Missouri
Missouri exhibits geographic centrality: Kansas City logistics hub and St. Louis gateway, but neither city dominates as population diffuses between divided metros.
Missouri sits at the nation's geographic center, a position that made St. Louis the gateway to westward expansion and today makes Kansas City a logistics hub. The state divides culturally between its two major metros: St. Louis with Northern industrial heritage versus Kansas City with Southern and Western influences. This bifurcation extends to economics—neither city dominates the state as Chicago dominates Illinois or Atlanta dominates Georgia.
Agriculture and food processing anchor the rural economy, with soybeans, corn, and livestock production supporting companies like Cargill and Tyson operations throughout the state. Kansas City's reputation for barbecue reflects this agricultural foundation, while the state's central location has attracted distribution centers for companies serving both coasts.
St. Louis has struggled to recover from population loss and corporate departures—once among America's largest cities, it now ranks far lower as headquarters have relocated and the Rust Belt dynamics that affected the Upper Midwest spread south. Kansas City shows more dynamism, attracting tech investment and benefiting from Google Fiber's early deployment. Missouri's bellwether political status has ended as the state has shifted Republican, potentially affecting its access to federal investment that typically flows to competitive states.