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Chapter 3 Mapping Texas Regions (pages 44-66)
Essential Question: How were the regions of Texas identified?
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Objectives Compare places in Texas in terms of their physical characteristics. Compare regions of Texas in terms of their physical characteristics. Identify the location of each natural subregion of Texas.. Compare the regions and subregions of Texas. Analyze geographic distributions and patterns in Texas. Compare places/regions in Texas in terms of their physical and human characteristics. Explain ways in which geographic factors have affected the political, economic, and social development of Texas.
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What States Are Adjacent to Texas?
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Two Kinds of Geography Geography = land and people
Things that relate to the land (climate, vegetation, rivers, lakes, plains, etc)= Physical Geography Things that people do (how people earn a living, customs, settlements, political systems, etc) = Human Geography
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Vocabulary Plains: a wide area of flat or gently rolling land
Physical Geography: physical features of the earth’s surface Human Geography: features of the earth that are created or changed by humans Settlement: a place where people live
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Weather and Climate Weather—condition at a certain time/place
Climate—expected weather conditions Texas has a huge range of climates across the state How does weather affect human geography? See map on page 47
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Landform Regions Landforms can include mountains, valleys, rivers, seacoasts, lakes, plateaus, and plains Read about The Enchanted Rock (p. 49) Most of Texas is made up of Plains (pages 48-49) 2 plains regions of Texas also extend into other states Gulf Coastal Plain Great Plains The Enchanted Rock
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Texas Rivers Important to Texas
Much of Texas border made up of 3 rivers Rio Grande: between Texas & Mexico Begins in Colorado, flows 1900 miles into NM, enters Texas near El Paso 2 dams built: Amistad Dam and Falcon Dam Water from reservoirs created with dams irrigates crops Sabine River: between Louisiana & Texas Shorter than Rio Grande Toledo Bend Reservoir created Water is used for industry and agriculture Red River: between Texas and Oklahoma Begins in eastern NM and flows to Arkansas Flows to Gulf of Mexico after flood control system put into place
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Texas Rivers, con’t Other important rivers Canadian River Pecos River
In Panhandle of Texas Begins in NM and crosses Texas to Oklahoma; joins Arkansas River Only major Texas River that does not flow into Gulf of Mexico Pecos River Tributary of Rio Grande Starts in NM and flows south to Texas Provides irrigation for farms in NM and Pecos, TX Others (all flow into Gulf of Mexico) Neches, Trinity, San Jacinto, Brazos, Colorado, Guadalupe, San Antonio, & Neuces Many important Texas cities are located along these rivers
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Map of Texas Rivers
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Texas Rivers and Cities
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Rio Grande River The Red River The Sabine River
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Regions of Texas Regions are determined by physical geography (landforms) Very diverse Texas has 4 large natural regions Coastal Plains North Central Plains Great Plains Mountains and Basins
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Vocabulary Subregion: a smaller division of a geographic region
Escarpment: a cliff or abrupt break in the land’s surface Growing Season: average # of days crops grow based on weather Steppe: a vast, treeless plain Aquifer: underground layer of porous rock, gravel, or sand that contains water…water can reach surface of land through springs or wells (see page 540…This Land of Ours…info about the Ogallala Aquifer)
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Regions and Subregions of Texas
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Balcones Escarpment The Balcones Fault Zone extends from Dallas to the north and Del Rio to the southwest. The West Austin Hill Country is part of a larger geographical area called the Edwards Plateau.
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Caprock Escarpment
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Where are the Balcones and Caprock Escarpments?
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The Edwards Aquifer
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Coastal Plains Region About 1/3 of Texas
Extends east & south from Balcones Escarpment to Gulf of Mexico Most of Texas’ largest cities here Subregions: Piney Woods area of pine forests Extends from Texas-Louisiana border west for about 125 miles Extends from Oklahoma state line south to where coastal prairies begin…about 25 miles from coast Rainiest part of Texas Elevation: feet above sea level Caddo Lake is in Piney Woods Only natural lake in Texas Giant cypress trees, floating lotus, and lots of fish
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Coastal Plains Region, con’t
Subregions, con’t Post Oak Belt West of Piney Woods Long, narrow zone Has oak, hickory, and other hardwood trees (not pine) Elevation: feet above sea level Blackland Prairie Long, narrow area—15-70 miles wide, 300 miles wide Runs from Balcones Escarpment near OK border through San Antonio to Texas/Mexico border Elevation: feet above sea level Soil not good for growing trees…most vegetation is prairie grass with a few hardwood trees
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Coastal Plains Region, con’t
Gulf Coastal Plain Forms a large arc that follows the coast of Gulf of Mexico from Sabine River to Kingsville Goes inland about miles Elevation: below 100 feet, humid climate South Texas Plain Runs from about San Antonio south to Rio Grande 270 miles long; 250 miles wide Elevation: sea level to 1000 feet above sea level Climate warm year round
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Coastal Plains Cities and Ways of Making a Living
Brownsville, Harlingen, Corpus Christi, San Antonio, Houston, Beaumont, Waco, Austin, Tyler, Texarkana, Dallas, Galveston Ways of Making a Living Agriculture, tourism, timber industry, oil/gas, shipping, commercial fishing, manufacturing, food and food products
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North Central Plains Region
Begins at Balcones Escarpment and goes west to Caprock Escarpment Area of rolling plains covered by small oak trees, mesquite trees, brush, and scattered grass Subregions Grand Prairie Long narrow belt extends from Red River south to Temple and Killeen Elevation: feet above sea level Vegetation: tall grasses and a few hardwood trees by streams
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North Central Plains Region, con’t
Subregions, con’t Cross Timbers Area surrounds Grand Prairie Eastern Cross Timbers and Western Cross Timbers Good area for growing trees—post oak, hickory, pecan, elm Elevation: feet Rolling Plains Largest subregion of North Central Plains Begins west of the Cross Timbers and ends at Caprock Escarpment Elevation: 900 feet in east; 2000 feet in west Region is a steppe (vast, treeless plain) Vegetation: short grasses, brushy plants, some mesquite trees Mostly used as grazing lands for large ranches
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North Central Plains Cities and Ways of Making a Living
Ft. Worth, Abilene, Wichita Falls, San Angelo, Arlington Ways of Making a Living Agriculture, Oil/Gas, Tourism
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Great Plains Region Made up of 3 subregions Subregions
2 are large plateaus (High Plains and Edwards Plateaus) 1 is different than any other part of Texas (Llano Basin) Subregions Llano Basin Almost in center of Texas Egg-shaped area south of North Central Plains; west of Balcones Escarpment Made up of granite (very hard rock formed when molten rock cools slowly under earth’s surface) Pink granite from Llano Basin was used to build Texas Capitol Building Elevation: feet above sea level Vegetation: mesquite, live oak & post oak trees, short grasses. Pecan and oak trees grow along streams
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Great Plains Region, con’t
Subregions, con’t Edwards Plateau Southern part of Great Plains region North and west of Balcones Escarpment Elevation: feet above sea level Mostly made of limestone…some limestone has dissolved and formed caves and underwater streams Has Edwards Aquifer which supplies water for San Antonio and other towns See Texas Tidbits on page 56
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Great Plains Region, con’t
Subregions, con’t High Plains Extends west from rolling plains to Pecos River in NM Also known as Llano Estacado One of flattest places on earth Very dry climate Elevation: feet above sea level Vegetation: short grasses, like a steppe Major farming area in Texas
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Great Plains Region Cities and Ways of Making a Living
Midland, Odessa, Lubbock, Amarillo Ways of Making a Living Agriculture, Oil/Gas
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Mountains and Basins Region
No subregions Made up of tall mountains separated by basins or closed valleys Vegetation in Mountains: forests of oak, pinon, and ponderosa pine trees Vegetation in Basins: (desert like area) cactus, shrubs, short grasses Very little rain Elevation: varied…from feet above sea level Guadalupe Peak: highest point in Texas
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Guadalupe Peak
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Mountains and Basins Cities and Ways of Making a Living
El Paso Ways of Making a Living Manufacturing, Oil/Gas, Agriculture
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Where People Live in Texas
Most Texans live in cities or urban areas Largest cities in Texas—Houston and Dallas Most of largest cities are east of Balcones Escarpment Separates Central and East Texas from West Texas Out of 27 major cities in Texas, only 7 of them are west of Balcones Escarpment
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Vocabulary Metropolitan Area: a city and all the areas around it that depend on the central city Suburb: smaller community just outside a city Industry: making or preparing products to sell Per Capita Income: average amount of money a person makes a year in a certain area Heritage: beliefs and customs that people get from their ancestors
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Why Cities Grow People go where there are jobs
Houston: oil industry, space program Dallas: financial, telecommunications, electronics, fashion, DFW airport, Ft. Worth: cattle town, airplane/helicopter production San Antonio: military base, tourism: Alamo/River Walk Austin: state capital, UT (largest state university), computers (Dell)
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Why Haven’t Other Areas Grown?
Attracted less industry—except for Oil West Texas: further away from major cities…higher transportation, shipping, labor, and living costs Dry climate Not much farming (not as much water) Land mostly used for ranching Workers don’t make as much money
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Farming in Texas Agriculture—still major industry in Texas
Texas has 2nd largest farm income in US (CA has more) Approximately 225,000 farms Rice (Houston), Citrus fruit and sorghum (Rio Grande Valley), Texas produces more cotton than any other state High Plains: largest cotton growing area in US
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Rich and Poor in Texas Per Capita Income
Highest incomes in Texas? Big Cities Oil industry helps Texas per capita income Lowest incomes in Texas? Along Rio Grande River, inner cities
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Diverse Names of Texas Cities and Towns
Names can reflect state’s heritage Spanish or Mexican influence Names of Settlers Native Americans Heroes of Texas Revolutions Politicians Immigrants and immigrant groups of people
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Picture Sources blog.travelpod.com care2.com innerenergies.org thefullwiki.org outdoors.webshots.com tpwd.state.tx.us city-data.com texasescapes.com blog.oregonlive.com resortbay.com pubs.usgs.gov esi.utexas.edu
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