1. Shaping an Abundant Land
Chapter 6
Shaping an Abundant Land

2. Objectives Explain how the United States was formed.
Describe the growth of the United States through migration and industrialization.
Examine United States political policy, economic growth and social change.
Describe the U.S. governing system.

3. Importance of women in early settlement
Women were the first farmers of the North American Continent
Corn, beans and squash were the first crops they planted.
They also learned which plants could be used for making medicine. (Important for the survival of people in early America).

4. United States 3rd largest country in area and population
Plentiful resources, fertile soil and abundant water
Because of it’s resources, many people have migrated to the U.S.

5. Early Settlement of the U.S.
People explored the U.S. for various reasons.
Spanish- Gold and riches
French- Fishing industry and fur trade
English- Imperialism and Religious Freedom

9. Wars shape the U.S. French and Indian War (1754-1763)
American Revolution ( )
Civil War ( )

10. Reasons for U.S. Growth
Louisiana Purchase- doubled the size of the U.S. (territory between the Mississippi River and Rocky Mts.)
Pouring in of immigrants from Western Europe during the 1800s

11. Headed West
As the nation grew people began to push towards the west to discover new territories.
Traveling along the Oregon Trail might have take 6 months to go across 2,000 miles of mountains, deserts, prairies and plains.
Indians were often pushed off of their land to accommodate the exploration of these trailblazers.

13. Cities Grow
The railroad system caused the west to develop rapidly during the late 1800s.
On the east coast cities such as New York, Pittsburgh, Boston and Philadelphia grew due to flow of nearly 14 million Europeans to the country. They came to work in industries such as textile mills, steel, oil and food processing companies.

14. 20th Century U.S. Became a world economic and political power.
Shifted from an agricultural country to a more industrial nation.
Immigrants began to flow in mainly from Latin America and Asia.

15. 20th U.S. 1960s-1970s Civil Rights Movement Feminist Movement
War Protesting
Cold War ( ) Between U.S. & Soviet Union

16. Government U.S. Constitution – Drawn up in 1787
Representative democracy- people rule through elected representatives.
Federal republic- powers are divided between the federal government and various states governments.
Executive, legislative and judicial are the three branches of our federal government.

17. Economics
The average American’s job in the early days of the United States was farming.
Today the U.S. leads in agriculture, manufacturing and global trading.
U.S. farmers supply 40% of the world’s corn.

18. U.S. Society Most Americans have ethnic ties to Europe.
Behind English, Spanish is the second most common language spoken in the U.S.
Christianity is the main religion of America.
Skyscrapers, film and music from America have influenced the world.

19. American Life
A chance for a better life has attracted most people to the U.S.
Today most Americans live in cities and suburbs.
The workforce of today is basically 50% men and 50% women.

20. Section 3
Sub-regions of the
United States

22. The Northeast Covers only 5% of the nation’s land area.
20% of the U.S. population live here.
New England= Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut.
Middle Atlantic States= Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey

23. The Northeast
The Northeast has been referred to as the gateway to America because many immigrants arrived there by boat from Europe.
It is one of the world’s most industrialized and urbanized areas.
Megalopolis- a region in which several large cities and surrounding areas grow together. Boston to Washington D.C.

25. The Midwest Contains the 12 states of the north-central United States.
Also known as the American heartland.
Makes up 20% of U.S. land area and 25% of U.S. population.

26. The Midwest Known for it’s agriculture.
Major industries include steel manufacturing and auto-making.
It’s central location and good waterways has made it a great center for trade.

28. The South
Contains 25% of the nations land and over 33% of the U.S. population.
16 states make up the South.
Just like the Northeast, the South has a very diverse group of people.
The South is rapidly changing from a rural area to a more urban society.

29. The South
Agriculture was huge for the South in it’s early days and still is today. (tobacco, fruits, peanuts, rice and livestock).
Today there are many manufacturing and service industries in the south due to the region’s vast stores of energy resources.

31. The West
13 states make up the American West. (Stretches from the Great Plains to the Pacific Ocean and includes Alaska and Hawaii).
Makes up 50% of U.S. land area and has only 20% of the nations population.
It is the fastest growing region in the country today.

32. The West
Economic activities include: farming, ranching, food processing, logging, fishing, mining, oil refining, tourism, filmmaking and the production of computers.