Geography of the USA

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9. The US Constitution. Amendments to the constitution.

A Constitution is a body of fundamental principles according to which a nation or state is constituted or governed.  A good example is the constitution of the USA, formed in 1787.  It consists of the Preamble, 7 articles & 26 amendments.  The constitution of the USA is the source of government authority & the fundamental Law of the land. The constitutional convention which was to adopt a new constitution officially opened on May 25 1787 in Philadelphia.  The 55 delegates who drafted the constitution included most of the outstanding leaders of the new nation.  George Washington was the presiding officer.  In the course of the convention the delegates created a new form of government for the USA. The Constitution set up a federal system with a strong central government.  A federal system is one in which power is shared between a central authority & its states with some rights reserved to each.

Under the constitution power was divided among the 3 branches of national government:  legislative (the Congress), executive (the President) and judicial (the Supreme Court). These 3 powers established a so-called system of checks & balances.  This system gives each branch the means to restrain the other two.  The Constitution provided the election of a national leader, or president.  It provided also, that federal laws would be made only by a congress consisted of representatives elected by people. 

When the constitution was written in 1787 there were only 13 states.  The authors of the constitution saw that the future might bring a need for changes, that is why they provide a method of adding amendments.  Over the past 200 years 26 amendments have been adopted, but the constitution itself has not been changed. But when the Constitution was first proposed £ adopted, there was widespread dissatisfaction of the American people, because it did not contain guarantees of certain basic freedoms & individual rights.  It also recognized slavery £ did not establish universal suffrage (избирательное право).  Only several  years  later  in 1791 under the  strong popular pressure the congress was forced to adopt, the first 10 amendments  dealing with social  liberties  they were called collectively the Bill of Rights.  From it the Americans received guarantees of such basic rights as freedom of speech, the press  & religion,  the right of peaceful assembly, freedom from unreasonable search,  arrest and seizure. Slavery was abolished many years later in 1865 by the 13th amendment and universal suffrage was guaranteed in 1870 by the 15th amendment. The 22nd Amendment to the Constitution, in 1951, limited the Presidency to no more than 2 terms. Since Bill of Rights 16 more amendments were adopted.  But the political system created by the constitution & the Bill of rights is basically the same today as it was in 1790.

Adopted in 1787 the constitution was finally ratified & came into force on March 4,  1789. Under the constitution no member of one branch may be a member of either of two others.  But the president may or may not be a member of the political party with a majority in congress.  No member of the Government with the exception of the Vice president (who presides Senate) may also be a member of Congress.  The Congress is improved by the constitution to remove government officials, including the president, from office, only by Impeachment process.

The men, who played the leading roles in writing the constitution, were George Washington, James Madison and Alexander Hamilton. Washington's participation was the most important.  But truly decisive intellectual work was made by Madison. Later he was regarded as the Father of the constitution.

Each state has its own constitution.  The State constitutions have a similar structure with the Constitution of the USA.  As a rule they include preamble, the Bill of rights, as well as provisions dealing with local interests:  the division of powers, suffrage & elections,  taxes  & finance,  education etc.

 

 

 

 

10.The Southwest.  4 states: Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas. The Southwest is drier than the adjoining Midwest in weather. The population is less dense and, with strong Spanish-American and Native-American components, more ethnically varied than neighboring areas. Outside the cities, the region is a land of open spaces, much of which is desert. The magnificent Grand Canyon is located in this region, as is Monument Valley. Arkansas. The early French explorers of the state gave it its name. Joined the Union in 1836, was the 25th state. Arkansas is a beautiful land of mountains and valleys, thick forests and fertile plains. The Ozark and Ouachita mountain ranges in northern and western Arkansas are known as the Highlands; the southern and eastern parts of Arkansas are called the Lowlands. Arkansas' mineral and hot spring waters are well-known. Agriculture: Poultry and eggs, soybeans, sorghum, cattle, cotton, rice, hogs, milk. Industry: Food processing, electric equipment, fabricated metal products, machinery, paper products, bromine, vanadium. Louisiana, named in honor of the French King Louis XIV. It was admitted to the Union as the 18th state in 1812. A strong French influence is still evident throughout the state. Situated in the Deep South, Louisiana lies where the mighty Mississippi empties into the Gulf of Mexico.  Tourists visit New Orleans for the city's festive Mardi Gras, the old French Quarter and the city's jazz clubs. Oklahoma. In 1889, Congress opened up 2 million acres for white settlement (it was previously open only to Native Americans who were forced to leave their homelands), and the first of a number of land runs began. In 1907, Oklahoma became the 46th state in the Union. Oklahoma is a major fuel and food-producing state. Thousands of oil and natural gas wells dot the Oklahoma landscape. Millions of white-faced beef cattle graze on Oklahoma's flat plain and low hills. Fertile fields produce vast crops of wheat.  The name Texas is a Spanish name, which comes from an Indian word meaning "friends" or "allies." The Republic of Texas achieved its independence from Mexico in 1836. It became the 28th state in 1845. Texas is the second largest state. Today Texas is a major producer of oil. Cowboys with their 10-gallon hats have long been a symbol of the state. Agriculture: Cattle, cotton, dairy products, nursery stock, poultry, sorghum, corn, wheat. Industry: Chemical products, petroleum and natural gas, food processing, electric equipment, machinery, mining, tourism.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

11. History from Leif Ericson to 1865. New land. English settlements.

The USA was originally peopled by Indians and was opened to European colonization by the first voyage of Columbus in 1492. By the time the white man appeared, the Indians had spread and occupied all parts of the new world. But there was at least one earlier colonization effort. The first known Europeans to reach America were the Vikings (Norse) during the 11th century, who established several colonies in Greenland and one short-lived settlement in the area the Norse called Vinland

Leif Ericson (970 – 1020) was a Norse explorer who is regarded as the first European to land in North America nearly 500 years before Christopher Columbus. According to the Sagas of Icelanders, he established a Norse settlement at Vinland (a part of North America).

The AM continent was named after Amerigo Vespucci, a man from Florence who helped to organize Columbus’s second voyage in 1493.

In 1497, sailing from the north, John Cabot landed on the North American coast, and a year later, Columbus's third voyage reached the South American coast.

In 1607 the English tried again and this time the colony was founded at Jamestown in Virginia, named after the English king James I. Thus a new era was opened in the colonization of North America.

Most European emigrants left their homelands to escape political and religious oppression, as well as economic difficulties and poverty. The colonists had survived due to the help of friendly Indians, who taught them how to grow native crops (corn, beans, potatoes, tobacco).

Another significant event was the arrival in August 1619 of a Dutch ship with Negro slaves, of which it sold twenty to the settlers. This marked the beginning of the slave trade.

An important event in the colonization of North America took place in 1620 when a group of colonists known as the Pilgrim Fathers came to North America on the famous ship the Mayflower and settled at Plymouth, Massachusetts. They were separatists in England or members of Puritan movement wishing to purify the Church of England by making religious services simpler and discipline stricter. The Pilgrim leaders knew that in order to organize their lives in the new land they had to establish rules of behavior. So 41 men abroad the Mayflower signed a special document known as the Mayflower Compact, which was the first agreement for self-government in America. They also chose their first governor.

The Thirteen Colonies were established by Great Britain on the Atlantic coast of North America between 1607 and 1733. In 1776 they declared their independence and formed the United States of America. They extended from what is now Maine in the north to Georgia in the south. The colonies were: Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, New Hampshire, Virginia, New York, North Carolina, and Rhode Island. Each colony developed its own system of self government.

The USA having won the War of independence began to develop rapidly.  In  1790 according to the census the population of the USA was nearly 4 million people.  The country was  growing quickly; industry was making progress,  the shipping industry developed.  But the main energy of the Americans was directed to the west. The Americans  continued to explore and colonize the western lands.  In  1803 America bought the huge territory lying west  of the Mississippi and called Louisiana from France.  By this purchase the territory of the US  stretched to the Rocky mounts.  After the war of 1812-1814 a national network of roads  and cannels was built,  steamboats moved along the rivers,  and the first steam railroad opened in Baltimore in 1830. In  1829 Andrew Jackson became elected president of the US,  he  formed the Democratic party -  a coalition of  the  farmers, workers,  immigrants.  Jackson supported the  settlers  in colonizing the western lands,  and he also forced the  Indian tribes  to move west  to the Mississippi. Thousands  of  the Americans were settling in Texas,  which then was  a part  of Mexico.   People were displeased with the rules of the Mexico and in 1835  formed the Republic of Texas.  In  1845 the  US  invaded Texas  and included it into the US.

The American Civil War (1861–1865), also known as the War Between the States , was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession (выход) from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America, also known as "the Confederacy." Led by Jefferson Davis, the Confederacy fought against the United States (the Union), which was supported by all the free states (where slavery had been abolished) and by five slave states that became known as the border states. It remains the deadliest war in American history, resulting in the deaths of 620,000 soldiers and an undetermined number of civilian casualties. Victory for the North meant the end of the Confederacy and of slavery in the United States, and strengthened the role of the federal government.

12. The Midwest. The Great Lakes Industrial Belt. The Midwest is known as the nation's "breadbasket." The fertile soil of the region makes it possible for farmers to produce abundant harvests of cereal crops such as wheat, oats, and corn. 5 states: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin. The Great Lakes region is distinguished for significant contributions in natural resources, political economy, technology and culture. The lakes hold almost one fifth of the world's surface freshwater. Illinois. "Land of Lincoln," because it's where the 16th president was raised. Became the 21st state in 1818. At the northern edge of the state on Lake Michigan lies Chicago, the nation's third largest city. The rest of the population lives in the smaller cities and on the farms that dot the state's gently rolling plains. Indiana. "land of the Indians." It joined the Union in 1816 as the 19th state. A state of mostly small towns and midsize cities. Its largest city and capital is Indianapolis, where the nation's most famous auto race, the Indianapolis 500, is held each year. Indiana has broad, fertile plains and is a part of the Corn Belt. Agriculture: Corn, soybeans, hogs, cattle, dairy products, eggs. Industry: Steel, electric equipment, transportation equipment, chemical products, petroleum and coal products, machinery. Michigan "large lake." in 1837, Michigan became the 26th state in the Union. One of the nation's leading manufacturing states and it leads in the production of automobiles. Detroit, Michigan's largest city, is called the Automobile Capital of the World or Motor City. M. touches four of the five Great Lakes - Erie, Huron, Michigan and Superior. Ohio, a major producer of machines, tools, and other products, is one of the leading industrial states. O. is an Iroquois word meaning "great water." As part of the Midwestern Corn Belt, agriculture also plays an important role in the state's economy. Wisconsin. The state's name is an English version of a French adaptation of an Indian name said to mean "the place where we live." In 1634, Frenchman Jean Nicolet became Wisconsin's first European explorer. The French controlled the area until 1763, when it was ceded to the British. In 1848, Wisconsin was admitted as the 30th state. Clean lakes, rolling hills, quiet valleys, deep forests and cool, pine-scented breezes. Wisconsin is first in the country in the production of milk, cheese, and butter.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

13. Colonial era, revolution, devising a constitution, a new nation.

In 1492, a Spanish expedition headed by Christopher Columbus sailed to America and introduced the New World to the Western World of the time; after this, European conquest, exploration, and colonization soon followed and expanded. In 1497, sailing from the north, John Cabot landed on the North American coast, and a year later, Columbus's third voyage reached the South American coast. Eventually, the entire Western Hemisphere would come under the control of European nations, leading to profound changes to its landscape, population, and plant and animal life.

In 1607 the English founded the colony at Jamestown in Virginia, named after the English king James I. Thus a new era was opened in the colonization of North America.

Most European emigrants left their homelands to escape political and religious oppression, as well as economic difficulties and poverty. The colonists had survived due to the help of friendly Indians, who taught them how to grow native crops (corn, beans, potatoes, tobacco).

Another significant event was the arrival in August 1619 of a Dutch ship with Negro slaves, of which it sold twenty to the settlers. This marked the beginning of the slave trade.

An important event in the colonization of North America took place in 1620 when a group of colonists known as the Pilgrim Fathers came to North America on the famous ship the Mayflower and settled at Plymouth, Massachusetts. They were separatists in England or members of Puritan movement wishing to purify the Church of England by making religious services simpler and discipline stricter. The Pilgrim leaders knew that in order to organize their lives in the new land they had to establish rules of behavior. So 41 men abroad the Mayflower signed a special document known as the Mayflower Compact, which was the first agreement for self-government in America. They also chose their first governor.

The Thirteen Colonies were established by Great Britain on the Atlantic coast of North America between 1607 and 1733. In 1776 they declared their independence and formed the United States of America. They extended from what is now Maine in the north to Georgia in the south. The colonies were: Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, New Hampshire, Virginia, New York, North Carolina, and Rhode Island. Each colony developed its own system of self government.

The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America. By 1774 each colony had established a Provincial Congress to form individual self-governing states. The British responded by sending combat troops to re-impose direct rule. Through representatives sent in 1775 to the Second Continental Congress, the new states joined together at first to defend their respective self-governance and manage the armed conflict against the British known as the American Revolutionary War (1775–83, also American War of Independence). The war ended with effective American victory in October 1781. The Treaty of Paris, signed in September 1783, recognized the independence of the United States.

Devising a constitution. The 13 colonies were now "free and independent states"—but not yet one united nation. The constitutional convention which was to adopt a new constitution officially opened on May 25 1787 in Philadelphia.  The 55 delegates who drafted the constitution included most of the outstanding leaders, or Founding Fathers, of  the new nation.  George Washington was  the presiding officer.  In the course of the convention the delegates created a new form of  government for the US. The Constitution set up a federal system with a strong central government.  A federal system is  one in which power is  shared between a central authority &  its states  with some rights  reserved to each.  The US became federated, because after  the war of independence the 13states were too weak individually to carry on the work of government.  They joined together as equals for the common convenience. But each state preserved its own independence by reserving to itself certain well-defined powers  (education,  taxes & finance, internal communications).  The powers which are usually given to a federal government are those dealing with national defense, foreign policy,  the  control of  international  trade etc. The men, who played the leading roles in writing the constitution, were George Washington, James Madison and Alexander Hamilton. Washington's participation was the most important.  But truly decisive intellectual work was made by Madison. Later he was regarded as the Father of the constitution.

 

 

 

 

14. Ethnic groups and minorities.

The United States is a diverse country, racially and ethnically. Six races are recognized: White, American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African American, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, and people of two or more races. Americans are also classified as "Hispanic or Latino" and "Not Hispanic or Latino", which identifies Hispanic and Latino Americans as a racially diverse ethnicity that composes the largest minority group in the nation.

White Americans (non-Hispanic/Latino and Hispanic/Latino) are the racial majority, with an 80% share of the U.S. population. White Americans are the majority in every region. However, 35% of White Americans live in the South, the most of any region. The South is also where Blacks and African Americans are most prevalent, as it is home to 55% of the community.

Ethnicity: Hispanic and Latino Americans

The question on Hispanic or Latino origin is separate from the question on race. "Hispanic or Latino origin" is a self-designation made by 47 million Americans, as of 2008. Hispanic and Latino Americans have origins in the Spanish-speaking countries of Latin America and Spain. The Hispanic or Latino population is young and fast-growing, due to immigration and higher birth rates. Each racial category contains Non-Hispanic or Latino and Hispanic or Latino Americans.

Black or African American

About 12.4% of the American people (37.6 million) are Black or African American.  The Black or African American group is the largest racial minority, as opposed to Hispanics and Latinos, who are the largest ethnic minority.

African Americans form the largest subgroup, and are primarily descendants of Africans who were enslaved in the U.S. between 1619 and the 1860s and were emancipated during the American Civil War in the 1860s. Due to this history, the origins of most African Americans are usually untraceable to specific African nations; Africa serves as the general indicator of geographic origin.

Asian Americans

A third significant minority is the Asian American population, comprising 13.4 million in 2008, or 4.4% of the U.S. population. California is home to 4.5 million Asian Americans. Asian Americans live across the country, and are also found in large numbers in New York City, Chicago, Boston, Houston, and other urban centers.

Two or more races

Multiracial Americans numbered 7.0 million in 2008, or 2.3% of the population. They can be any combination of races and ethnicities. The U.S. has a growing multiracial identity movement. Interracial marriage, most notably between whites and blacks, was deemed immoral and illegal in most states until the 20th century.

American Indians and Alaska Natives

American Indians made up 0.8% of the population in 2008, numbering 2.4 million. One of the largest tribal groups is the Navajo, who live on a 16-million acre (65,000 km²) Indian reservation covering northeast Arizona, northwest New Mexico, and southeast Utah.

Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders

Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders numbered 427,810 in 2008, or 0.14% of the population. This group constitutes the smallest minority race in the United States. Most Native Hawaiians on the island chain of Hawaii are said to be highly mixed with Asian, European and other ancestries.

 

 

 

 

 

15. The central Northwest-a country of planes, the chief agricultural region of the U.S.,the "Bred basket"Minnesota-10т lakes,half of pop.-Twin Cities of Minneapolis/St. Paul, mining and dairying,the largest source of Iron,live-stock, corn.Iowa- fertile soil,produces food supply, cattle. Missouri-Industrial, agricultural importance,largest rivers-the Mississippi and Missouri.The leading industry-agricult.(corn,wheat,tobacco,soybeans,cotton),St. Louis- trucking, shipping center.Nebraska is rich with the grass, grain agriculture. 3rd in cattle. Kansas - a part of the "Great American Desert", is the leading wheat producer, flour-miller, as well as 1of the top 10 mining states, farms covering 95% of the land, famous for its excellent small-town newspapers. S. Dakota-the geographical center,the leading gold-mining center. S. Dakota draws hordes of tourists.91 percent of the land devoted to agriculture(corn, wheat, hay, other crops;the west, ranchers raise cattle, hogs, and sheep).N. Dakota-The rich soil supports an abundance of wheat,barley, flax, pinto bean, sunflower crops

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

16. Civil war.

The American Civil War (1861–1865), also known as the War Between the States , was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession (выход) from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America, also known as "the Confederacy." Led by Jefferson Davis, the Confederacy fought against the United States (the Union), which was supported by all the free states (where slavery had been abolished) and by five slave states that became known as the border states.

In the presidential election of 1860, the Republican Party, led by Abraham Lincoln, had campaigned against the expansion of slavery beyond the states in which it already existed. In response to the Republican victory in that election, seven states declared their secession from the Union before Lincoln took office on March 4, 1861.

North and South went to war in April 1861 at Fort Sumter in South Carolina. The North had more than twice as many states and twice as many people. It had abundant facilities for producing war supplies, as well as a superior railway network. The South had more experienced military leaders and had the advantage of fighting mostly on its own territory.

For four years, ground battles involving tens of thousands of soldiers and horses were fought in Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Georgia. Naval battles were fought off the Atlantic coast and on the Mississippi River. In that area, Union forces won an almost uninterrupted series of victories. In Virginia, by contrast, they met defeat after defeat in their attempts to capture Richmond, the Confederate capital.

Confederate commander Robert E. Lee won battles in the east, but in 1863 his northward advance was turned back with heavy casualties after the Battle of Gettysburg. To the west, the Union gained control of the Mississippi River. Confederate resistance ended after Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865.

The American Civil War was one of the earliest true industrial wars. Railroads, the telegraph, steamships, and mass-produced weapons were employed extensively. It remains the deadliest war in American history, resulting in the deaths of 620,000 soldiers and an undetermined number of civilian casualties. Victory for the North meant the end of the Confederacy and of slavery in the United States, and strengthened the role of the federal government. The social, political, economic and racial issues of the war shaped the reconstruction era that lasted to 1877.