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Western United States
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Postal Abbreviations
WA
State Capitals
Washington
ID
Idaho
MT
Montana
OR
Oregon
WY
Wyoming
CA
California
NV
Nevada
UT
Utah
CO
Colorado
AZ
Arizona
NM
New Mexico
AK
Alaska
HI
Hawaii
Olympia
UT
Salt Lake
City
ID
Boise
CO
Denver
MT
Helena
AZ
Phoenix
OR
Salem
NM
Santa Fe
WY
Cheyenne
AK
Juneau
CA
Sacramento
HI
Honolulu
NV
Carson City
WA
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Western United States
 There are 13 states
in the Western
Region
 It is the largest
region of the United
States
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Physical Features
• The Rocky Mountains are North
America’s largest mountain
range.
– Melting snow from the
Rockies formed rivers
including the Rio Grande,
The Missouri, and The
Colorado
– Landforms vary greatly
• Good land for farming
• Tall Grass Prairies for ranching
• Coastal areas for fishing
• Great Plains
• Deserts
• Basins
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• Volcanoes
Alaska
• Purchased from Russia in 1867 for $7.2 million
• William Seward (Sec. of State) bought it
• the 49th state - 1959
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The Hawaiian Islands
• 8 major islands; 100 smaller
• actually volcanic mountains “poking” through Pacific
• 1900 became USA territory; 1959 became USA state (50th state)
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Climate/Weather
The Ring of Fire 2:50
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Climate/Weather
• Pacific Ring of Fire
• Region is subject to earthquakes, volcano
eruptions, and hot spots (In middle of a
plate where magma reaches surface.
Warms water and shoots steam into air
known as Geysers)
• Extreme variance in seasonal temperature
and rainfall (Alaska to Hawaii!)
• Semiarid Climate in general in western
states that fall in the contiguous 48 states
sem·i·ar·id (s m - r d) adj.
Characterized by relatively low annual rainfall of 25 to 50 centimeters
(10 to 20 inches) and having scrubby vegetation with short, coarse 10
grasses; not completely arid.
Climate/Weather
The Pacific Ring of Fire
Plate
Tectonics
3:49
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Climate/Weather
The Ring of Fire
Ring of Fire explanation 1:33
The large series of volcanoes (some active) encircling the Pacific
Ocean are referred to as being part of the Ring of Fire, and
notorious for frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
The Ring of Fire, coinciding with the edges of one of the world's
main tectonic plates, (the Pacific Plate) contains over 450 volcanoes
and is home to approximately 75% of the world's active volcanoes.
Nearly 90% of the world's earthquakes occur along the Ring of
Fire; most recently, the devastating quakes in Chile, Japan and New
Zealand.
Ring of Fire information 2:11 (earthquakes) 12
Earthquakes
Top Earthquake States
1. Alaska
2. California
3. Hawaii
4. Nevada
5. Washington
6. Idaho
7. Wyoming
8. Montana
9. Utah
10. Oregon
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Volcanoes
Pacific Ring of Fire
Cycle of
Heated
Gas 1:14
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Volcanoes
Mt. St. Helens, Washington State
• The 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens was the most
significant to occur in the contiguous 48 U.S. states in
recorded history
• The eruption was preceded by a two-month series of
earthquakes and steam-venting episodes, caused by
an injection of magma at shallow depth below the
mountain that created a huge bulge and a fracture
system on Mount St. Helens' north slope.
• An earthquake at 8:32 a.m. on May 18, 1980,
caused the entire weakened north face to slide
away, suddenly exposing the partly molten, gas- and
steam-rich rock in the volcano to lower pressure. The
rock responded by exploding into a very hot mix of
pulverized lava and older rock that sped toward
Spirit Lake so fast that it quickly passed the
avalanching north face.
Mt Saint Helens 7:31
VIDEOS:
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Mt. Saint Helens 1:40 devastation to animals/people
Mt. Saint Helens 1:49 Landslide
Hot Spots
Yellowstone National Park “Old Faithful”
• The Old Faithful geyser in Wyoming's
Yellowstone National Park erupts
about once every 65 minutes, much to
the delight of tourists.
• The water ejected during each
eruption is at or near the boiling
point, often reaches a height of 50
meters (approximately 170 feet), and
has an estimated volume of 45,000
liters (12,000 gallons).
Video
WEBCAM
WEBCAM main page
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Economy of the West
Resources
• Timber
• Minerals
– Gold Rush in California &
Alaska
• Oil
– Alaska pipeline
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Natural gas
Fish
Dairy
Pineapple/Sugarcane
(Hawaii)
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Economy of the West
Industry
Technology
 Movie industry
 Computers in the Silicon Valley
 Computer equipment
 Telecommunications
The area around Los Angeles also was a major center for the
aerospace industry by World War II, though Boeing, located
in Washington state would lead the aerospace industry
Federal Government
 Military bases
 Much of land owned by government
 Flat deserts good for testing planes and missiles
 Supports scientific research
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Places of Interest
Some of the largest
cities include:
• Los Angeles (CA)
• San Francisco (CA)
• Phoenix (AZ)
• Seattle (WA)
• Denver (CO)
• Las Vegas (NV)
• Salt Lake City (UT)
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Historic Route 66
Texas to California start at 4:25
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Places of Interest
Landmarks/Tourist Attractions
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Grand Canyon
Hoover Dam
Pearl Harbor
Yellowstone National Park
Las Vegas entertainment
Seattle Space Needle
San Francisco Golden Gate
Bridge and Chinatown
• Mount St. Helens Only
erupting volcano in
contiguous 48
• Mount McKinley
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History
People
• Native Americans (Plains Indians)
– Inuit survived in Alaska by hunting and fishing.
– Hawaii settlers came from South Pacific islands
– Large Indian reservation
• European Settlers moved west as part of westward expansion and to escape
from the Dust Bowl
• Spanish Settlers from Texas and Mexico
• Asian Immigrants came to work in mines and build railroads and now
contribute heavily to technology industry
• Hawaii settlers came from South Pacific islands
– Hawaii is the only state in the union in which Asian Americans outnumber white
American residents.
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Culture of the Western states
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History
Culture
• Culturally distinctive points include the large Mormon
population in the Mormon Corridor, including southeastern
Idaho, Utah, Northern Arizona and Nevada
• The image of the cowboy, the homesteader and westward
expansion took real events and transmuted them into a myth of
the west which has influenced American culture since at least
the 1920s.
• Western businessmen promoted U.S. Route 66 as a means to
bring tourism and industry to the West.
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History
Events
• 1849: California Gold Rush
• Compromise of 1850 (California admitted to Union as nonslave state)
• Gadsden Purchase
• 1930’s: Dust Bowl
• 1989: Exxon Valdez Oil Spill
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