American geography

Lecture 1

The main landmass of the US lies in the central North America, with Canada to the north, Mexico to the south, the Atlantic Ocean to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. The two newest states, Alaska and Hawaii, are separated from the continental US: Alaska borders on Canada, and Hawaii lies in the central Pacific.

The diversity of the country stems from the fact that it is so large and has so many kinds of land, climate and people. It stretches 2,575 km. from north to south, 4,500 km from east to west. The deep-green mountain forests of the north-west coast are drenched with more than 250cm. of rain every year. At the other extreme, the deserts of the southwest receive less than 13 cm. annually.

The Appalachians, which run roughly parallel to the east coast, are old mountains with many coal-reach valleys between them. Beyond lies the Great Central Lowland. West of the Central Lowland are the Great Plains stopped by the Rocky Mountains, “the backbone of the continent”. The land west of the Rockies appears to be tumbled masses of mountains: the high Colorado Plateau, in which the Grand Canyon of the Colorado Rives is cut, 1.6 km. in depth; the Cascade Mountains built by volcanoes; the Coast Ranges at the border of the Pacific Ocean, the region where occasional earthquakes show that the process of mountain building has not yet stopped.

All the US rivers east of the Rockies finally reach the Atlantic; all the waters to the west of the Rockies finally arrive at the Pacific. For this reason the crests of the Rocky Mountains are known as the Continental Divide. The Mississippi which has been called “father of waters” is one of the world’s great continental rivers. Its waters are gathered from 2/3 of the US and, together with the Missouri (its chief eastern branch), the Mississippi flows some 6,400 km from its northern sources in the Rocky Mountains to the Gulf of Mexico, which makes it one of the longest world waterways. Where the Missouri pours into the Mississippi from the west, it colors the river deep brown with small pieces of soil. Farther downstream, where the clear waters of the principal eastern tributary, the Ohio, join the Mississippi, evidence of the difference between the dry east and the rainy west becomes apparent. The two great rivers of the Pacific side are the Colorado in the south and the Columbia which rises in Canada and drains in the north. The Rio Grande, about 3,200 km long, is the foremost river in the southwest. It forms a natural boundary between Mexico and the US.

There are all sorts of unexpected differences in climate in the US. For instance, all along the western coast, the temperature changes a little between winter and summer. In some places, the average difference between July and January is as little as 10˚C. But in the north central part of the country, summers and winters are worlds apart. There the average difference between July and January is 36˚C and more violent extremes are common. The coldest days of a typical January may be -45˚C, and the hottest July day may be 45˚C. In the eastern part of the US, the difference between winter and summer is also distinct but not nearly so extreme. In the southwestern corner of the country, the climate is mild and springlike in winter, but in summer the temperature may reach equatorial intensity.

A few general CULTURAL PATTERNS cut across regional and political boundaries and, in many cases, ignore major differences in the physical environment. These themes characterize the ways Americans have organized their country.

Cultural origins: The variety of ethnic identities, immigration experiences, and cultural choices have gone into making Americans is so complex that describing the “average American” is very difficult. Most Americans may be White, but Americans are not “normally” White. Most Americans are Christians but America cannot be called “a Christian country”. A majority of Americans might claim European ancestry but this description does not define Americans in general.

The US is one of the few countries that has no “official” national language by law. English is the common language by use but it is not the national language by law. About 32 mln Americans speak a language other than English at home. In 1980, one in nine Americans spoke a language other than English at home, one in seven do now.

Of all the many different nationalities and ethnic groups which have gone into the making of the US, some have quickly assimilated. They have largely lost or intentionally given up many of those specific markers which would make them much different from their neighbors. This process of assimilation, or Americanization – becoming part of the “melting pot” – has characterized the immigrant experience in American history, at least for most Europeans. Other Americans have, while becoming Americans in other ways, maintained much of their ethnic identities. In this sense, the US has been linked to a “salad bowl”. Chinese-Americans provide a well-known example. Perhaps the best metaphor for American society would be that of “pizza”: the different ingredients are often apparent and give the whole a particular taste and flavor, yet are fused together into something larger. Thus, an American can be defined as someone who meets the legal requirements of citizenship and who considers himself or herself to be an American. And, any person born on American soil automatically has the right to the American citizenship.

Urbanization: About 70% of Americans live in urban areas, and more than 40% are in the areas of 1 mln people or more. In 1990, the US farm population numbered about 5 mln (2% of the population), a figure that has declined steadily since the first national census in 1790 when over 90% of all Americans were farmers. Cities have a particular form, a particular layout: a rectangular-grid pattern, a result of cultural attitudes, desire for efficient transport and for efficient surveying the land. Within cities there is a collection of industrial and commercial centers, residential areas, warehouses and so on. In some areas, the result of urban spread is urban coalescence, with the edges of different urban areas meeting and blending.

Industrialization: A substantial part of US employment is related to manufacturing, either directly or indirectly. Most cities were founded and experienced their major period of growth when manufacturing was a primary factor in urban growth. Today, there is substantial regional specialization in manufacturing; manufacturing concerns that produce component parts of some final product are located near each other as well as near the final assembly site to minimize total movement costs. Other important sources of variation include differences in labor availability or labor skills, in the quality of transportation facilities, and in local political attitudes. Regions tend to specialize in what they can best produce.

High mobility: America’s extensive transportation network is an important element in its high level of economic interaction. Goods and people move freely within and between the regions of the country. Regional independence is great; it is made possible by these interregional flows. Relative isolation is uncommon though it does exist. Nearly 20% of all Americans change their residence in any one year. Although much of this residential migration is local in nature, it does result in substantial interregional population movement. Until the last decade of the 19^th century, there was a strong westward population shift toward frontier agricultural land. The focus of opportunity then changed and migration shifted to urban areas. More recently, the US economy has entered “a post-industrial phase”; employment growth is primary in professions and services rather than primary or secondary sectors. Such employment is much more flexible in its location.

Political complexity: The US has a complex political structure, with jurisdiction over an activity or state divided among many different decision-making bodies, some elected and some appointed. Below the state level, the complexity of the political structure can present a major problem in the effective and efficient distribution in the governmental services. Towns, cities, counties are all governed by their own elected officials. Many special administrative units oversee the provision of specific services, such as education, public transportation and water supply.

Each of the country's four main regions – the Northeast, the South, the West, and the Midwest – maintains a degree of cultural identity.

The Northeast, comprising the New England and Mid-Atlantic states, has traditionally been at the helm of the nation's economic and social progress. Compared with other regions, the Northeast is more urban, more industrial, and more culturally sophisticated. New Englanders often describe themselves as thrifty, reserved, and dedicated to hard work, qualities they inherited from their Puritan forefathers. A sense of cultural superiority sets Northeasterners apart from others. During the nineteenth century and well into this century, the Northeast produced most of the country's writers, artists, and scholars. New England's colleges and universities are known all over the country for their high academic standards. Harvard is widely considered the best business school in the nation. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology surpasses all others in economics and the practical sciences.

The economic and cultural dominance of New England has gradually receded since the Second World War. In the past decades, businesses and industries have been moving to warmer climates in the South and West. Many factories and mills have closed, and the population has stabilized or even declined. While areas of aging industry continue to suffer, some parts of New England are experiencing economic recovery. New high-tech industries are boosting foreign investment and employment.

In the South regional identity has been most pronounced. Here the peculiarities of Southern history have played an important role in shaping the region's character. The South was originally settled by English Protestants who came for profitable farming opportunities. Many of them established large plantations. African slaves, shipped by the Spanish, Portuguese, and English, supplied labor for these plantations. Even after the North began to industrialize after 1800, the South remained agricultural. Economic and political tensions began to divide the nation and eventually led to the Civil War (1861—65). The Civil War experience helps explain why Southerners have developed a reverence for the past and a resistance to change, and why the South is different from the rest of the country. Southerners are more conservative, more religious, and more violent than the rest of the country. Because fewer immigrants were attracted to the less industrialized Southern states, Southerners are the most "native" of any region. Most black and white Southerners can trace their ancestry in this country back to before 1800. Southerners tend to be more mindful of social rank and have strong ties to hometown and family. Southerners tend to have less schooling and higher illiteracy rates than people from other regions, and pockets of poverty are scattered throughout the Southern states. Americans of other regions are quick to recognize a Southerner by his/her dialect. Southern speech tends to be much slower and more musical. The South is also known for its music: spiritua, blues and jazz. White Southerners created bluegrass mountain music, and most American country music has a Southern background.

While generalizations about the West are difficult to make, the region does share concerns that are distinct from the rest of the country. Westerners are united in their long-standing hostility toward Washington and Eastern federal bureaucrats. Westerners feel alienated by government policies which fail to address the vital concerns unique to their region. Western states' troubles with water scarcity and government-owned land seem to matter little to the rest of the country. Particularly distressing to Westerners is their lack of control over Western land and resources. The federal government owns and administers vast portions of land in many Western states—86.6 percent of Nevada, 66.1 percent of Utah, 47.8 percent of Wyoming, 42.8 percent of Arizona, and 36.1 percent of Colorado. Westerners like to think of themselves as independent, self-sufficient, and close to the land, but they feel they cannot control their own destiny while Washington controls their land. Western life is dominated by resources. Although water is scarce in the Mountain West, the region is rich in uranium, coal, crude oil, oil shale, and other mineral deposits. As the population of the West rapidly increases, debate intensifies over how its resources should be used. Trying to support growing populations with limited supplies of water while at the same time preserving the land is, according to some Westerners, impossible, and they feel the West is already experiencing physical limits to growth. Despite the differences that may exist within the region, the Western states face these problems together.

The Midwest unlike the South and West has long been regarded as typically American. The fertile farmland and abundant resources have allowed agriculture and industry to thrive and to strengthen the Midwesterners' conviction that people can make something of themselves if they seize opportunities. Class divisions are felt less strongly here than in other regions; the middle class rules. Midwesterners are seen as commercially minded, self-sufficient, unsophisticated, and pragmatic. The Midwest is known as a region of small towns and huge tracts of farmland where more than half the nation's wheat and oats are raised. Dominating the region's commerce and industry is Chicago, the nation's second largest city. Located on the Great Lakes, Chicago has long been a connecting point for rail lines and air traffic crossing the continent.

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