The Southeast Region

The land and the climate have shaped the historical and economic development of the southeast and have molded the character of its people. Mild rainy weather and a long growing season coupled with rich, flat, farmland, have made agriculture the prime occupation here since the region was first settled. In recent years, though, business and industry have grown to become more important. The relatively warm winters draw many tourists and retired people and the population is growing rapidly. The development of the southeast has been shaped and influenced by the land. The rivers, the climate, and the resources of the region. 12 states make up the southeast region. Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida all have coastlines on the Atlantic Ocean. Florida's West Coast, however, faces the Gulf of Mexico. Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana also Shira coast on the Gulf of Mexico. 

The remaining four states, Arkansas, Tennessee, Kentucky and West Virginia are inland, with no coastline. They are connected to the gulf, though, by a good system of rivers, including the Ohio River, which forms much of the northern boundary, before connecting with the Mississippi River. Besides the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico, the region is bounded by the states of Maryland and Pennsylvania on the northeast. Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Missouri on the northwest, and Oklahoma and Texas on the west. The first Europeans, the said eyes on most of this beautiful land, were from Spain. Ponce de Leon explored much of Florida, looking for the fountain of youth. In the 1540s, the Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto crossed the lands from Georgia to Arkansas. In 1565, the Spanish built the first permanent European settlement at a place on Florida's Atlantic coast. And named it St. Augustine. They built a large fort to protect the ships, carrying gold back to Spain. St. Augustine is the oldest city in the United States. 

The first English settlement was attempted by sir Walter Raleigh in 1585 when he established a colony on a North Carolina island. But a year later, the colony was found abandoned. The fate of the 121 settlers is still a mystery, and the settlement has become known as the lost colony. In 1607, the first successful English colony in America was also established in the southeast region. At Jamestown, Virginia. Within 12 years, the settlers began growing in exporting tobacco. Established the first representative assembly of government in the colonies, and imported the first black slaves into America. All acts which would have serious effects on the region, and its people. For centuries to come. What was it about the southeast region that attracted the earliest explorers in colonists? Why did they choose this area over others? Perhaps a look at the land itself will provide some clues. There are three types of terrain in the region. The mountains, the Piedmont, and the coastal plain. 

The Appalachian mountain range extends from western Virginia, southwest, to northern Georgia and Alabama. The eastern edge is known as the blue ridge mountains. The Piedmont is an area of low rolling hills at the foot of the mountains. Piedmont is a French word meaning foothills. Except for the Ozark mountains in Arkansas, all the rest is coastal plain, a low, relatively flat area, perfect for agriculture. Vegetables and food crops grow abundantly. But certain crops grew so well here that they came to dominate agriculture. Along the Gulf Coast, sugarcane and rice are raised in huge quantities. Tobacco is a major cash crop throughout the region, but especially in the Piedmont area. Of course, the king of all crops in the southeast is cotton. So important to the region since the earliest days, it's been called king cotton. Much of the southeast region has been known as the land of cotton. Huge plantations were established to grow cotton. Plantations are large farms that grow a single crop. It took many workers to grow, pick and mill the cotton. In Africans were imported to work as slaves without pay. Cotton and slavery would define the region for over a century. 

Eventually contributing to the Civil War. In 1860, the southeast region withdrew from the union, and along with Texas, formed the Confederate States of America. Most of the fighting during what southerners called a war between the states took place in the southeast region. The war began in the harbor of Charleston, South Carolina, with the bombardment of fort Sumter. Many battles were fought in Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, and in every other state in the region. The southern capital of Richmond was destroyed. So were many other cities, like Atlanta, Georgia. The war finally came to an end, at appomattox courthouse, Virginia. Slavery was abolished. But cotton was still king. Growing only a single crop, however, used up the soil. Cotton no longer grew well. The entire economy faced ruin until one man came up with a solution. Growing peanuts in alternate years could renew the soil. But nobody wanted the peanuts. They were only used to feed the pigs. George Washington Carver, an African American born into slavery and later freed, came up with over 300 uses for the peanut. 

He saved the cotton crop, and established another huge cash crop for the southeast region's farmers. Another major industry is fishing. The coastal waters of the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico and the many rivers of the coastal plain are full of fish. Fishing is an occupation for many. But for others, it's simply a way to put food on the table. The warm waters in the bays along the Atlantic coast spawn many shellfish, such as oysters and clams. Schmidt for a big part of the economy, along the Gulf Coast. In the foothills or Piedmont area of the region. Farmers raise mostly vegetables, fruit trees, stock animals, and tobacco. In the mountains, agriculture gives way to timber and mining. Baseball bats are just one of the many timber products manufactured in the region. Gemstones like rubies and emeralds are mined in Tennessee and North Carolina. Diamonds are found in Arkansas Ozark mountains. But the most valuable product of mining in the region is coal. Hundreds of millions of tons of coal are taken out of the mountains of Kentucky and West Virginia each year. 

Coal is burned to make electricity and run factories. Much of it is sold to other countries. The rivers of the region provide excellent shipping routes to international ports. There are many short rivers which drain water from the mountains into the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. But for transportation, there are three major river systems. The Ohio River, with its tributaries, and the Tennessee river system connect with the country's largest river, the Mississippi, which flows through the region to the Gulf of Mexico. Where the Mississippi meets the gulf, sets the country's second busiest port. New Orleans. Known as the birthplace of jazz, New Orleans is one of the oldest cities in America. French traders established the city. Its oldest section is known as the French Quarter. The old building show both French and Spanish influence. Since the city was ruled by both the French and the Spanish, before becoming part of the United States. 

New Orleans, has always been an important transportation hub for river and ocean shipping. But it was railroads that built the other major transportation center in the region. Atlanta, Georgia owes its existence to the mountains and to the railroad builders. Because the Appalachian Mountains were too high for railroads to cross. They were built around them. Many railroads converged at the southern end of the mountain chain. Atlanta became an important railroad hub. Today, it's the major distribution center for goods and services in the region. It's also the headquarters of many corporations. Banks and government agencies. Atlanta can be called the unofficial capital of the southeast. Atlanta's ebenezer baptist church is a landmark of the historic civil rights movement of the 1960s. While pastor there, Martin Luther King led the fight for freedom and equality for black Americans. Rapid growth in recent years has made Atlanta one of the region's largest metropolitan areas. It's even vying with New York to be the nation's leading center of communications. 

Atlanta is a dynamic world class city, but only one of many important cities in the region. Like Orlando. As well as Miami, Tampa, and Jacksonville in Florida. Columbia, South Carolina, Charlotte, North Carolina, Richmond, Virginia. Louisville, Kentucky. Nashville and Memphis in Tennessee, Little Rock Arkansas, Baton Rouge, and New Orleans in Louisiana, mobile and Birmingham in Alabama, and Jackson, Mississippi. Most of these cities are growing business and manufacturing centers. After The Great Depression of the 1920s, manufacturing began to replace agriculture as the dominant force in the economy. The many rivers in the area provided both power and transportation. And the cost of labor was lower than in the north. Textiles, paper and furniture, became important products throughout the region. Motor vehicles, computer parts, and machinery are also manufactured. Another important part of the economy today are the service industries from home building tourism, which benefit directly from the climate of the southeast. Many people are moving here, and vacationing here because of the warmer temperatures. Although the northern part of the region can see harsh winters. The southern part, along the Gulf Coast and throughout Florida, rarely freezes. 

Farmers in Central Florida can grow crops the year round. Oranges are a major crop, along with vegetables, which are shipped north during the winter. Vacationers flock to the warm waters and sunny beaches of the gulf and Atlantic coasts. In the winter, though, only South Florida is warm enough for swimming. Miami Beach is popular with tourists from all over the world. Miami is one of the largest cities in the region, and is located near the southern tip of the Florida Peninsula. It's the closest U.S. city to Central and South America. And has become the gateway to Latin America. Many Cubans and other Spanish speaking Latin Americans have immigrated here. Two very unique geographic features are located near Miami. To the west lies the Everglades swamp, which covers much of southern Florida, and to the south, a string of tiny islands called keys, stretch into the ocean. Connected by bridges or causeways, the islands of the Florida keys form a highway leading to the largest island. 

Key West. It's still a small tropical port town, but Key West is under pressure because so many people want to move here. The Everglades is a swampy, wetland, filled with marsh grasses. It's actually a river that is 50 miles wide and only 6 inches deep. Flowing slowly into the ocean. Up the coast, in the middle of Florida, is the Kennedy Space Center, which launches the space shuttle, and sends astronauts into space. The Space Center has fostered many high-tech industries throughout the region. But living in the southeast as its hazards. One of the biggest is hurricanes. These violent tropical storms occur in the late summer and fall and can cause serious destruction. Weather is but one of the natural forces which have shaped the lives of the people of the southeast. The land, the rivers, the climate, and the resources have combined a foster the growth of an agricultural society. And later, one of industry, transport and communication. Fire. The southeast region is rapidly turning its old south legacy. Into one of a koala, prosperity, and opportunity. A growing region with a diverse population in the high-tech economy that could lead the entire country. Into the next century.