Geography of Georgia

Geography Defined: Studying Earth as home of humans Must have earth and humans or some other science involved. Take notes with your map out.

location Northern/Western hemispheres North of Equator/ West of Prime Meridian North America Southeastern United States

Physical regions

Appalachian plateau Located in TAG corner, extreme NW corner Often called Cumberland Plateau Made up of plateau formations, canyons, limestone caves Main feature: Lookout Mountain and Cloudland Canyon Hardwood forest/pastures Only source of coal (mining) Chickamauga Battlefield located here

Ridge and valley Located in Northwestern area of state Topography dominated by high ridge lines separating a series of valleys Economic activity is somewhat diverse: forests, pastures, farmland, apple orchards Dalton known as “carpet capital of the world” Large textile industry particularly hard hit during current economic downturn.

Blue ridge Located in extreme NE Georgia Most mountainous terrain in state Brasstown Bald (about 5,000 ft. elevation) Agriculture dominated by hardwood forests, vegetable farming and apple orchards Appalachian Trail begins here – runs to Maine Scenic beauty includes Brasstown Bald, Amicalola Falls, Tallulah Gorge Alpine village of Helen (tourism) Important cities: Dahlonega – home of America’s first gold rush Receives most rain annually.

Piedmont Plateau Location: begins in mountain foothills and goes to Fall Line (“piedmont” means at the foot of the mountains) Geography is rolling hills and plains Suitable for various types of agriculture including commercial farming Granite bedrock formation runs all the way to Delaware (Stone Mountain) Contains ½ of state’s population including Atlanta metro area – most populous

Coastal plain State’s largest regions (about 60%) In prehistoric times was underwater. Has an inner and outer part. Inner coastal in major agricultural region in state of Georgia (peanuts, Vidalia onions, peaches, pecans) Outer coastal plain has sandy soil (naval stores and pulp from pine trees) Pulp and paper production Okefenokee Swamp located here: largest freshwater wetland in U.S. Savannah – oldest city

Barrier Island Located off Georgia’s coastal shoreline Called “sea islands” or Golden Isles” 14 islands Act as a “buffer” in protecting GA’s beaches from storm erosion Significant tourism in parks and wilderness sanctuaries Protect/form Intracoastal Waterway

Fall line Natural boundary that separates Piedmont from Coastal Plain Elevation of land drops significantly Water drops and speeds up creating good sources of power Numerous settlements on Fall Line (Columbus, Macon, Augusta) Shoreline of prehistoric sea.

Okefenokee Swamp Swamp/wetland located in outer coastal plain in extreme southern part of state Largest freshwater wetland in U.S. Home to diverse population of wildlife Federal/national park Indian name meaning “land of trembling earth”

Chattahoochee River Runs south through Atlanta and forms part of southern border with Alabama

Savannah River Forms border between South Carolina and Georgia. Important commercial waterway. Entry to port of Savannah First permanent settlement (1733) at mouth of river.

Deepwater ports Savannah and Brunswick Brunswick – construction port during WWII building Liberty Ships Two inland barge terminals: Bainbridge and Columbus Economic impact: about 2 billion dollars per year. More than 80,000 jobs Over 90 steamships lines serve Georgia Serviced by two interstates (95 and 16) and a railroad hub 5th busiest port in the nation Large amounts of imports flow through these ports Supports idea of world market/provides us with access to international markets

Interstate highways Facilitates flow of goods and services Commuter traffic Atlanta, interstate hub, serviced by I-20, I-75, and I-85

Hartsfield-jackson international airport One of the busiest airports in the world One of the largest employer in the state Connects state with rest of the world Named for William Hartsfield and Maynard Jackson

railroads Atlanta developed as result of railroad -First city not developed along a waterway (Terminus). Important to state’s economy today moving goods in and out of state. Dominated by CSX and Norfolk Southern

Summaries 1. Write 3-5 sentence paragraph s summarizing the following: A. The regions and physical features of Georgia. B. The four transportation systems that comprise Georgia’s transportation infrastructure.