The Northeastern United States

Smallest cultural region in the U.S. Region defined in two parts New England Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut Middle Atlantic States Pennsylvania, New York, Maryland, Delaware, and New Jersey Known as the Gateway to America Entrance point for many immigrants Very rocky and hilly landscape Major resources are limited to coal and iron Oldest coal mining area in the U.S. Physical Geography

Defined by the thousands of miles of rugged and rocky coastline along the Atlantic Ocean The Appalachian Mountains More rugged and tall here as compared to the Appalachians in the South Mount Washington Located in New Hampshire Tallest mountain in the Northeast- over 6,000 feet tall Highest recorded wind speed in the US- 231 mph Mount Katahdin Located in Maine Second tallest mountain in the Northeast- over 5,000 feet tall 1st place in the US mainland to receive sunlight each morning Physical Geography

Lake Winnipesaukee 3 rd largest lake in the Northeast Means a “beautiful water in a high place” Created by glaciers 11,000 years ago The lake has been in several classic movies On Golden Pond, What About Bob?, Click, etc A major tourist attraction and vacation spot Climate is divided into two parts Hot wet summers and cold snowy winters Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and Rhode Island Cool wet summers and cold very snowy winters New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Maine Physical Geography

Fishing is huge here Off the Grand Banks and Georges Banks 100 miles off the coast of New England Fish for lobster, cod, and swordfish Overfishing has devastated the fish and lobster populations This has led to harsh restrictions on fishermen Farming is difficult Rocky and hilly land Some apples, grapes, dairy, and maple syrup This is the manufacturing center of the US Known as the rust belt Steel, chemicals, and electronics are produced Economic Geography

80% of Americans live in metropolitan areas A major population center made up of a large city and the smaller suburbs and towns that surround it Chicago and Crystal Lake are great examples Chicago is the large city Crystal Lake is the suburb Metropolitan areas generally have three parts The Urban Core: The Old Walking City The Urban Fringe: Suburbs Around the City The Rural Fringe: Where City Meets Country Urban Geography

The Urban Core The Urban Core: The Old Walking City Our oldest cities where created during colonial times Transportation was limited to walking or riding a horse Cities had to be small Homes and businesses were in the same small area Geographers call this the Urban Core or the Central Business District You know it as a city’s Downtown Cities began to become overpopulated in the 1890s Two inventions allowed people to stretch the Urban Core outward Electric streetcars and the commuter railroad People began to live along the rail lines Take the streetcar or train to work everyday

The Urban Fringe: Suburbs Around the City In the 1920s the automobile allowed people to live away from the rail lines and even further from the Urban Core Allowed people to commute to work from the suburbs Small cities/ towns at the edge of the Urban Core that are mainly homes and neighborhoods Geographers call this suburb area the Urban Fringe When more people move to the urban fringe then the suburbs begin to build town centers, shops, theaters, etc Suburbs led to the idea of the American Dream The desire to have a “perfect” life in the 1950s House with white picket fence, a spouse, a dog, and 2.5 kids The Urban Fringe

The Rural Fringe The Rural Fringe: Where City Meets Country Areas outside the Urban Fringe with even less people Areas made of smaller towns, farms, and open spaces known as the Rural Fringe

City expansion normally continues until city’s have sprawled way out into the country Geographers call this expansion Urban Sprawl The Northeast is home to the country’s best example of urban sprawl It is a megalopolis called BosWash Area where several large metropolitan areas grow together Stretches from Boston, Massachusetts to Washington DC Problems with Urban Sprawl Overpopulation, pollution, noise, congestion, lack of resources, crime, etc Urban Sprawl

September 11, 2001 Al- Qaeda Largest terrorist network in the world Responsible for several attacks on the US Bombing the USS Cole, several US Embassies and military bases in Africa, and the World Trade Center attacks Led by a Saudi Arabian named Osama bin Laden 4 commercial airplanes were high-jacked 2 planes were flown into the World Trade Center Towers in New York City 1 plane was flown into the Pentagon 1 plane crashed in a farm field in Pennsylvania Passengers on the plane attacked the terrorists causing the plane to crash in a field