Midwest
Reporter's Notebook: A portrait of Middletown, Ohio, home to JD Vance
“Like most small children, I learned my home address so that if I got lost, I could tell a grown-up where to take me.”
Those are the opening lines to “Hillbilly Elegy,” the memoir by Republican Vice Presidential nominee and Sen. JD Vance. It documents his rocky childhood growing up in Jackson, Kentucky, and Middletown, Ohio.
Like Vance, I, too, learned my address for the same reasons. In fact, the geography is pretty similar. I was born in Middletown, just like Vance. But I was raised just west of there. I can’t claim Middletown residency like Vance, Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Clarence Page of the Chicago Tribune, basketball Hall of Famer Jerry Lucas, football Hall of Famer Cris Carter or baseball All-Star Kyle Schwarber.
I didn’t graduate from Middletown High School like Vance. However, I spent a lot of time in Middletown growing up. I know Middletown about as well as any place on Earth.
JD VANCE’S HOMETOWN OF MIDDLETOWN, OHIO, WAS BUILT BY STEEL INDUSTRY: WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT IT
A welcome sign invites visitors to downtown Middletown, Ohio. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
Both of my parents graduated from Middletown High School. My dad worked for four decades at ARMCO Steel, a major plant in Middletown. In “Hillbilly Elegy,” Vance writes about how the fate of Middletown was linked to ARMCO, now known as Cleveland-Cliffs. I spent countless hours visiting my maternal grandmother who lived in Middletown. Like Vance’s family, grandparents on both sides of my family migrated from eastern Kentucky to Middletown to work at ARMCO.
Middletown was predominant in our lives.
We went to the doctor and dentist in Middletown. We shopped in Middletown. We attended church in Middletown. In 1976, I watched President Gerald Ford roll down Verity Parkway in an open-air convertible in Middletown.
As I grew older, I bought cassette tapes of Def Leppard and Iron Maiden in Middletown. We dined regularly at Frisch’s and a hamburger stand called The Jug in Middletown. I took a few classes at the Miami University (Ohio) branch in Middletown. I played basketball and soccer in Middletown. And I ran laps at the indoor track and swam at the YMCA there, too.
I still swing through Middletown to this day. I regularly buy a small cake or a box of smiley face cookies from the Central Pastry. I have never encountered another establishment which can rival the butter cream icing of the Central Pastry.
Vance worked as a cashier at Dillman’s, a local grocery store. Roger Dillman, who owned the store, sponsored me as a delegate to attend Buckeye Boys State. It’s a nationwide government politics program operated by the American Legion.
Starting in junior high, I studied vocal performance under the legendary Helen Ramsdell in Middletown. She taught music from her stately home on Central Avenue. In addition to yours truly, Ramsdell famously taught the McGuire Sisters back in the 1930s. Look ‘em up, kids.
Some of my most formative experiences unfolded in Middletown during my high school years.
The local arts organization ran a program called Summer Youth Theatre in Middletown. Students as young as 12 and as old as 18 could audition for a show, usually a musical. The performances often fell around the end of July or first of August at Middletown High School. In fact, if you examine some of the video from Vance’s rally last week at the school, you can spy the raised portion of the building which still serves as the auditorium.
At the time, Middletown High School had one of the best high school theater facilities in the state, a sprawling, wooden stage. It featured built-in footlights and an apron that jutted into a chasm that doubled as the orchestra pit. The backstage was spacious. It was deep enough to carry several layers of curtains, travelers and scrims. There was a set shop and a commodious makeup room, as well as two dressing rooms for the performers.
My high school to the southwest of Middletown had none of those things. We had a “raised garage” in the “cafetorium.” So, performing at Middletown each summer was a thrill. I acted in “Oklahoma!,” “South Pacific,” “Gypsy,” “Li’l Abner,” “Bye-Bye Birdie” and “George M!” It was great fun. Plus, you got to meet and hang out with kids from other schools.
VARIETY’S FILM CRITIC WRITES ‘HILLBILLY ELEGY’ FILM ‘MAY HAVE CREATED A MONSTER’ LEGITIMIZING JD VANCE
Buildings in downtown Middletown, Ohio (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
After rehearsal each night, many of us would drive down Briel Boulevard in Middletown to find something to eat. It’s doubtful that any thoroughfare in America could boast of such a dense concentration of fast-food joints and other eateries: Burger King, Long John Silvers, Friendly’s, Famous Recipe Fried Chicken, Rax Roast Beef, McDonald’s, Wendy’s, White Castle, Pizza Hut, Captain D’s. There was an Arby’s around the corner along with a local pizza place called Cassano’s. If we were out really late, a few of us might head to Milton’s Donuts. Milton’s stayed open all night.
As kids do, we’d talk about our aspirations, our hopes and our dreams. But for most of us, we were going to leave Middletown to make it big in theater, or music or movies. These dreams were all fueled by an ice cold Coca-Cola and a bacon double cheeseburger from Burger King.
Even though I spent a lot of time in Middletown, I always considered my visits as “going into town.” After all, we were from the country.
In fact, Middletown was a place I looked up to at the time. It wasn’t Cincinnati or Dayton or New York or Chicago. But it seemed more sophisticated than the country landscape where I lived. Middletown had a vibrant arts scene. There was an art gallery and regular classical music performances. There was a “grown-up” theater troupe and several movie theaters.
The houses seemed nicer in Middletown. Many of the students seemed a little better off. Their parents might have worked at ARMCO. But maybe they were employed on the corporate side of things. They weren’t blue-collar workers like my dad.
It always seemed like there was more to do in Middletown than out where we lived.
But something was afoot in Middletown that I didn’t realize at the time.
Middletown was a “company town” because of ARMCO, but ARMCO began bleeding cash in the 1980s. The recession of the time hurt American steel manufacturers. The influx of foreign cars into the U.S. market exacerbated things, just like the “dumping” of cheaper steel into the American market from abroad.
ARMCO slashed jobs. Kawasaki purchased ARMCO, forming a new firm named AK Steel. It temporarily shifted the headquarters from the vaunted “Central Offices” in Middletown to Pennsylvania. There was a brief lockout at ARMCO in 1987. There was nearly a strike in 1990.
I always parachuted into Middletown when I would come home from Washington. Sometimes, just to catch up with friends or go grab a meal. But things were evolving.
Eventually, people moved out of Middletown. They may not have moved to Washington, D.C., like me, but they left for bigger cities like Cincinnati or Columbus. AK Steel remained in business. Middletown didn’t become Youngstown or East Chicago. But the place wasn’t quite what it was decades ago. The global economy evolved, thanks to outsourcing and congressional adoption of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
This is what makes Middletown an American story.
I really noticed changes in Middletown after the financial crisis of 2008. The streets were ruddy and worn. A mall on the eastern side of the city near I-75 struggled. Shops were boarded up. The population dipped slightly. There were always pockets of poverty in Middletown. But – like much of the U.S. – the hardship was now more pronounced. The city looked destitute. Meth use skyrocketed. Homelessness, which one rarely saw before, was now obvious in downtown Middletown. There was even prostitution.
In the late summer of 2008, the presidential campaign of the late Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., flew former Republican Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin into Middletown’s Hook Field under cover of darkness. Palin was a surprise pick to be McCain’s running mate. McCain planned to roll out Palin at a rally in nearby Dayton the next day. Bringing Palin into unsuspecting Middletown helped the campaign keep its pick under wraps.
The campaign put up Palin and her family at what had been the posh Manchester Motor Inn in downtown Middletown. JFK even stayed at the Manchester when he campaigned in Ohio for President in 1960. But the Manchester was a shadow of itself. It had threadbare carpet and ancient fixtures in the bathrooms. Palin’s daughter, Bristol, ripped the Manchester’s ramshackle state in her 2011 book.
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Houses on McKinley Street in Middletown, Ohio. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
“The raggedy old hotel had dated furniture, small rooms, ugly pink walls, and an abundant supply of cockroaches,” wrote the younger Palin. “I’d never even seen a cockroach before. Reporters might not think Wasilla is the prettiest town in the world, but at least we don’t have roaches.”
And Bristol Palin didn’t even get the name of the town right. She dished about “Middleton,” not Middletown.
But like many places in America, Middletown rallied from the 2008 economic calamity. While major banks that occupied three of four corners in downtown Middletown closed, Cincinnati State opened a branch campus in the old Cincinnati, Gas & Electric building. That fueled a mini-wave of a few coffee shops and restaurants downtown. There’s even an Italian steakhouse now. They paved the streets.
“Middletown Dreams” is a mid-80s track by the Canadian rock band Rush. Late Rush drummer and lyricist Neil Peart said he chose that title “because there is a Middletown in almost every state in the U.S. It comes from people identifying with a strong sense of neighborhood.”
One lyric goes like this:
“Dreams transport the ones / Who need to get out of town…”
One can certainly appreciate that sentiment considering the portrait of Middletown painted by Vance in “Hillbilly Elegy.”
But Rush’s song ends with this:
“And life’s not unpleasant / In their little neighborhood / They dream in Middletown.”
Middletown may be a place of nightmares to some, but it’s also a place of dreams. Think of all the people from eastern Kentucky who migrated to Middletown to work at ARMCO.
They had dreams — dreams of a better life and better wages. Middletown certainly fueled my dreams. I suspect they did the same for JD Vance, too.
And dreaming in Middletown — all of the Middletowns — is a very American story.
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The South Dakota Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at June 29, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Powerball numbers from June 29 drawing
10-14-41-53-59, Powerball: 03, Power Play: 2
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Lotto America numbers from June 29 drawing
08-13-29-30-31, Star Ball: 04, ASB: 03
Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from June 29 drawing
04-25-26-31-36, Bonus: 04
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize
- Prizes of $100 or less: Can be claimed at any South Dakota Lottery retailer.
- Prizes of $101 or more: Must be claimed from the Lottery. By mail, send a claim form and a signed winning ticket to the Lottery at 711 E. Wells Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501.
- Any jackpot-winning ticket for Dakota Cash or Lotto America, top prize-winning ticket for Lucky for Life, or for the second prizes for Powerball and Mega Millions must be presented in person at a Lottery office. A jackpot-winning Powerball or Mega Millions ticket must be presented in person at the Lottery office in Pierre.
When are the South Dakota Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
- Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Dakota Cash: 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
- Millionaire for Life: 10:15 p.m. CT daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Dakota editor. You can send feedback using this form.
The Wisconsin Badgers basketball offseason has looked slightly different than normal through the month of June.
Head coach Greg Gard’s class of 2027 rounds out the month of June, featuring three high-profile high school talents. Headlined by four-star in-state sensation Jalen Brown, the class also features three-star center Jack Thelen and Baboucarr Ann, Minnesota’s No. 1 prospect for the class of ’27.
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While 247Sports considers Brown the No. 70 player, No. 13 shooting guard, and No. 5 recruit from Wisconsin for the class of 2027, Ann’s status as a small forward is certainly comparable. The outlet’s composite ranking ranks Ann as the No. 63 overall player, No. 18 small forward, and top-rated recruit from his state, making the tandem one of the most prestigious duos to commit to UW in recent history.
247Sports’ director of scouting Adam Finkelstein had this to say about Ann in his recruiting profile:
“Ann is a long-armed, two-way wing who already has versatile tools and yet plenty of potential to keep improving for the foreseeable future… Ann is a long-armed, two-way wing who already has versatile tools and yet plenty of potential to keep improving for the foreseeable future.”
But how did Ann perform during his latest season with Maple Grove High School in Maple Grove, Minnesota?
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Through 31 games, he averaged 18.9 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.4 steals per appearance, according to StribVarsity. If Ann can provide even half of that production as a freshman, Wisconsin’s wing depth could look quite scary when he arrives in Madison.
Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion.
This article originally appeared on Badgers Wire: What did prized Wisconsin commit Baboucarr Ann average in 2025-26?
Looking for the newest family attractions in Metro Detroit? You’re in luck! Just halfway through 2026, southeast Michigan has welcomed an incredible lineup of new playgrounds, museums, indoor play spaces, splash pads, interactive exhibits, and family attractions. Whether you’re planning a weekend adventure, looking for somewhere new to explore with toddlers, or trying to keep older kids entertained this summer, these brand-new destinations deserve a spot on your family’s bucket list.
Here’s where families are heading in Metro Detroit this year.
Detroit’s newest riverfront attraction features an interactive water garden where kids can run through playful fountains while enjoying spectacular views of the Detroit River. The surrounding park also includes nature-inspired playgrounds, walking paths, picnic areas, and one of the city’s most beautiful waterfront destinations.
Michigan Science Center has unveiled a giant cardboard maze experience that celebrates Detroit neighborhoods, landmarks, and creativity. Families can wander through immersive pathways filled with colorful murals while also enjoying hands-on STEM activities like robot challenges, cardboard building stations, and interactive games. Best of all, the exhibit is included with general admission.
History comes to life in a powerful new way at Greenfield Village with the opening of the Jackson Home, relocated from Selma, Alabama. The home belonged to Dr. Sullivan and Richie Jean Sherrod Jackson, close friends of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and served as an important meeting place during the Civil Rights Movement.
West Lincoln Well Park (Birmingham)
West Lincoln Well Park is located on the south side of Lincoln Street at Westchester Way. The park contains open space, two tennis courts and play equipment including swings, slides, shaded sandbox, a play structure and rockers. Address: 1801 W Lincoln St, Birmingham, MI 48009
The new Erb Discovery Trails at the Detroit Zoo is a 7-acre immersive experience set to open on Saturday, May 23rd. The trails will feature a mix of new animal habitats, hands-on encounters, and nature-inspired play spaces where kids can climb, explore, and engage their senses. Guests can expect interactive experiences like feeding animals, exploring multi-sensory pathways, and even encountering species like stingrays and bamboo sharks, all while learning about conservation through storytelling and outdoor adventure. Created to blend education with play, the Discovery Trails aim to inspire curiosity, connection to nature, and memorable family experiences in an entirely new section of the zoo.
Step into a world of magic this summer at The Lost World of Dragons at Sloan Museum of Discovery, running May 16 through September 13. This exciting, family-friendly exhibit brings dragon legends to life with interactive displays that blend science, history, and imagination—perfect for curious kids and adventurous families. Admission is $25 for ages 12+, $17 for kids ages 2–11 (under 2 free) and includes full access to the museum, making it an easy and unforgettable day trip option.
Great Lakes Serpentarium brings reptiles out of the pages of books and into the real world with more than 100 animals from around the globe. From snakes and turtles to iguanas and alligators, this unique reptile house lets visitors see and interact with creatures most people only read about.
At Slick City Troy is the most popular place in town! The action lineup is packed with thrilling attractions you won’t find anywhere else. Feel the rush of wind as you zoom down, enjoying a safe and thrilling descent that’s fun for all ages – thing the adrenaline rush of a roller coast but on massive slides. In addition to giant slides, there are also traditional multi-level climbing structures for school age kids and toddlers. Location: 1820 Crooks Rd, Troy
2D DIY Studio has opened a brand-new location in Sterling Heights, offering a fun, welcoming space where kids, teens, and adults can tap into their artistic side. Whether you’re planning a girls’ night out, a birthday party, or a family outing, this DIY studio delivers colorful, crafty fun for all skill levels — no experience required.
Oak Park Woods Playground (Oak Park)
Uniquely designed, Oak Park Woods features towering green play structures, connected by rope bridges, climbing nets, tunnels, and elevated pathways. . The massive play structure features towering climbing elements, a giant slide, inclusive play equipment, and plenty of room for kids to explore. Lower climbing features, smaller slides, and ground-level play elements create opportunities for toddlers and preschoolers to safely explore. Best of all the park’s signature train and monster truck have been refurbished and remain at the park. Address: 24198 Church St, Oak Park, MI 48237
At Kids Castle Fun Center guests can race around in exciting bumper cars, bounce in colorful and safe bounce houses—including obstacle courses and an adventurous Pirate Ship—play a variety of arcade games from classic favorites to modern hits, and enjoy kiddie ride-ons and prize-filled crane games. Address: 5100 Dixie Highway, Suite 400
A new entertainment destination for families has arrived in metro Detroit. Gotta Gacha brings together classic arcade fun, modern gaming, and collectible culture all under one roof—making it a must-visit spot for kids, teens, and gamers of all ages. Address: 29200 Dequindre Rd Ste 3, Warren
One of the most unique new play spaces in Metro Detroit, Sandverse brings the beach indoors with Michigan’s first immersive indoor sandbox experience. Kids can dig, build, and create in soft, natural sand, using tools and prompts that encourage open-ended, sensory-rich play. Designed especially for younger children, the space blends creative exploration with early learning and motor skill development, while also offering a sand-free zone for additional play.
ITAVA IMAGINATION Station is all about hands-on discovery, creativity, and imaginative play. This interactive space encourages kids to explore, build, and engage in STEAM-inspired activities that blend learning with fun – inside AND out! Designed for a wide range of ages, it offers an environment where kids can experiment, problem-solve, and let their imaginations run wild.
Specializing in children’s art classes, camps and art themed birthday parties, Kidcreate Studio is an art studio just for kids. At Kidcreate Studio, your child will create fridge-worthy masterpieces, learn art concepts, and experiment with many different art materials.
After renovations and updates, Plymouth District Library is celebrating its grand reopening this June. Families can explore refreshed spaces, updated collections, and community-centered improvements designed to make the library even more welcoming for children and visitors of all ages.
The wait is over! Ford Field Park is finally reopened in downtown Northville and the signature wooden playground is now trek! Say bye to splinters an wood chips in sandals and enjoy a similar playtime experience in a modern, more enjoyable environment. Address: 151 N. Griswold, Northville, MI 48167
The RED Children’s Museum is a first-of-its-kind children’s visual arts museum focused entirely on hands-on creativity, expression, and imagination. Families can explore interactive exhibits that encourage kids to paint, build, design, and experiment with art in a completely immersive way. Unlike traditional museums, this space invites kids to be active participants—making it perfect for curious minds who love to create.
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