Last updated on June 28th, 2023
The east coast, including New England, is the setting of plenty of animated cartoons, thanks to the prominence of Boston, Philadelphia, and New York City. So, on the heels of my Midwestern animated cartoons post, here’s one about cartoons set in the Northeastern United States.
The US Census Bureau defines the Northeast to include: New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
Connecticut
The Disney Channel series “The Owl House” is mostly set in the “Boiling Isles,” a land located in the “demon realm.” However, Luz’s hometown in the “human realm” (aka Earth) is a fictional town (Gravesfield) located in Connecticut.
Maine
The 1999 movie “The Iron Giant” is set in a small town in Maine.
Massachusetts
The 2012 stop-motion animated film “ParaNorman” is set in a fictional town in Massachusetts.
Various TV shows have had episodes set in Massachusetts’ distant past. They’re usually about the first Thanksgiving, the American Revolution, or the Salem witch trials.
New Hampshire
An episode of “Wild Kratts” about Komodo dragons shows that Donita, one of the Kratts’ villains, has her mansion located in New Hampshire.
New Jersey
“Aqua Teen Hunger Force” is set in southern New Jersey. One episode has Master Shake try to make a (supposedly) psychic Meatwad give the winning New Jersey lottery numbers.
New York
The nation’s largest city’s unsurprisingly the home of a ton of cartoons. To name a handful:
- “The Critic”
- “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”
- “Futurama” (as “New New York”)
- “Mr. Peabody and Sherman”
- “The Real Ghostbusters“
- Most Marvel superhero TV shows and films (the various Spider-Man series, “Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur,” etc.)
- Bugs Bunny, per a few cartoons, grew up in New York (hence his accent)
Pennsylvania
Super Chicken in “George of the Jungle” lives in Pittsburgh.
The 2002 PBS series “Liberty’s Kids” had episodes scattered across the colonial United States. However, Philadelphia (the home of Ben Franklin and his print shop) was a heavy focus.
Rhode Island
“Family Guy” is set in the fictional Rhode Island town of Quahog.
Vermont
On “Animaniacs,” Wakko mentions Vermont’s capital, Montpelier, in his song “Wakko’s America.”
Unfortunately, I couldn’t find a better Vermont reference; cartoons set in New England don’t seem to reference Vermont much?
Image by Andreas H. from Pixabay
