Detroit is one of the biggest and most important of American cities, as well as one of the oldest in the Midwest. It was founded in 1701 by the French (its name, short for "la Ville d'Etroit," means "City at the Straits") at the strategic waterway connecting Lakes Huron and Erie. By 1910, it had moved onto the list of top ten largest cities; by 1920, it was 4th, propelled to prominence by its port, its steel mills, and the new automobile industry. Detroit reached its greatest population—1,849,568—in 1960; but since then has shrunk to half its former size, the only American city to reach over a million in population and then drop below a million.

Still, it continues to dominate its region, and remains an important economic and cultural center. Detroit is renowned for its incredibly diverse ethnic makeup. Most famously, it's the home of the Motown Sound, created by the influx of black Americans who moved to the region in its days of industrial dominance. That economy also attracted large numbers of Poles, who populated the Hamtramck area. Detroit also has one of the largest Middle Eastern populations in the U.S.

To the north, on the other hand, "The Thumb" is another world entirely. Much of it is rural and agricultural, characterized by rolling hills and small towns, by 90 miles of Lake Huron shoreline with fine beaches and picturesque lighthouses, and acre upon acre of crops and pastures. The largest urban areas—Care, Bad Axe, and Sandusky—muster barely 10,000 people among them.