GEOGRAPHY

OF THE

UNITED STATES

& CANADA

By Brett Lucas

THE SOUTHEASTERN COAST

Setting the Boundaries

What states and provinces are part of the

region?

Southeastern TX, southern LA, southern MS, southern

AL, southern GA, all of FL, eastern SC, and eastern

NC

What regions does it border?

Great Plains, Inland South, and Megaopolis

Physical Geography

Physical Setting

Probably the flattest region of the 15 regions discussed in this class

Poorly drained

Components

Sandy shallow coastline

Barrier Islands

Florida Peninsula

Mississippi Delta

Florida Keys

Coastline

Very flat terrain

Very shallow ocean

Many meandering

rivers

Swamps common,

lack of ‘true”

coastline

Barrier Islands

Shoals as geographic units

Slowly migrating outward

Intensely developed

Florida Peninsula

Limestone Karst

Caves

Sinkholes

Very high water table

Lakes and artesian

wells

Complex drainage

system

Florida Peninsula

Everglades

Mississippi River Delta

Landscape in transition

Bayou

Intra-coastal Waterway

The Intra-coastal Waterway is a 4,800-km (3,000-mile) waterway along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States.

Some lengths consist of natural inlets, salt-water rivers, bays, and sounds; others are man-made canals.

Enhances freight transport

Extends across much of the region

Climate

Summer dominates

Mild winter, though frosts occur in most places

Heavy rainfall

Very humid

Hurricane prone

Climograph – Wilmington, NC

Climograph – Charleston, SC

Climograph – Savannah, GA

Climograph – Jacksonville, FL

Climograph – Miami, FL

Climograph – Tampa, FL

Climograph – Mobile, AL

Climograph – Baton Rouge, LA

Climograph – Houston, TX

Climograph – Brownsville, TX

Galveston, 1900 Hurricane

Worst natural disaster in

US History at the time

It had estimated winds

of 135 mph

6,000 killed in city

(20% of the population)

Allowed Houston to

surpass Galveston in

regional supremacy

Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina was the costliest and one of the five deadliest hurricanes in the history of the U.S.

It was the sixth-strongest Atlantic hurricane ever recorded and the third-strongest hurricane on record that made landfall in the United States

Climate Comparison

Spokane

WA

Houston

TX

Miami

FL

Wilmington

NC

Jan Temp (F) 33 / 21 62 / 41 75 / 59 56 / 35

Jul Temp (F) 82 / 54 93 / 73 89 / 77 89 / 71

Rainfall 16.5 in. 45 in. 58 in. 54 in.

Snowfall 49 in. 0 in. 0 in. 2 in.

Soils & Landscape

Sandy soils, clay, poorly drained

Forest (pines and cypress) on more stable ground

and located more to the east

Grasslands near coast

Everglades is an example with tall sawgrass

Wildlife

Wintering ground for many birds

Cougar

Alligators

Snakes

Many exotic species flourish here

Florida’s climate can accommodate many species

Population & Settlement

Early Settlement

Extremely varied/complex settlement

French settlers came down the Mississippi and

gradually spread along the coast

British moved along the Atlantic shore (Georgia

founded in 1773)

Spanish settled Texas from Caribbean/Mexico

Settlement of Florida

First permanent European settlement by Spanish (St.

Augustine, 1565), evicted French settlers of a year

earlier

Camped by French on the west and English on north

through 1700’s

Ceded to Britain, 1763

Returned to Spain, 1781

Settlement of Florida

Spanish settlers returned along with many Native

Americans, Africans, Americans

Ceded to US in 1821

Two Seminole Wars to evict native population,

1818 and 1835-41

Contemporary Migration

Cuban immigration to Florida

Haitian immigration to Florida

Mexican immigration to Texas

Retirement immigration to entire region

Contemporary Migration

Booming areas

Houston

Most of Florida peninsula

Retirement areas of southern Texas, Carolinas

Other areas with less growth

New Orleans to Florida panhandle

Charleston, Savannah

Population Numbers

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

Florida 15,982 12,937 +23%

Wilmington, NC 233 171 +36%

New Orleans 1,337 1,285 +4%

Houston 4,670 3,731 +21%

Brownsville, TX 335 260 +29%

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

Population Density - NC

Population Density - SC

Population Density - GA

Population Density - FL

Population Density - AL

Population Density - MS

Population Density - LA

Population Density - TX

Human & Economic Geography

Fishisng

Louisiana catch second

only to Alaska in US

Shrimp most places in

gulf

Many leading fishing

port in the region

Forestry

Turpentine and resin

Half of the worlds output here

Distilled from yellow pine

Lumber and pulpwood

Forestry

Difficult in many regions with poorly drained land

Climate suitable for some crops not suitable in other

areas

Adequate moisture

Winter crops grown for rest of US and Canada

Most crops grown elsewhere are absent here

(grains)

Citrus

Florida, more than

75% of national

output

Also in Rio Grande

Valley

Danger from frosts has

pushed dominant area

south

Winter Vegtables

Tomatoes

Peppers

Squash

Eggplant

Sugar

Important historically

Sugar plantations in Louisiana

Current growth

South Central and Southeast Louisiana

Southeast Florida

Increased in importance since Cuban sugar is prohibited

Crops & other Livestock

Rice

Used to extremely

important in Carolina’s

in Georgia

Cotton

Tobacco

Beef

Coastal Louisiana,

Texas, Florida

Mineral Industries

Salt

Sulfur

Oil and Natural Gas

Mouth of the Mississippi to the mouth of the Rio Grande

off shore and near shore reserves

Expanding industry, with better technology

Many cities in the area have large refineries and

shipping ports

Oil Drilling in the Gulf

Already in western

Gulf

Proposed ending of

moratorium in Eastern

Gulf

Significant

environmental hazard

with the BP Spill in

2010

Manufacturing

Mostly, due to proximity of natural resources

Petrochemicals

Plastics

Oil refinement

Rubber

Explosives

Tourism & Recreation

Mostly beach or

water-related

Disney and other

amusement parks in

Orlando

“Winter haven”

Retirement center

Cruise ship industry

Service Industry

Large boom in retirement population

Dramatic increase in employment in services for

older population

Large employment in tourist trade as well,

particularly in Florida

New Orleans

Enormous shipping port

Only US major city

below sea level

Most French-cultured city

in US

Major tourist destination

Slow growth

Hit hard by Hurricane

Katrina in 2004

Houston

Fastest growing large city in country

Busy port, industrial area

Dominated by energy industry

Space industry

Largest US city without an amusement park close by

Other Florida Cities

Large service sectors

Tourism centers (especially Orlando)

Retirement centers

Most cities on peninsula rapidly growing

Tampa 2.4 M., Orlando 1.6 M., West Palm Beach 1.1 M.

Much of the coastal areas one large area of urban sprawl

Jacksonville and other northern cities showing less growth

Other Cities

Petroleum-based and Petrochemicals

Baton Rouge

Beaumont - Port Arthur

Historic Industrial Cities

Charleston

Savannah

Other Ports

Mobile (steel)

Brownsville (agriculture)

Outlook

Future growth

Petroleum industry and related manufacturing

Expansion of port facilities

Retirement centers

Natural environment very sensitive to growth