GEOGRAPHY

OF THE

UNITED STATES

& CANADA

By Brett Lucas

MEGALOPOLIS

Setting the Boundaries

What states and provinces are part of the region?

Primarily the east coast between Norfolk, VA and

Boston, MA, following along I-95.

Developed along a northeast-southwest axis

approximately paralleling the Mid-Atlantic and

southern New England coasts.

What regions does it border?

Atlantic Northeast, Appalachians, Inland South,

Southeastern Coast

Overview

Around 1/120th of North America’s land

Around 1/6th of North America’s population

1/5th of the US personal income

New Jersey: first 100% urban state

One of the most expensive regions

Liberal politically

Physical Geography

Physical Setting

Coastal Plain

Fall line / Piedmont

Glacial features

Navigable rivers and river valleys

Urbanized area

Only around 20-25%

Coastal Plain

Flat

Marshy in places

Barrier islands

Pine Barrens

22% of New Jersey

Largest open area in Megalopolis

Overlays huge aquifer

Piedmont/Fall line

Fall line

Where Piedmont

meets coastal plain

Much settlement along

Fall line

Past Glaciations

Moraines

Nearly all of Long

Island

Connecticut and Rhode

Island shoreline

River Valleys

Many deep river

valleys

Connecticut

Hudson

Delaware

Susquehanna

(Chesapeake)

Potomac

Delaware River

Climate

Cool wet winters

Most are is protected from most extreme cold by

Appalachians

Humid, warm to hot summers

Prone to significant coastal storms

Significant urban influence in places

Climograph – Hartford, CT

Climograph – Providence, RI

Climograph – Boston, MA

Climograph – New York, NY

Climograph – Albany, NY

Climograph – Atlantic City, NJ

Climograph – Wilmington, DE

Climograph – Philadelphia, PA

Climograph – Baltimore, MD

Climograph – Richmond, VA

Climate Comparison

Spokane

WA

Albany

NY

New York

City

Norfolk

VA

Jan Temp (F) 33 / 21 31 / 13 39 / 27 49 / 34

Jul Temp (F) 82 / 54 82 / 60 85 / 70 88 / 73

Rainfall 16.5 in. 39 in. 45 in. 46 in.

Snowfall 49 in. 63 in. 22 in. 9 in.

Flora/Fauna

Originally, mostly deciduous woodland

Most cleared away

Forested area increasing as farms abandoned

Population & Settlement

Early Settlement

New Netherlands

New Sweden

Numerous British settlements, beginning with

Jamestown

First area of the new continent to urbanize

Relocation Diffusion

New England - Saltbox

New England - Georgian Colonial

New England – Hall & Parlor

Presently

90% urban

One of the most ethnically varied regions on the

continent

Some urban areas thriving more than others

Population Numbers

State/Province 2000 (1,000’s) 1990 (1,000’s) Change

New Hampshire 1,236 1,109 +11%

Massachusetts 6,349 6,016 +6%

Connecticut 3,406 3,287 +4%

Rhode Island 1,048 1,003 +5%

New York 18,976 17,990 +6%

New Jersey 8,414 7,730 +9%

Pennsylvania 12,281 11,882 +3%

Maryland 5,296 4,781 +5%

Delaware 783 666 +18%

Virginia 7,079 6,187 +14%

US & Canada 312,600 276,700 +13%

Population Density - CT

Population Density - RI

Population Density - MA

Population Density - NY

Population Ethnicity - NY

Population Density - NJ

Population Density - DE

Population Density - MD

Population Density - VA

Human & Economic Geography

The Urban Scene

Metro areas over 1 million people

Boston

Providence

Hartford

New York City

Philadelphia

Baltimore

Washington D.C.

Norfolk

Boston

Founded in 1630

Well-protected bay

Significant space problems

Much of the city built on drained swamps

Big Dig

High-tech industrial area

Especially on Beltways

Trade services

Major university town

Providence

Largest city in Rhode Island

Providence was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay Colony

Providence was one of the first cities to industrialize, and became noted for its jewelry and silverware industry.

The Connecticut Valley

No preeminent city

Springfield, Hartford, New Haven, Bridgeport

Many foci

Almost 3 million people

Large manufacturing base

Machinery

Airports engines

Insurance and real estate industry in Hartford

New York City

Largest metropolitan area in US (21 million)

Extremely dense core (70,000 persons / sq. mi. in Manhattan)

Leader in

International commerce

Transportation

Financial markets

Business services

Garment manufacturing

Corporate headquarters (40% of large companies)

New York City & Environs

Boroughs

Manhattan (1.5M)

During Day (3 M)

Bronx (1.5 M)

Queens (2 M)

Brooklyn (2.5 M)

Staten Is. (400 k)

Outer areas

Westchester Co. (1.M)

Nassau Co. (1.4 M)

New Jersey (3+ M)

New York City

Initial advantages

Good deep ice free harbor

Easily accessible

19th century

Hudson River, Mohawk River, Erie Canal

Ellis Island

1898: Consolidation

Shifting demographics

Multiple Jurisdictions

Plagues many East Coast states when urban areas

spread across state lines

New York particularity vulnerable

Until 1898, New York Harbor belonged partially to

New York City, Brooklyn, and New Jersey

Control of Liberty Island still uncertain

Port Authority of New York and New

Jersey (PANY/NJ)

Port Authority of NY/NJ founded in 1921 after a

federal order

Board appointed half by NY governor and half by

NJ governor

Aim is to manage infrastructures of transportation in

both states

Owners of the World Trade Center site

Raise funds only through revenue (cannot tax)

Philadelphia

Founded in 1862

Largest city much of the 18th century

Lost prominence due to difficulty of westward transit until rails in 1800’s

Major industrial center along the Delaware River

Significant urban decay problem

Wilmington

Largest City in Delaware

First colonized by settlers from Sweden in 1638

Located near the confluence of the Christina River Delaware River

Located in the Philadelphia media market

The Chesapeake & Delaware Canal

Saved considerable time from circling Chesapeake

Delaware City planned to be the Philadelphia of.

Del.

Traffic plummeted once the railroads were

completed

Baltimore

Late colonial city (1728)

Major agricultural, later

industrial hub, good rail

access to the interior

Significant urban decline

One of the first to

renovate downtown with

“Inner Harbor”

development in 1980’s

Washington D.C.

First planned city

Drained swamp

Significant flight from downtown to suburbs

Northern Virginia one of the most rapidly growing areas in the country

Federal govt., U of Md.

Rural Life

Important agricultural areas (close to large market)

Dairy

Poultry (Sussex Co. Del, #1)

Pennsylvania Dutch (Amish)

Crabs

Retreat for urbanites

Jersey Shore, Cape Cod, Ocean City, Rehoboth Beach, Long Island, Martha’s Vineyard

Pocono, Catskill’s, Berkshire Mountains

Outlook

Variable in different cities

Nerve center of both commerce (New York) and

government (Washington DC)

Growing culturally

Major destination area for newer immigrants

Aging city infrastructures