Download Chapter 15 Lecture Presentation - GEO

CHAPTER
15
California
Lecture Outline
Innisfree McKinnon
University of Oregon
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
Learning Objectives
• Environmental Setting
– Major landform regions
– Fault lines & mountain building
– California's major water projects
• Historical Settlement
– Spanish settlement landscape & design
– The Gold Rush
– The transcontinental railroad
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
Learning Objectives
• Political Economy
– Agricultural patterns in the Central Valley
• Culture, People, Places
– Ethnoburbs in L.A.
– Landscape of S.F. Chinatown
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
California as a region
•
•
•
•
Isolation relative to other regions
High rate of suburbanization
Cultural innovation
Connections to the Pacific Rim
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
Diverse Cultural & Natural Landscapes
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
Landforms
• Mountains parallel to the coast
• Interior valleys
• High mountain ranges in the east
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
Tectonic Activity
• Strike-slip faults
– San Andreas Fault
• Lateral faults
• Ex. Northridge Quake
– 1994
• Juan de Fuca moving under N. American
plate
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
Climate
• Mediterranean climate
– Cool, somewhat rainy winter
– Warm to hot summers w/ little to no
precipitation
• Lots of spatial variation in climate
– Latitude, altitude, and distance from ocean
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
California's landform regions
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
Water Resources
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Extensive modification of the landscape
Wetlands drained for agriculture
70% of water falls in northern mountains
80% of water is used in the south
>90% of crops rely on irrigation
Massive projects channel water
Dam building & water deversions started
mid-20th century
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
Major Water Projects in CA
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
"California"- the name
• Used in1542
• Included Baja CA
– thought to be an
island
• Popular novel in
Spain
• "An island called
California…very
close to the
Earthly Paradise"
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
Native Americans
•
•
•
•
•
•
Rich resource base & mild climate
Dense pop. & high cultural diversity
~ 1 million people
135 dialects in 20 linguistic families
Varied lifestyles
Rapid depopulation after European
contact
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
Early Exploration
• 1542 Juan Rodriquez Cabrillo
• Late 1500s Sire Francis Drake & other
British
• Russian fir traders on the North Coast –
1700s
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
Spanish Missions
• Two goals
– Convert local populations
– Establish agriculture using local labor
• Typical mission – church, workshops,
storerooms, living quarters, and ag. Fields
• Each mission w/in 30 miles
– (1 day on horseback)
• First mission – Sand Diego 1769
• First presidio (military center) – Monterey
1770
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
Mexican California
•
•
•
•
•
Early 19th century – missions in decline
1821 Mexico gains independence from CA
Confusion & unrest
1848 CA becomes a territory of the U.S.
Rapid influx of Mexican & American
settlers
• Rancho land grant system
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
The Gold Rush & Pop. Growth
• 1840 pop. = <40,000
• Gold discovered in Sierra Nevada foothills
in 1848
• 1849 >40,000 newcomers
• 1850 pop. = >100,000
• 1900 pop. = 1.5 million
• San Francisco & Sacramento become
major trade centers
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
20th Century Growth
• CA now largest state by pop. In the U.S.
• 1 in 9 Americans lives in CA
• 9th largest economy in the world
– Larger than countries such as Canada, India, Russia
• Limits to growth
– Isolation
– Arid/semi-arid climate
– Few harbors
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
• Factors promoting
growth
– Ag. & natural resources
– Defense sector (WWII)
– Entertainment & high
tech.
– Pacific Rim connections
Ag. & Natural Resources
• Central Valley –
large tracts of
farmland
• High quality soils &
long growing
seasons
• Extensive irritation
system
• Diverse mix of
crops
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
Challenges for CA Agriculture
• High %
corporate/absentee
landowners
• Reliance on migrant
labor
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
The Defense Industry
• 1940s-1960s – WWII/Cold War
• Massive expansion of defense contractors
• Increased pop. growth
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
Entertainment Industry
• Early 20th century
growth
• Contributing factors
– Mild climate year
round
– Lower taxes
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
• Total employment is
small
• <2% of the labor force
• High impact in
shaping world views
of the region
• Promotes CA as a
center of innovation
Silicon Valley & High Technology
• Why have so many high-technology firms
located in Silicon Valley?
• Nearby highly educated workforce
• Well developed transportation &
communication networks
• Growth = traffic, high land/housing prices
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
California & the Pacific Rim
• Since 1950s increasing Pacific trade
• By 1990s total volume of trade through
– L.A. & Long Beach >N.Y.
• Increasing connections between Asian &
CA firms
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
Urban CA
• Total CA pop. 36.9
million in 2010
• 94% live in
metropolitan
• ½ of all immigrants to
the U.S. live in CA
• Most large cities
located near the coast
• Highly car dependent
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
Southern CA Conurbation
•
•
•
•
•
•
Mexican border to Santa Barbara
Pop. >20 million
L.A. is the 2nd largest city in U.S.
Highly auto centered
No central downtown
Highly suburbanized
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
Diversity & Ethnoburbs in S. CA
• High ethnic/cultural diversity
• "Ethnoburbs"
– Pasadena & Glendale = Armenian Americans
– Inglewood & Baldwin Park = African
Americans
• Large Mexican, Korean, Vietnamese
communities
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
S.F. Bay Area
• Primary port during Gold
Rush
• S.F. located on narrow
peninsula
• End of the line for
transcontinental railroad
• Growth has resulted in
urbanization outside SF
itself
• High ethnic diversity –
ethnic tourism
• >3 million tourists / year
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
S.F. Chinatown
• Largest Chinatown in N. America
• Large pop. of Chinese & Chinese
Americans
• Distinctive cultural landscape
• Buddhist temples
• Distinctive shops & restaurants
• Landscape shaped by history of tourism
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
Central Valley Cities
• Interior cities
growing rapidly
• Sacramento metro
= 2.9 million
• 40% growth in
Bakersfield in the
last decade
• Fresno >1 million
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
The Future of CA?
• North/South
divisions
• Ethnic/cultural
divides
• Challenges
– Crowding
– Natural hazards
• Will an innovative
spirit prevail?
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
End Chapter 15
© 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.