Massachusetts obviously leads the pack. Rhode Island second, probably Maine third. All three easily beat anywhere in the Midwest.
I think that's basically correct with Vermont up there too.
There are a few areas outside the Northeast that jump out, but no states. Especially the Iron Range in Minnesota (Carlton, St. Louis, Lake and Cook counties) and northern Wisconsin (Ashland, Bayfield and Douglas counties).
Vermont is a little different. Depends on whether you consider farmers to be "blue collar". Certainly they're categorically different from the fishermen you'll find in coastal Maine or the loggers you'll find in the interior. And other Vermont locals are generally not at all what you'd typically call blue-collar. Town dwellers tend to fill civic roles (teachers, shopkeepers, pastors, policemen, etc.) plus people employed in tourism, and there's no manufacturing to speak of.
Rhode Island and Massachusetts are sort of a mix of Maine's fishermen with some lighter industry and other traditional blue-collar employment. Western Massachusetts is like Vermont and light on the typical blue-collar workers, except that Springfield and Pittsfield both have some manufacturing history.
What about the Ben and Jerry's factory!?
IBM has a large facility outside of Burlington as well. But it's not like there's a large manufacturing sector in the state.
