CHAPTER 8 SECTION 2
REGIONS OF THE
UNITED STATES
BR #2 (PGS173-179)
1)Define the following terms
& tell what specific region of
the country they refer to:
A) Megalopolis B) Textiles C)
Erie Canal D) Metropolitan
Area E) Arable F) Silicon
Valley G) Alaska & Hawaii H)
Smog
ANSWERS TO BR #2
 F)
Located south of San Francisco
(West) became the leading
center of computer technology G)
The last 2 states admitted to the
Union, both in 1959, are
considered Pacific States
H) Fog hanging over L.A. caused
by chemical reactions involving
sunlight & pollutants from
automobiles & industry, West
Facts
about the Northeast1)Smallest & most densely
populated region in the U.S.
2)Home to about a fifth of
the country’s population
which is concentrated in
Megalopolises 3) Political,
financial & industrial center
of country
 Major
Cities 1)New York (largest metro area in
U.S.)
 2)Boston & Philadelphia (date back
to colonial times)
 3)Baltimore (major port on
Chesapeake Bay)
 Washington, DC (Our nation’s
capital)
Midwest
 1)Country’s major farming region
 2)The Great Lakes & Mississippi
River link the midwest’s major
cities to each other & other
regions
 3)Many settlers moved here
because of excellent
transportation routes & farming
 4)
One of most productive farming
regions in world
 5) Corn Belt (stretches from
Nebraska to Ohio), major producer
of corn (U.S.-world’s leading
producer of corn), & soybean (used
to make margarine & vegetable oil)
 6) Dairy Belt (located north of the
Corn Belt), includes Wisconsin,
Minnesota & Michigan (milk,cheese)
Major Cities of the Midwest
 1)Chicago is the region’s largest
city & has the country’s 3rd largest
metropolitan area
 2) The Great Lake cities of Detroit
(home of the U.S. auto industry),
Cleveland, Milwaukee, & Toledo
are major manufacturing centers
 3)
Twin cities of Minneapolis & St.
Paul, located on the upper Miss.
River are transportation centers
for the upper Midwest
 4) St. Louis, Mo., located where
the Miss., Mo. & Illinois Rivers
flow together became the
meeting place for pioneers
heading west & was called the
“Gateway to the West”
 Facts
about the South
 1)Stretches in a great arc from
Virginia to Texas
 2)Home to 30% of the
country’s population (more
than any other region)
3)Historically rural &
agricultural, it used slave labor
to sustain its Plantation System
 4)The
Civil War wrecked the
South’s economy & made it the
poorest region in the country
 5)The Modern South has
become highly industrialized
(cotton, textile, & lumber)
 6) Florida has become a huge
tourism (Disney) & retirement
(climate) destination
 Major
Southern Cities
 1)Dallas-Fort Worth is the
largest metro area in the South
 2)The Houston Metropolitan
area is 2nd
 3)Atlanta, New Orleans, &
Miami are also large
transportation & commercial
centers
FACTS ABOUT THE WEST
1)Largest & most sparsely
populated region of the country
2)25% of the U.S. population
lives here 3)Plateaus, deserts, &
high mountains made this area
very inhospitable, but the
opening of the Transcontinental
Railroad brought many settlers to
the region
 The
Interior West
 1) Includes the Great Plains,
Rocky Mountains, & the InterMountain region west of the
Rockies
 2)Wheat Farming (part of the
wheat belt), raising livestock,
mining (all metals) & tourism
are the major economic
activities
The Pacific States
 1)Most people in the West live here
 2)California is home to some 34
million people
 3)The warm Mediterranean climate
allows for plant growth year around
 4)The growth of technology (Silicon
Valley) has vastly improved the
economy
 Major
Cities of the West
 1)Los Angeles- the largest metro
area in the West ( 2nd largest in
the country), famous for motion
picture industry (Hollywood)
 2)San Francisco-located on an
excellent deepwater harbor, has
always attracted immigrants
making it one of the most diverse
cities in the country
3)Seattle-Port
city in the
Pacific NW, does much trade
with Asia
4)San Diego-Large port city,
great climate, most important
naval base on the West Coast
5)Denver-Commercial & trade
center in Rocky Mountain area
NOWWORK #2 (PGS.173-179)
1A)
What is Pittsburgh’s
location?
 B) What did this location
help the city become?
2)Define: America’s
Dairyland
HW#2-CONTINUED
3)List 3 reasons why Chicago
is one of the world’s major
transportation centers.
4)List
3 popular ski resorts in
the West.
5)List 4 famous national parks
in the West.
ANSWERS TO HW #2
1)Located
at junction of 2
rivers
1B) close to rich iron ore &
coal deposits making city the
center of the steel industry
2) Wisconsin-produces more
butter & cheese than any
other state
HW#2 ANSWERS-CONTINUED
 3)Port on Lake Michigan, country’s
most important railroad hub, O’Hare
Airport is one of the busiest in the
world
 4)Aspen & Vail-Colorado,Taos-New
Mexico
 5)Glacier-Montana, Grand CanyonArizona, Grand Teton &
Yellowstone-Wyoming