So now you know what we mean when we say Madison, Wisconsin is almost "Franciscan" in its reign over our annual Best & Worst Cities rankings: The city has the most No. 1 finishes in the history of our Metrogrades melee.
Madison's secret? Midwestern consistency. When we delved into the data from the usual assortment of alphabet agencies (CDC, FBI, EPA), we found that the capital of the Badger State kept throwing ringers in the key categories of health, fitness, and quality of life. All told, we crunched 37 different criiteria, from man killers (heart disease, cancer, and so forth) to man thrillers (ratio of single men to single women).
When all was said and done, we checked our math then checked it again, because close only counts if your last name is Francis.
The list:
Madison, WI
Fargo, ND
Plano, TX
Burlington, VT
San Jose, CA
Lincoln, NE
Austin, TX
Aurora, CO
Virginia Beach, VA
Seattle, WA
Minneapolis, MN
Boise City, ID
Santa Ana, CA
Colorado Springs, CO
St. Paul, MN
Raleigh, NC
Salt Lake City, UT
Manchester, NH
San Diego, CA
Anchorage, AK
Portland, ME
Honolulu, HI
San Francisco, CA
Boston, MA
Sioux Falls, SD
Chesapeake, VA
Bridgeport, CT
Omaha, NE
Des Moines, IA
Portland, OR
Oakland, CA
Phoenix, AZ
Fort Worth, TX
Charlotte, NC
New York, NY
Denver, CO
Laredo, TX
Durham, NC
Billings, MT
Los Angeles, CA
Lexington, KY
Atlanta, GA
Jersey City, NJ
Providence, RI
El Paso, TX
Cheyenne, WY
Sacramento, CA
Orlando, FL
Houston, TX
Albuquerque, NM
Buffalo, NY
San Antonio, TX
Reno, NV
Wilmington, DE
Dallas, TX
Fort Wayne, IN
Fresno, CA
Riverside, CA
Miami, FL
Tucson, AZ
Columbus, OH
Lubbock, TX
Washington, DC
Wichita, KS
Greensboro, NC
Winston-Salem, NC
Stockton, CA
Cincinnati, OH
Norfolk, VA
Pittsburgh, PA
Bakersfield, CA
Milwaukee, WI
Chicago, IL
Indianapolis, IN
Corpus Christi, TX
Las Vegas, NV
Tampa, FL
Nashville, TN
Oklahoma City, OK
Kansas City, MO
Newark, NJ
Baton Rouge, LA
Tulsa, OK
Columbia, SC
Little Rock, AR
Richmond, VA
Jacksonville, FL
Jackson, MS
Cleveland, OH
Louisville, KY
Toledo, OH
New Orleans, LA
Charleston, WV
Baltimore, MD
St. Petersburg, FL
Memphis, TN
Detroit, MI
Birmingham, AL
Philadelphia, PA
St. Louis, MO