Geographic Features

Atlantic Coast

• The first region of settlement by English colonists.  

• Access to Atlantic Ocean was crucial for trade as well as contact with Europe and other parts of the world.

Hudson River Valley 

• It was first settled by the Dutch, later taken over by the English.

• It provided access into the interior to the north and west towards the Great Lakes region.  

• The river was important initially for trade with Native Americans, and later with Midwestern states after construction of the Eerie Canal.

Appalachian Mountains 

• Were a major obstacle to westward expansion of colonial settlement.  They created a physical border for the English colonies.

• Were used to set an official boundary restricting westward settlement by King George III through the Proclamation of 1763.

Ohio River Valley

• Region to the west of the Appalachian Mountains and south of the Great Lakes.  American colonists looked to expand into this region in the mid 1700’s.

• Competing claims to this region lead to the French and Indian War (1754-1763) and Pontiac’s Rebellion (1763).

The Great Lakes

• 5 large lakes in the midwestern part of the US that reach from Western New York to Minnesota, and are part of the border between the US and Canada. 

• Provide important travel and trade routes in the midwest region.  

• Were also militarily important during conflicts from pre-colonial times through the the War of 1812. 

Mississippi River

• An important trade route for the Midwest providing access to the Caribbean and back to the Atlantic Coast and Europe.  

• It would form the first official western border of the United States.

Great Plains

• Large, relatively flat area between the Mississippi river and the Rocky Mountains.  

• It would become an important area of settlement and agricultural production for the U.S. (Homestead Act, 1862)

Rocky Mountains

• They form the major continental divide for North America.  

• They were a major obstacle to migration to the Pacific Coast and the building of the Transcontinental Railroad (1860’s).

Pacific Coast

• The ultimate Western Border of the contiguous United States. 

• It became the goal of those who advocated the expansion of the United States and the idea of Manifest Destiny.  

Southern Climate

• The hot and humid climate of the South made growing of cash crops for export the major component of the Southern economy.  

• It was a crucial factor in the development of slavery in the United States.