Introduction to North Carolina PPT
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Transcript Introduction to North Carolina PPT
Introduction to
North Carolina
What are the four major
regions of NC?
Tidewater
Coastal Plain
Piedmont
Mountains
NC Maps
So where is the 4th region?
Our book uses four regions-breaking up
the coastal plain into two regions.
Section 1: The Tidewater
Region
ESSENTIAL QUESTION
What are the major features of the
Tidewater Region?
What words do I need to know?
1. sound
2. barrier islands
3. inlet
4. estuary
5. pocosin
6. Savanna
7. sediment
Section 1: The Tidewater Region
Narrow strip of land along the Atlantic
Ocean
30-50 miles wide
Tides affect the region’s water
sounds: inland bodies of salt/fresh water
mix
Barrier Islands
Most less than two miles across, barely above sea level, and ever
changing due to surf and wind
The Outer Banks are the most famous barrier islands
At Cape Hatteras islands are widest; Jockey’s Ridge is tallest point
(114’)
Inlets: low places in the sand; allows water from the ocean into the
sound
“Graveyard of the Atlantic”: nickname for waters near Cape Hatteras
– dangerous due to storms caused by warm Gulf Stream colliding
with cold Labrador Current
Cape Fear: true break in the island chain;
Cape Fear River flows directly into the Atlantic
The Sounds
Each sound fed by fresh water river
Oldest towns in NC near the sounds
Great location for trade along river routes
and ocean
Fishing is an important industry
Sediment (soil, clay, gravel) is deposited
by the rivers in the sounds – makes them
too shallow for large ships
estuaries: salt water wetlands; these
marshes are home to shellfish and shrimp
Largest Sounds
Currituck
Albemarle
Pamlico
Core
Bogue
Swamps and Lakes
pocosins: wetland type; Indian name means “swamp on a
hill”
Alligator and Big Pocosin are the largest
savanna: wetland type
tall grasses mix with various pines
example: Green Swamp (home of Venus Fly Trap)
Most natural lakes in NC are in the Tidewater
Lake Mattamuskeet is largest
(only 6’ deep)
Least populated area of the state
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Section 2: The Coastal Plain
Region
ESSENTIAL QUESTION
What are the major features of
the Coastal Plain Region?
What words do I need to know?
crossroads hamlets
tobacco towns
Carolina bays
Sandhills
Section 2: The Coastal Plain Region
Covers about 1/3 of the state
Rich soil and flat land make area good for
farming
Crossroads hamlets: serve rural areas,
usually one or two stores, church, school, etc.
Wilson, NC
Greenville, NC
Tobacco Towns
Towns whose life and culture were dominated by tobacco farming
Largest tobacco growing area in the world
In mid-1900s, nearly every town in the coastal plain had at least one
tobacco warehouse
Tobacco farming is declining because of health risks associated with
smoking and loss of government payments to guarantee farmers’
income
Longleaf pines were original plants of the region; millions of acres cut
down for tobacco farming
Carolina Bays
Carolina Bays are an unusual feature of the state
Hundreds of elongated depressions in the ground, from
½ to 2 miles long and a mile wide
Some filled with water; others are wet and mucky in wet
times, and dry other parts of the year
Origin unknown
Google Maps
The Sandhills
Located northwest of the bays
Sandy, rolling ridges left by ancient coast
of the Atlantic Ocean
Very poor soil
Used as home for golf courses
and Fort Bragg military installation
Section 3: The Piedmont Region
ESSENTIAL QUESTION
What are the major features of
the Piedmont Region?
What words do I need to know?
fall line
headwaters
sectionalism
mill village
NASCAR
monadnock
Section 3: The Piedmont Region
Large region of NC known for hills and red clay soil
Red clay is a subsoil brought up through the black woods
dirt as a result of timber loss and plowing fields
Piedmont: from Latin, means “foot of the mountains”
Principal rivers: Yadkin-Pee Dee and Catawba – flow
into South Carolina
River “highways” connected people in western NC with
SC more than they did with eastern NC, resulting in
“sectionalism”
Over ½ of region is forests; pines cover old farms
Most large cities in NC are in this region.
Fall Line: divides the coastal plain from the
Piedmont, noted by the last waterfall a river hits
before going to the ocean
Farms and Factories
Soil made farming difficult in the Piedmont
Livestock and dairy farms were more profitable, but
have declined
Economy of the region has depended on factories
to produce textiles, furniture and cigarettes
mill villages: clusters of homes in a town where mill
workers lived; the company often provided the
homes, schools, and stores
1990s: decline in industry
Textile and furniture factories moved to Asia
Banking and Racing
Charlotte: national banking center and home to
NASCAR, and NASCAR Hall of Fame
Winston-Salem and Durham have grown in
medical service industries linked to Wake Forest
and Duke Universities
Salisbury: home to grocery industry
Research Triangle Park: leader in
pharmaceuticals and computers
The Uwharries
monadnocks: geological formation in which a point of
land sticks out due to erosion of surrounding land
Uwharrie Mountains: cluster of monadnocks south of
Greensboro (ex. Morrow Mountain) – slopes and slate
soil discouraged settlement
Piedmont Crescent: string of towns from Raleigh to
Charlotte
Section 4: The Mountains
Region
ESSENTIAL QUESTION
What are the major features of
the Mountains Region?
What words do I need to know?
1.
2.
3.
elevation
bald
cove
Section 4: The Mountains Region
Blue Ridge: more than 1,000 ft above the
Piedmont hills; eastern boundary of the
Appalachians
Blue Ridge Parkway: road that runs along the
top of the ridge – Cherokee NC to Waynesboro,
VA
Continental Divide – streams on the east run to
the Atlantic; streams on the west run to the Gulf
of Mexico
The Blue Ridge
Runs from Pennsylvania
to Georgia
One long landform (like
the barrier islands) with
peaks and gaps
Early settlers depended
on gaps to get through
the mountains
1870s: tunnels and road
beds laid through
Swanannoa Gap – near
current I-40 from Old Fort
to Black Mountain
The
Appalachians:
Run from New York to Alabama
43 peaks in NC over 6,000 feet
Mt. Mitchell (6,684 ft): highest point
east of the Rockies
Ranges
Black Mountains: known for
dark shadows during
thunderstorms
Great Smoky Mountains: dew
rises in mists creating a smoky
effect; tallest peaks are
Clingman’s Dome and Mt.
Guyot; great variety of plants
Balsams: large number of balds
(places where few trees grow)
Mountain Streams and Rocks
Rivers run north and west out of NC
Asheville is largest city in the region
Cherokee built their villages along the Tennessee River
Most of the over 100 lakes are manmade (ex. Lake Lure
& Fontana Lake)
Fontana Dam (1930s) is highest in eastern US ; built to
provide cheaper electricity
Famous sites: Blowing Rock, Chimney Rock, Grandfather
Mountain, Nantahala River Gorge
The Mountains Economy
Early settlers isolated from others
Farming, traveling, trading were more difficult
Towns developed in valley areas
Known for sales of local plants with medicinal
properties
Tourism is a major industry
Christmas tree is a new and growing industry;
Fraser firs most popular
Section 5: North Carolina’s
Weather and Climate
ESSENTIAL QUESTION
What are characteristics of North
Carolina’s climate?
What words do I need to know?
1. weather
2. climate
3. westerlies
4. humidity
5. precipitation
6. tornado
7. hurricane
Section 5: North Carolina’s Weather
and Climate
weather: short-term atmospheric conditions
climate: long-term atmospheric conditions
temperate climate: general climate zone for NC;
known for few extremes of temperature or
precipitation during the year
-34°F: record cold at Mt. Mitchell (1985)
Humidity (moisture in the air) can make
temperatures feel uncomfortably warm