chapter 7 Megalopolis

New Jersey

- side of the Hudson - About 4 million in Newark and suburbs. - Rebounding area with high-rise condos and offices. - Heavy industries of oil refining, chemical plants, rail yards, sea port.

Long Island

2+ million in suburbs, eastern end is rural.

fishing

Massachusetts is leader, also Maryland.

Westchester County

North of NYC, 1 million, upper-income homes

agriculture

- Remaining farms are specialized for local consumption or immediate freezing or canning. - Vegetables, fruit, nursery, greenhouse, dairy, chickens.

The Bronx

- Residential region of about 1.5 million. - Mostly high-density housing, single-family homes in north.

Megalopolis

- An urban region along the eastern coast of the US. - Only 1% of North America area, but 55 million population. - Concentration of business, wealth, trade, finance, law, government. - Region that received European immigration. - Locations of the beginnings of the U.S. - Boundaries and extent of Megalopolis. - Core is the New York City to Philadelphia corridor. - Extends northward to the Boston area. - Extends southward to Baltimore, Washington, and Richmond, Virginia.

recreation and tourism

- Cities are the top tourist attractions - Historical sites, government, museums, parks, theaters, shopping, neighborhoods, sports... - Sea coast and islands have second homes, beaches, vacation attractions. - Civil War and Revolutionary War sites. - Numerous parks.

New York City, NY, CT, NJ

- Core of Megalopolis, primary city in the US, among most important in the world. - Metro region is 24 counties, 20 million population. - City of New York is composed of five boroughs. - Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn, Richmond (Staten Island).

Merrimack Valley

- in NH and MA. - Old industrial valley of textile and shoe manufacturing, peaked in 1920s. - Leather production still important. - Growth in electrical machinery production. - Connected toward Boston. - Appeal - proximity to mountains of Vermont and N. Hampshire.

manufacturing

- is important - led by textiles, the 'garment district.' - Leading financial center of the world. - More corporate headquarters than any US city. - Has 40% of the office space in US. - International leader in theaters, museums, libraries, colleges, hotels, restaurants. - Sports center.

Brooklyn

- Tip of Long Island across from Lower Manhattan. - 2.3 million - Residential with multiple family housing. Some industry

Boston, MA

- Settled in 1630 in Massachusetts Bay, protected by Cape Cod. - Early focus on industry, but now trade, services, education, government. - A major Atlantic seaport. - Modern economy focuses on high-tech firms - computers, electronics, aerospace, pharmaceuticals. - Important colonial city, site of start of Revolutionary War. - Maintains older section of narrow streets, colonial architecture. - Center of university life, medical research. - Traditionally Irish and Italians. - Also African-American and Puerto Rican populations.

Washington, DC, MD, VA

- Designed in 1790s as the national capital city. - District of Columbia was a square taken from MD and VA. Virginia reclaimed its portion, so DC is on Maryland side of the Potomac River. - Rectangular grid of streets, diagonal avenues, traffic circles. - Large federal government buildings, monuments, parks. - The 'Mall' is parkland two miles long from Capitol Building with White House, Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial. - Smithsonian Institution. - 95,000 federal jobs in the Mall area. - In addition to government, mostly residential housing, embassies. - Sprawl of government buildings, housing, office space, and retail into Maryland and Virginia. - 75% of DC population is African-American. - tourism

site advantages

- Early competition with Colonial port cities of Montreal, Boston, Baltimore, Halifax, Philadelphia. - But, Baltimore, Montreal, and Philadelphia were too far upstream. - Montreal freezes in winter - Others had shallower or smaller harbors. - New York - deep harbor, no ice, small tide, direct access inland on Hudson River. - Later (1825) connection to Great Lakes and Middle West through the Erie Canal. - New York dominated trade and travel with Europe. - Attracted businesses and immigrants. - Extensive transportation routes inland and along coast by train, highway, air. - New York City leads the nation in most economic measures. -bRetail and wholesale sales, international trade, banking, etc

Providence, RI and Narragansett Bay

- From colonial times a center of New England textile industries. - Advantages of water power on rivers, ocean port, damp air, skilled labor, in population centers. - Decline in textiles after 1920s as they moved to Carolinas and South. - Still an industrial center, also education, insurance, government.

a unique city

- dominance of federal govt jobs. - High % of female employees. - High % of African-American employees. - Very little manufacturing.

Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY

- Inland at confluence of Mohawk River and Hudson River. - Eastern end of Erie Canal, 1825. - Long history in industry - textiles, machinery, General Electric. - Now center for state government and education (SUNY-Albany).

landscapes

- Irregular coast with many bays and peninsulas, and islands. - Flat land along the coasts, hills at western margins. The 'Fall Line.' - Rivers - Connecticut, Hudson, Delaware, Chesapeake, Potomac, James

Transportation Hub

- Largest sea port in North America. - Largest airport system. - Most heavily used bridges and tunnels

borders

- Less population density toward Atlantic Northeast (north), Appalachians (west), and Inland South (south). - Changing land use patterns and topography - Includes parts of 10 states and D.C. - Contains nine distinct urban regions

climate

- Mid-continental location along an ice-free ocean coast. - Storm systems come from west or south, but ocean moderates temperatures. - Hot summers/ mild winters in south, cooler summers and cold winters in north. - Abundant precipitation. - Snowfall 50-80 inches in north to less than 10 inches in south. - Coastal storms

region

- Most (80%) is NOT urban. - Natural vegetation was deciduous forest, some pines. - Most forests were removed for farming in 1800s but more trees now through farm abandonment. Now much of the land preserved as parks - is fragmented physically by rivers, politically by multiple levels of government.

coastal storms

- Nor'easters in fall and winter. - Hurricanes in summer and fall

Hartford, CT and Connecticut Valley

- North-south string of medium-sized cities in MA and CT. - Old industrial region that has transformed into a modern economy. - Some orientation toward New York City. - Machinery, tools, hardware, electric motors. - Research and development, aircraft engines. - Hartford is an insurance center.

Queens

- On Long Island, 2.1 million population. - Residential, industrial, commercial. - Kennedy and LaGuardia airports

Philadelphia, PA, NJ

- A 50-mile long urban region along Delaware River from Trenton, NJ, to Wilmington, DE. - Site was selected and planned by William Penn in 1682. - Largest city in US for most of the 1700s. - Pennsylvania Railroad completed westward over the Appalachians in mid-1800s. - Port facilities and heavy industry along the Delaware River downstream from Phila. - Oil refineries, chemical plants, shipyards. - Manufacturing of clothing, publishing houses, machinery, electronics. - Historical significance in Revolutionary War and making of the new US. - Independence Hall, Ben Franklin

Balimore, MD

- A port on Chesapeake Bay. - Exports grain and coal. - Imports oil, sugar, copper, iron ore fertilizer for processing, steel-making. - Revitalized waterfront, the Inner Harbor. - Subway system, National Aquarium, new baseball stadium, universities.

Manhatten

- An island, 25 square miles, 1.5 million residents. Millions more work there. - Central Park - Diverse neighborhoods. - Manufacturing, office space, financial. - 2 million jobs in Lower Manhattan. - 9-11-2001 World Trade Center

Richmond (Staten Island)

About 500,000, mostly residential.