Human Geography of U.S. & Canada

 1. Identify the peoples of the United States and Canada.  2. Explain how population patterns in the U.S. and Canada are influenced by the region’s physical geography.  3. Describe the geographic factors that encouraged the industrialization and urbanization of the U.S. and Canada.

iimmigration NNative American SSunbelt uurbanization mmetropolitan area ssuburb mmegalopolis mmobility

Human Geography of the United States History and Geography The physical environment played a significant role in the development of the United States. Native Americans, descendants of the first waves of migrations, occupied North America until the Europeans began immigrating in the 1500s. After gaining independence, the country nearly doubled in territory, gaining valuable land and resources. Industrialization and the great waves of immigrants who came to work in the United States made the population more mobile and urbanized.

 The United States and Canada have been shaped by immigration.  This is the movement of people from one country to another.  What has shaped the U.S. and Canada?

North America’s first immigrants may have come from Asia thousands of years ago. Because they were the first settlers, they are called Native Americans.

Population Patterns More than 315 million people live in the United States. The aging of the population will cause challenges in government and health care costs. Population is increasing in Sunbelt states as manufacturing has declined in the North and Great Lakes region. Densely populated urban areas like the megalopolis between Boston and Washington, D.C. attract residents with economic opportunity. Human Geography of the United States

 Religious freedom  political freedom  wars  natural disasters  greater economic opportunities  natural resources of the region.

 The U.S. has an average population density of 75 people per square mile.  The Northeast and the Great Lakes regions are the most densely populated areas.  The are the historical centers of American commerce and industry.

 The fastest growing region in the U.S. is the Sunbelt because of its mild climate.  This area has growing manufacturing, service and tourism industries.  Some areas of the U.S. have difficult climate conditions and small populations.  These areas are subarctic Alaska, the Great Basin and dry areas of the Great Plains.

 The U.S. has experienced urbanization, the migration of population into cities.  About 80% of Americans live in metropolitan areas – large cities together with outlying communities called suburbs.

 Many population centers of the U.S. and Canada lie in coastal areas.  Along the northern Atlantic coast of the U.S. a chain of closely linked metropolitan areas form a megalopolis.  Four of the cities that make up this megalopolis –  Boston  New York City  Philadelphia  Baltimore,

 Why are large cities usually near large bodies of water?  Where do most people in the region live?

 republic  Underground railroad  dry farming  Constitution  amendment  Bill of Rights  cabinet  dominion  Parliament

Came to America across the Bering Strait approximately 25,000 years ago, by 10,000 years ago, they were living in all parts of North America. Their lifestyles were shaped by location and climate.

 The Inuit – far north – cold Arctic tundra hunted animals.  Pacific coast Amerindians – fished & hunted.  Southwest Amerindians – grew crops  Plains Amerindians – hunted buffalo  Eastern Woodland Amerindians – farmed and fished.

 began in the late 1500s  They came looking for  farm land  valuable minerals  political/religious freedom  They were mostly from  Spain  France  England

 also referred to as New England  New Hampshire  Massachusetts  Rhode Island  Connecticut  soil was thin, rocky (non-glaciated)  short growing season  great fishing & excellent harbors  good timber  and cheap waterpower.

 New Jersey  Pennsylvania  New York  Delaware  wide river valleys  warm, long summers  level land  rich soil  could produce cash crops – crops that are raised to be sold

 Virginia  North Carolina  South Carolina  Maryland  Georgia  mild climate  rich soil  open land  used slave labor for large-scale farming

 came for beaver pelts – fur  fur trappers used major rivers; St. Lawrence River & Mississippi River  most did not intend to settle  St. Lawrence River – established Quebec  Mississippi River – est. New Orleans

 ruled large areas west of the Mississippi River  included much of South America, all of Central America and Mexico  St. Augustine, Florida – 1565  Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, California  are founded as barriers to block expansion by France & Great Britain.  are military outposts  missions by the Spanish Catholics.

 C. Two New Countries  In the late 1702, thirteen British colonies along the Atlantic coast fought a successful war of independence,  creating the United States of America.  In 1867 other British North American colonies formed the Dominion of Canada, a self- governing nation within the British Empire.

 D. From Sea to Shining Sea!  By the mid-1800s, the U.S. had expanded westward across the North American continent to the Pacific coast.  Canada carried out its own westward expansion during the late 1800s.

 E. Growth, Division, Unity  Industrialization transformed the U.S. and Canada during the 1800s.  1. The waterfalls of the northeastern U.S. were good sources of power for factories.  Coal from the Midwestern states powered steam engines.  Rivers and lakes throughout the central part of the continent provided easy transportation for manufactured goods.

 2. Cotton, the raw material of the textile industry, became more and more profitable.  By the 1800s the demand for cotton also increased the demand for slave labor.  Disputes over slavery led to the United States Civil War of

 F. Technological and Social Change  The completion of transcontinental railroads in the late 1800s in both Canada and the United States led to  increased settlement of the West.  Thousands of immigrants were hired to build the railroads.

 How do you think physical geography shaped the expansion of the United States and Canada?

 The United States is a democratic republic with a federal system of government.  In a federal system, the national government shares power with state and provincial governments.  The American plan of government is set down in the Constitution, drafted in 1787.

 Over the years, amendments to the Constitution have been made to meet the country’s changing needs.  The national government is made of three branches…  executive – carries out the law  legislative – makes law  judicial – “Is it constitutional?”

 bilingual  jazz  socioeconomic  literacy rate  patriotism

 A. Religious Freedom  Freedom of religion has always been valued in both the United States and Canada.  Most Americans and Canadians who are members of organized religions are Christians.

 Music:  Jazz – a mix of African and European musical ideas, was born in New Orleans early in the 1900s as a genuinely American music form.  Country music and rock ‘n’ roll became popular later in the 1900s.