The Geography of North Carolina NC SCOS Goal 1.01

North Carolina in the United States Tennessee Virginia North Carolina South Carolina Georgia

Geographic Region A large area of land with a common set of features

Regions of North Carolina Mountain Region Coastal Plains Piedmont Region Inner Coastal Plains Tidewater

Tidewater Sub-Region The low-lying eastern part of North Carolina’s Coastal Plain that extends 20 to 30 miles inland from the Atlantic ocean. The sounds and rivers in the Tidewater Sub-region are affected by the ocean tides. How?

Intracoastal Waterway a 3,000-mile inland waterway that runs along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States from Maine to Texas. Built in 1919, most of the ICW has a required depth of 12 feet.

Piedmont The hilly, region between the Coastal Plain and the Appalachian Mountains

Appalachian Mountain Chain A chain of mountains that run from Georgia to Quebec along the east coast of North America.

The Blue Ridge Mountains A mountain range that runs on the Eastern edge of the Appalachian mountain chain from Georgia to Pennsylvania. The Great Smoky Mountains are a small range within the larger Blue Ridge Mountain Range.

The Continental Divide An imaginary line in a continent’s mountain chain that determines which direction rivers will flow.

The Continental Divide Tennessee North Carolina

Fall line An imaginary line that separates the piedmont and the coastal plains regions of North Carolina, it’s the place on rivers where falls are first found.

The Fall Line Ocean What region does this represent?

How did the Fall Line influence early North Carolina colonial travel?

Where do you think the first settlers that came to North Carolina made their homes?

Answer #17 on your review sheet about the fall line Answer #17 on your review sheet about the fall line. Use the word “prevented” in your answer.

Outer Banks A long chain of sandbars and barrier islands on the coast of North Carolina

Cape parts of the coastline that jut out into the ocean Cape Hatteras Cape Lookout Cape Fear

Inlet places where the ocean flows through the outer banks to the sounds Oregon Inlet Hatteras Inlet Ocracoke Inlet Beaufort Inlet

Sound shallow bodies of water between the outer banks and the mainland Currituck Sound Albemarle Sound Pamlico Sound Core Sound Bogue Sound Donovan Goal

Continental Shelf an underwater plain extending out from a continent

Shoal shallow water along the continental shelf The Diamond Shoals at Cape Hatteras and the Frying Pan Shoals at Cape Fear

What would be dangerous about shoals in the ocean? What is the nickname of North Carolina’s coast? The Graveyard of the Atlantic

Sand Dunes (Sandbanks) A large deposit of sand forming a mound, ridge or hillside. The largest sand dune on The Atlantic Coast is Jockey’s Ridge at Nags Head and is approximately 100 ft. high. Picture of Jockey’s Ridge

current a flow of water within a larger body of water. The warm Gulf Stream current flows north and the cold Labrador current flows south, they meet off the coast of North Carolina at Cape Hatteras.

Elevation height above sea level At 6,684 feet in elevation, Mt. Mitchell is the highest point in the United States, east of the Mississippi River.

Urban = city

Rural = Countryside, outside of the city

North Carolina Rivers Hiwassee River Chowan New Tar/Pamlico River Yadkin River Roanoke River French Broad River Catawba River Pee Dee River Little Tennessee River Neuse River Cape Fear River

North Carolina Lakes Lake Mattamuskeet Lake Gaston Lake Norman Phelps Lake High Rock Lake Lake Waccamaw

Continental Divide Continental Shelf Fall line Shoal Mountains Ocean

North Carolina Cities Winston-Salem Raleigh Asheville Kannapolis Charlotte Fayetteville Morehead City Wilmington

North Carolina Cities (continued) Greensboro Edenton Durham Hickory Boone Gastonia Bath New Bern

Other important Geographic features of North Carolina Great Dismal Swamp Mt. Mitchell Roanoke Island