue is the third largest city in the state. Nebraska City is a small town known as the "Home of Arbor Day". The National Arbor Day Foundation is located in Nebraska City. (Dedicated to Arrgh64 & HuskerDave65 by JMElston)

9. When going from Canada across the border into North Dakota, which of these four North Dakota cities would you come to first?

Answer: Minot

Minot is known as 'Magic City', because it sprang into existence in 1886 during the construction of the Great Northern Railway. Minot is the most northerly of the four cities listed; therefore you would reach it first from Canada. Bismarck is the capital of North Dakota.

The 19-story state capitol building is the tallest building in North Dakota. Fargo is the home of North Dakota State University. Grand Forks is home to the University of North Dakota. (Dedicated to BigDog026 & Dunnski by JMElston)

10. Most of Ohio's northern border fronts onto Lake Erie. If you picked your starting point from the lake, which of these four Ohio cities could you reach first?

Answer: Cleveland

Cleveland lies directly on Lake Erie, making it an incredibly short trip. The other three cities lie at least 100 miles (160 kilometers) south of Lake Erie. (Spaudrey)

11. If you are traveling from Iowa, which of the following South Dakota cities would you come to first?

Answer: Sioux Falls

Sioux Falls is the closest of the cities to Iowa, since it is almost on the border. Pierre is the capital of South Dakota, and it only had a 2000 population of under 14,000 in 2000. Rapid City is known as the 'Gateway to the Black Hills'. Mount Rushmore National Monument and Crazy Horse Memorial are nearby. Aberdeen is the birthplace of former US Senator Tom Daschle. (Dedicated to MALarson & TK68 by JMElston)

12. If you start in Iowa, which of these four Wisconsin cities would you reach first?

Answer: Madison

Madison lies near the east-west center of Wisconsin. The other three cities lie on or near the eastern border of Wisconsin. (Dedicated to Dolly_Llama & Gunner283 by Spaudrey/JMElston)

13. Now looking at the twelve Midwestern states as a whole, which of these non-Midwestern states can you reach directly from one of the borders of the Midwest?

Answer: Montana

Montana is achievable by crossing over from the South Dakota and the North Dakota borders. New Mexico requires a trip through either Colorado or Oklahoma, and Maryland needs a trip through West Virginia or Pennsylvania. Finally, Mississippi is blocked off by Arkansas and Tennessee. (Spaudrey)

14. If we are in Chicago and want to visit these four Midwestern landmarks, which one would we reach first?

Answer: The Gateway Arch

The Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri is approximately 295 miles from Chicago. It would take about 345 miles to get to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. The Mall of America in Minneapolis, Minnesota is about 350 miles away. And Mount Rushmore in South Dakota is past Minneapolis, over 700 miles away from Chicago.

15. Expanding now to Canada, which of these Midwestern states could you reach first, essentially being able to step over the USA/Canada border?

Answer: Michigan

Michigan actually has numerous places to do this. You can even in three different locations stand in Canada and step south (Northern Michigan), west (near Port Huron), and even north (Detroit area) to reach Michigan. (Spaudrey)

Source: Author Spaudrey

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor Pagiedamon before going online.
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Midwest States - Which City is Closest? Quiz

This quiz will list four cities from one Midwestern state. The question will deal with which city is closest to the state or landmark listed in the question. Best of luck.

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