Eastern United States

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The area ceded to the United States in 1783 by Great Britain (in light brown) following the victory of George Washington and the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War is recognized as the Eastern United States. U.S. Territorial Acquisitions.png
The area ceded to the United States in 1783 by Great Britain (in light brown) following the victory of George Washington and the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War is recognized as the Eastern United States.
A video of the Eastern United States taken by the crew of Expedition 29 from the International Space Station as it passed over the region in 2011

The Eastern United States, often abbreviated as simply the East, is a macroregion of the United States located to the east of the Mississippi River. [1] It includes 26 states and Washington, D.C., the national capital.

Contents

As of 2011, the Eastern United States had an estimated population exceeding 179 million, representing the majority (over 58 percent) of the total U.S. population. [2] [3] [4]

The three most populous cities in the Eastern United States are New York City, Chicago, and Philadelphia.

Northeastern United States

According to the United States Census Bureau, the Northeastern United States is a region of the country that includes the states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania.

The modern Northeast is significantly smaller than the Northeastern Woodlands cultural area. The pre-Columbian Northeast had three major areas: the Coastal area, Saint Lawrence Lowlands, and Great Lakes-Riverine zones. The Coastal area includes the Atlantic Provinces of Canada and the Atlantic seaboard of the United States south until North Carolina. The Saint Lawrence Lowlands area includes parts of Southern Ontario, upstate New York, much of the Saint Lawrence River area, and the Susquehanna Valley. The Great Lakes-Riverine area includes the remaining inland areas of the Northeast, which were home to Central Algonquian and Siouan speakers. The Great Lakes region is sometimes considered a distinct cultural area due to its large concentration of Native American tribes.

New England

New England is a subregion of the northeastern U.S. that is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean, Canada, and the state of New York. It includes six states: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut.

In one of the earliest British colonial settlements in the New World, Pilgrims from England first settled in New England in 1620 at Plymouth Colony in and around present-day Plymouth, Massachusetts. In the late 18th century, the New England colonies were among the first North American British colonies to support an escalation in the American Revolution against Britain, launching the Boston Tea Party on December 16, 1773 and later firing the first shots of the American Revolutionary War in the Battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775.

New England produced the first examples of American literature and philosophy and was home to the beginnings of free and compulsory public education. In the 19th century, the region played a prominent role in the movement to abolish slavery in the United States. It was the first region of the United States to be transformed by the Industrial Revolution.

As of 2023, New England is home to two of the top ten universities in the nation, according to 2022-23 U.S. News & World Report rankings, Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts (tied for third), and Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts (tied for third). [5]

Mid-Atlantic

According to the United States Census Bureau, the Middle Atlantic is a subregion of the northeastern U.S. that includes three states: New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania.

The Middle Atlantic region includes New York City, the largest city in the U.S. and a global center of finance and culture, and Philadelphia, the nation's sixth-largest city and first capital, where the Declaration of Independence was signed at Independence Hall in 1776, formally launching the American Revolutionary War, and later where the U.S. Constitution was drafted and ratified at Independence Hall in Philadelphia in 1789.

As of 2023, the Mid-Atlantic region is home to four of the top twenty-five universities in the nation, according to 2022-23 U.S. News & World Report rankings: Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey, Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, Columbia University in New York, New York, and the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. [6]

East North Central States

The East North Central area, which includes Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin, can also be classified as a subregion of the Northeastern United States, as these states are in the Great Lakes-Riverine area. As one of two subregional divisions used to categorize the modern Midwest, the East North Central region closely matches the area of the Northwest Territory, excluding a portion of Minnesota. The East North Central states form a large part of the Great Lakes region, [7] although the latter also includes Minnesota, New York, Pennsylvania and the Canadian province of Ontario.

Culturally, the East North Central region of the U.S. has been historically influenced by the British and the French; Anglo-American culture permeated states covering the region following the westward expansion of the United States. Religiously, the East North Central states have been and remain predominantly affiliated with Christianity. Altogether, the five states are majority Catholic, non- and inter-denominational, Methodist, Lutheran, and Baptist. The largest non-Christian religion has been Islam. [8]

Chicago is the largest city in the region, followed by Columbus, Ohio and Indianapolis. Chicago has the largest metropolitan statistical area, followed by Detroit, and Minneapolis–Saint Paul. Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan is the oldest city in the region, founded by French missionaries and explorers in 1668.

As of 2023, the East North Central States are home to one of the top ten universities in the nation, according to 2022-23 U.S. News & World Report rankings: the University of Chicago, which is ranked the sixth-best in the nation. [9]

Southeastern United States

The Southeastern United States is a large region of the country that includes a core of states that reaches north to Maryland and West Virginia, bordering the Ohio River and Mason–Dixon line, and stretches west to Arkansas and Louisiana. [10]

Unlike the Northeast, there is no official U.S. government definition for the Southeast, and it is defined variably among agencies and organizations.

Its unique cultural and historic heritage includes the following aspects: [11] [12]

These aspects, among other things, led to "the South" developing distinctive customs, literature, musical styles, and varied cuisines that have profoundly shaped traditional American culture.

The shift from a mainly rural society to more cities and urbanized metropolitan areas picked up speed following World War II in the 1940s. Since the late 20th century, certain Southeastern states and areas have seen great economic growth. This growth has led to many migrants moving to Southeastern states. [13] In 2020, Fortune 500 companies headquartered in southeastern states included: Virginia with 22, Georgia with 18, Florida with 18, North Carolina with 13, and Tennessee with 10. [14]

South Atlantic states

The South Atlantic region of the United States is one of the nine Census Bureau Divisions of the country. This region corresponds to the Southern states/areas that were geographically part of the Thirteen Colonies, with the addition of Florida. It includes eight states and one federal district: Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia. [15] The South Atlantic is also a recognized geographical division used by the United States Geological Survey. [16] : 2  All entities within the region apart from the District of Columbia and West Virginia border the Atlantic Ocean.

As of 2010, the South Atlantic states had a combined population of 61,774,970. The South Atlantic region covers 292,589 square miles (757,800 km2). With the exception of West Virginia, the region has seen rapid population growth and economic development in recent decades.

As of 2023, the South Atlantic region is home to three of the top ten universities in the nation, according to 2022-23 U.S. News & World Report rankings: Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., and Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, which is ranked the tenth-best in the nation. [17]

East South Central States

The East South Central region constitutes one of the nine U.S. Census Bureau divisions. Four states make up the division: Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama. Historically, the area has been colonized and influenced by the French, Spanish, British, early US, and Confederate governments. [18] [19] [20] [21] Distinct among these states, Alabama's French culture has been preserved through the Alabama Creoles, [22] and Kentucky's French culture can be observed throughout Louisville. [23] The East South Central states form the core of Old Dixie , [24] one of the nine moral regions identified by James Patterson and Peter Kim in their acclaimed 1991 geopolitical best-seller, The Day America Told The Truth. [25]

Politically and culturally, the East South Central is more conservative than the South Atlantic; Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee's governments have been described during 2012 to 2023 as some of the most conservative. [26] [27] [28] Religiously, conservative Evangelical Protestantism dominates the East South Central region as a central part of the Bible Belt.

As of 2020, the East South Central states had a combined population of 19,430,030. The East South Central region covers 183,401 square miles of land. Within the region, Tennessee is the largest state by population, though Alabama is the largest by land area; Tennessee was also the East South Central's fastest growing state between 2010 and 2020, [29] [30] with Alabama second. [31] Kentucky was the third-fastest growing state, [32] and Mississippi experienced population decline; despite population decline, Mississippi did increase in diversity. [33] [34]

Major population centers

The following is a list of the 25 largest cities in the Eastern United States, based on 2021 population estimates:

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern United States</span> One of the four census regions of the US

The Southern United States, sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, Dixieland, or simply the South, is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean and the Western United States, with the Midwestern and Northeastern United States to its north and the Gulf of Mexico and Mexico to its south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bible Belt</span> Cultural region of the United States

The Bible Belt is a region of the Southern United States and one Midwestern state, the state of Missouri, in all of which socially conservative Protestant Christianity plays a strong role in society. Church attendance across the denominations is generally higher than the nation's average. The region contrasts with the religiously diverse Midwest and Great Lakes, and the Mormon corridor in Utah, southern Idaho and northern Arizona.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tennessee River</span> River in the southeastern United States

The Tennessee River is the largest tributary of the Ohio River. It is approximately 652 miles (1,049 km) long and is located in the southeastern United States in the Tennessee Valley. The river was once popularly known as the Cherokee River, among other names, as the Cherokee people had their homelands along its banks, especially in what are now East Tennessee and northern Alabama. Additionally, its tributary, the Little Tennessee River, flows into it from Western North Carolina and northeastern Georgia, where the river also was bordered by numerous Cherokee towns. Its current name is derived from the Cherokee town, Tanasi, which was located on the Tennessee side of the Appalachian Mountains.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deep South</span> Cultural region of the United States

The Deep South or the Lower South is a cultural and geographic subregion of the Southern United States. The term was first used to describe the states which were most economically dependent on plantations and slavery. After the American Civil War ended in 1865, the region suffered economic hardship and was a major site of racial tension during and after the Reconstruction era. Before 1945, the Deep South was often referred to as the "Cotton States" since cotton was the primary cash crop for economic production. The civil rights movement in the 1950s and 1960s helped usher in a new era, sometimes referred to as the New South. The Deep South is part of the highly-religious, socially conservative Bible Belt and is currently a Republican Party stronghold.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solid South</span> 1877–1964 U.S. Democratic voting bloc

The Solid South or the Southern bloc was the electoral voting bloc of the states of the Southern United States for issues that were regarded as particularly important to the interests of Democrats in those states. The Southern bloc existed between the end of the Reconstruction era in 1877 and the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. During this period, the Democratic Party overwhelmingly controlled southern state legislatures, and most local, state and federal officeholders in the South were Democrats. During the late 1800s and early 1900s, Southern Democrats disenfranchised blacks in all Southern states, along with a few non-Southern states doing the same as well. This resulted essentially in a one-party system, in which a candidate's victory in Democratic primary elections was tantamount to election to the office itself. White primaries were another means that the Democrats used to consolidate their political power, excluding blacks from voting in primaries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southeastern United States</span> Eastern portion of the Southern United States

The Southeastern United States, also referred to as the American Southeast, the Southeast, or the South, is a geographical region of the United States located in the eastern portion of the Southern United States and the southern portion of the Eastern United States. The region includes a core of states that reaches north to Maryland and West Virginia, bordering the Ohio River and Mason–Dixon line, and stretches west to Arkansas and Louisiana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Atlantic states</span> U.S. census division

The South Atlantic United states form one of the nine Census Bureau Divisions within the United States that are recognized by the United States Census Bureau. This region, U.S. Census Bureau Region 3, Division 5, corresponds to the South with the addition of Florida.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East South Central states</span> Region of the United States

The East South Central states is a region constituting one of the nine U.S. Census Bureau divisions. It is located within the American South. Four states make up the division: Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama. The division is one of three that together make up the larger region known as the Southern United States.

The "Old Southwest" is an informal name for the southwestern frontier territories of the United States from the American Revolutionary War c. 1780, through the early 1800s, at which point the US had acquired the Louisiana Territory, pushing the southwestern frontier toward what is today known as the Southwest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tennessee Valley</span> Drainage basin of the Tennessee River

The Tennessee Valley is the drainage basin of the Tennessee River and is largely within the U.S. state of Tennessee. It stretches from southwest Kentucky to north Alabama and from northeast Mississippi to the mountains of Virginia and North Carolina. The border of the valley is known as the Tennessee Valley Divide. The Tennessee Valley contributes greatly to the formation of Tennessee's three legally recognized sectors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Appalachian Regional Commission</span> Government agency in the United States

The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) is a United States federal–state partnership that works with the people of Appalachia to create opportunities for self-sustaining economic development and improved quality of life. Congress established ARC to bring the region into socioeconomic parity with the rest of the nation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Central United States</span> Geographical region of the United States

The Central United States is sometimes conceived as between the Eastern and Western as part of a three-region model, roughly coincident with the U.S. Census's definition of the Midwestern United States plus the western and central portions of the U.S. Census's definition of the Southern United States. The Central States are typically considered to consist of North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia, Mississippi and Alabama.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Culture of the Southern United States</span> Culture and traditions in the southern United States

The culture of the Southern United States, Southern culture, or Southern heritage, is a subculture of the United States. From its many cultural influences, the South developed its own unique customs, dialects, arts, literature, cuisine, dance, and music. The combination of its unique history and the fact that many Southerners maintain—and even nurture—an identity separate from the rest of the country has led to it being one of the most studied and written-about regions of the United States.

USA Volleyball (USAV) is a non-profit organization which is recognized as the national governing body of volleyball in the United States by the Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB) and the United States Olympic Committee (USOC). It is headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and was founded by the YMCA of the USA. The organization is responsible for selecting and supporting US national teams that compete in FIVB-sanctioned international volleyball and beach volleyball competitions such as the Olympic Summer Games. USA Volleyball is also charged with fostering the development of the sport of volleyball within the United States through involvement with its forty Regional Volleyball Associations (RVAs).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Upland South</span> Geographic region in the Southern US

The Upland South and Upper South are two overlapping cultural and geographic subregions in the inland part of the Southern United States. They differ from the Deep South and Atlantic coastal plain by terrain, history, economics, demographics, and settlement patterns.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Piedmont Atlantic megaregion</span> Megaregion of the southeastern USA

The Piedmont Atlantic megaregion is a neologism created by the Regional Plan Association for an area of the Southeastern United States that contains parts of the states of Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, South Carolina, and North Carolina. The region includes the Atlanta, Birmingham, Charlotte, Memphis, Nashville, Research Triangle (Raleigh-Durham), Upstate South Carolina (Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson), and Greensboro-Winston-Salem-High Point metropolitan areas. The megaregion generally follows the Interstate 85/20 corridor. According to Georgia Tech, the Piedmont Atlantic represents over 12 percent of the total United States population and covers over 243,000 square miles (630,000 km2) of land.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dixie</span> Nickname for the Southern United States

Dixie, also known as Dixieland or Dixie's Land, is a nickname for all or part of the Southern United States. While there is no official definition of this region, or the extent of the area it covers, most definitions include the U.S. states below the Mason–Dixon line that seceded and comprised the Confederate States of America, almost always including the Deep South. The term became popularized throughout the United States by songs that nostalgically referred to the American South.

References

  1. ↑ "Eastern U.S. states". TheFreeDictionary.com.
  2. ↑ Whitaker, John O. (1998). Mammals of the Eastern United States. Hamilton, William J. (William John) Jr., 1902-1990. (3rd ed.). Ithaca: Comstock Pub. Associates. p. 4. ISBN   0-8014-3475-0. OCLC   38438640. eastern United States—that part of the nation east of the Mississippi
  3. ↑ Quandt, Sara A. (2009). Latino Farmworkers in the Eastern United States : Health, Safety and Justice. Springer-Verlag New York. p. 18. ISBN   978-0-387-88347-2. OCLC   901254381. The eastern US considered in this volume includes 22 states. This includes the southeastern states bordering the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Ocean (Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia), the Mid-Atlantic states (Maryland, Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey, and the Ivory Coast), interior states (Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia, and Ohio), and New England (New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine).
  4. ↑ "MIMAL". The Free Dictionary. Archived from the original on 2022-11-17.
  5. ↑ "Best national universities", U.S. News and World World Report
  6. ↑ "Best national universities", U.S. News and World World Report
  7. ↑ "The Eight US States Located in the Great Lakes Region". WorldAtlas. 2020-08-27. Retrieved 2023-05-16.
  8. ↑ "2020 Congregational Membership". Association of Religion Data Archives. Retrieved 2023-05-16.
  9. ↑ "Best national universities", U.S. News and World World Report
  10. ↑ This includes Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Missouri, West Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, Washington, D.C., Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, and Arkansas.
  11. ↑ Culture in the Old South | US History | (AY Collection) Archived 2022-11-17 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved February 14, 2021.
  12. ↑ Wealth and Culture in the South | US History | (AY Collection) Archived 2021-02-28 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved February 14, 2021.
  13. ↑ Murphy, Shane. (February 10, 2021). The States People Are Fleeing (and Where They're Going). MoneyWise. Retrieved February 14, 2021. Archived February 23, 2021, at the Wayback Machine
  14. ↑ Number of U.S. companies listed in the Fortune 500 ranking 2020, by state Archived 2021-02-06 at the Wayback Machine . Statista. Retrieved February 14, 2021.
  15. ↑ "Census Regions and Divisions of the United States" Archived 2013-01-07 at the Library of Congress Web Archives, U.S. Census Bureau, retrieved June 19, 2011
  16. ↑ "Circular - Google Books". 2010-01-15. Retrieved 2016-10-04.
  17. ↑ "Best national universities", U.S. News and World World Report
  18. ↑ Pinnen, Christian; Weeks, Charles (2021). Colonial Mississippi: A Borrowed Land. University Press of Mississippi. ISBN   978-1-4968-3270-2.
  19. ↑ "National Park Service - Explorers and Settlers (Alabama)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  20. ↑ "Tennessee". HISTORY. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  21. ↑ "Kentucky Genealogical Society - Kentucky History". kygs.org. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  22. ↑ Blejwas, Emily (2020-02-19). "Gumbo: Africans and Creoles on the Gulf Coast". Mobile Bay Magazine. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  23. ↑ "Timeline of Louisville, KY". Louisville Kentucky Government.
  24. ↑ Dreher, Rod (2021-09-10). "The Day They Drove Old Dixie Down". The American Conservative. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  25. ↑ "LITTLE GOOD NEWS IN `THE DAY AMERICA TOLD THE TRUTH`". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  26. ↑ "Mississippi Most Conservative State, D.C. Most Liberal". Gallup.com. 2012-02-03. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  27. ↑ "Alabama Has the Most Conservative Legislature in the Nation". Governing. 2022-12-06. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  28. ↑ "CLA Report: Tennessee Ties For Second Most-Conservative State House". MemphisFlyer. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  29. ↑ "2020 Census Data: Tennessee Population Topping 6.9 Million". News. 2021-04-28. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  30. ↑ Yu, Yue Stella. "2020 Census results: Middle Tennessee drives population growth as state becomes more racially diverse". The Tennessean. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  31. ↑ "Alabama Population Grew 5.1% Since 2010, Surpassing 5 Million". Census.gov. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  32. ↑ "Kentucky Population Topped 4.5 Million in 2020". Census.gov. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  33. ↑ "Census shows Mississippi lost population and diversified". AP NEWS. 2021-04-26. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  34. ↑ Newsom, Michael (2022-02-02). "UM Experts Warn About Consequences of Population Loss". Ole Miss News. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
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