Touring the Northeast Region 4 th Grade

Maine West Quoddy Head is in the northeast corner of Maine. Indians living here say that they “live at the sunrise.” Fishing is a very important industry. Maine’s coast was once smooth, and then glaciers moved across carving deep grooves into the coast line. Vocabulary Ice Age – long cold period Glaciers – mile-thick sheets of ice

NEW HAMPSHIRE Mt. Washington – 6,288 feet tall and is the highest peak in the Northeast.  Has some of the world’s most severe weather.  This peak is also one of the windiest places on Earth. The highest wind speed ever recorded was 231 miles per hour in Mount Washington Cog Railway – goes to the top of the mountain and is the 2nd steepest railway in the world. Mt. Washington is in the White Mountains of New Hampshire which are a part of the Appalachians.

MASSACHUSETTS Plymouth and Boston

Plymouth Pilgrims landed in Plymouth, MA almost 400 years ago. In Plymouth Harbor, you can see a recreation of the Mayflower. In 1620, the Mayflower left England with 101 passengers. Half were Pilgrims going to America in search of religious freedom. The other half were settlers bound for Virginia. The Pilgrims called these settlers “strangers.” Storms blew the Mayflower off course. It ended up reaching New England. The Pilgrims and the “strangers” decided they had enough of the stormy seas and decided to stop here. The Pilgrims knew that there was no government where they landed. They had to think very quickly because they believed the “strangers” could be trouble-makers. They quickly drew up an agreement called the Mayflower Compact. It said they would set up a government and make laws for the good of everyone. Each man signed the compact. Then the passengers elected a governor. Today Americans believe that people should make their own laws and elect their own leaders. We call this form of government a democracy.

Boston Boston is one of America’s oldest cities. Boston is also where the fight for freedom began. In 1775, the people of the 13 colonies did not want to live under British rule anymore. Fighting broke out between colonists and British troops. This was the beginning of a long war call the American Revolution. The revolution led to the overthrow of British rule. Boston Common – America’s first public park Two historic trails begin at the Boston Commons – The Freedom Trail and the Black Heritage Trail. The Freedom Trail is a walking tour that takes your to places where the fight for freedom began. The trail ends at Bunker Hill – where the first battle of the American Revolution was fought. Black Heritage Trail is also a walking tour where you learn about the long history of African Americans in Boston. The trail ends at the African Meeting House. This meeting house is the oldest African American church building in the United States.

PENNSYLVANIA The Erie Canal is a 363-mile-long ditch that connects the Hudson River with the Great Lakes. At this time there was no good way to move goods from the northeast to the Midwest because moving goods by horse and wagon was very slow and costly. There was a big problem, the Appalachian Mountains lay between the Midwest and the Northeast, no river crossed the mountains. Work on the canal began in The men who built the canal dug a 40-foot-wide ditch from the Hudson River to Lake Erie. Along the way they built 83 locks to help carry boats over the mountains. The Erie Canal finally opened in Two main reasons American’s first factories were built in the Northeast. Factories were built alongside rivers. The rivers rushed down out of the mountains. This rushing water turned big waterwheels that made machines in the factories run. The second reason is people power.

Hershey, PA Over 100 years ago, Milton Hershey started a candy business in PA. He used a system called mass production. The Hershey bar was America’s first mass-produced candy bar. Hershey is the largest chocolate factory in the world.

Philadelphia, PA Is where the United States was born. July 4, 1776, the leaders from the 13 colonies gather to sign the Declaration of Independence. This statement told the world that Americans had formed their own nation – The United States of America. In 1787, the nation’s best thinkers met in Independence Hall to create a government. They wrote a brand new constitution. It was based on the ideas of democracy.

Vocabulary - PA Canal – a ditch dug across land to connect one waterway with another. Lock – a water elevator used to raise and lower boats. Mass production – a way of making large quantities of the same product.

Washington, D.C. Capital of the United States. Our countries government is located here. The national government has 3 branches, each having a different role. Legislative – Makes the laws for our country. Otherwise known as Congress. Voters in each state elect lawmakers to represent them in Congress. Executive – The president is the head of this branch. The president’s main job is to make sure that the laws passed by Congress are carried out. Voters in each of the 50 states elect a president. Judicial – Made up of the courts. This branch guarantees that the laws passed by Congress are obeyed. The Supreme Court is the nation’s highest court. One of its jobs is to make sure that laws passed by Congress follow the Constitution.

New York City Population – Over 8 million Largest city in America City of Immigrants Dutch were the first people to settle here People from other parts of Europe and Africa followed City of many cultures and languages Since there are so many people that live in such a small area, they began building skyscrapers. The most famous skyscraper in NY is the Empire State Building. 102 Floors. 1,472 feet tall. 1,860 stairs.