Download Geographic Understandings Number One

Geographic Understandings
Number One
• Geographic Understandings SS8G1 The
student will describe Georgia with regard to
physical features and location.
• a. Locate Georgia in relation to region, nation,
continent, and hemispheres.
• b. Describe the five geographic regions of
Georgia; include the Blue Ridge Mountains,
Valley and Ridge, Appalachian Plateau,
Piedmont, and Coastal Plain.
• c. Locate and evaluate the importance of key
physical features on the development of
Georgia; include the Fall Line, Okefenokee
Swamp, Appalachian Mountains,
Chattahoochee and Savannah Rivers, and
barrier islands.
• d. Evaluate the impact of climate on Georgia’s
development.
Locate Georgia in relation to region,
nation, continent, and hemispheres.
• Georgia is located in the southeast region
of the United States.
Locate Georgia in relation to region,
nation, continent, and hemispheres.
• Georgia is located on the North American
continent.
Locate Georgia in relation to region,
nation, continent, and hemispheres.
• Georgia is located on the north western
hemisphere.
Describe the five geographic regions of
Georgia; include the Blue Ridge Mountains,
Valley and Ridge, Appalachian Plateau,
Piedmont, and Coastal Plain.
Georgia is divided into 5
geographic regions.
Geographic regions typically
have several characteristics in
common. Geographic regions
in Georgia differ according to
the type of rocks in the
mountains, the terrain, the
hours of sunlight, the industry,
the agriculture grown and a
number of other things.
Appalachian Plateau
Appalachian Plateau
• Terrain: 2 long plateaus,
very rocky
• Climate: Mild summers,
mild winters.
• Agriculture: Hardwoods
and small farms
(because its so rocky)
• Industry: Coalmining,
tourism and
manufacturing.
Ridge & Valley
Ridge & Valley
• Terrain: long mountains and long fertile
valleys
• Climate: Mild summers, mild winters
• Agriculture: Apples, livestock, wheat
• Industry: Carpet, apples
Blue Ridge
Blue Ridge
• Terrain: highest, largest
mountains, rugged
terrain
• Climate: Mild summers,
cold winters
• Agriculture: Hardwoods,
vegetables and fruit
trees
• Industry: tourism
Piedmont
Piedmont
• Terrain: rolling hills
to flat land
• Climate: hot
summers, mild
winters
• Agriculture: Corn,
soybeans, cotton
before the boll weevil
• Industry: Everything
Coastal Plain
Coastal Plains
• Terrain: inner: fertile
flat land with aquifers;
outer: sandy, unfertile
flat land
• Climate: hot, humid
summers, mild winters
• Agriculture: peanuts,
pecans, peaches, corn
/ pine trees & seafood
• Industry: farming and
tourism (barrier
islands)
• In the late nineteenth and
early twentieth centuries,
Georgia was the world's
leading producer of naval
stores, which are materials
extracted from southern pine
forests and then used in the
construction and repair of
sailing vessels. Typical naval
stores include lumber,
railroad ties, rosin, and
turpentine.
Locate and evaluate the importance of
key physical features on the
development of Georgia; include the
Fall Line, Okefenokee Swamp,
Appalachian Mountains,
Chattahoochee and Savannah Rivers,
and barrier islands.
The Fall Line
The Fall Line & Development in
Georgia
• The Fall Line is a geological boundary that is about 20
miles wide. Hundreds of thousands of years ago it was
the shoreline of the Atlantic Ocean. The falls that gives
rise to the term fall line are the shoals or waterfalls
caused by the first exposure of crystalline rocks
encountered when traveling upstream in rivers of the
Coastal Plain. These falls represent a barrier to
navigation. Rivers of the Coastal Plain were a major
means of commercial transportation during the 1700s
and early 1800s. The cities of Columbus, Macon,
Milledgeville, and Augusta were located at the fall lines
of the Chattahoochee, Ocmulgee, Oconee, and
Savannah rivers, respectively. They became early
centers of commerce because of their positions at the
upstream limit of navigation. Also the waterfalls helped
to generate electricity.
Okefenokee Swamp
Okefenokee Swamp
& Development in Georgia
• In logging operations beginning in 1910 and lasting for a
quarter of a century, thousands of cypress, pine, and red
bay trees were removed from the swamp creating an
economic boom for the people in the area. Some were
among the largest and oldest individuals of their kind left
in the country. In 1937 U.S. president Franklin D.
Roosevelt provided official protection from logging and
development by establishing the Okefenokee National
Wildlife Refuge, which constitutes about 80 percent of
the swamp. The absence of roads helps to maintain the
integrity of the swamp ecosystem; canoe trails are the
primary travel routes through the swamp. Now
thousands of tourist flock to the swamp to reconnect with
nature, which once again brings economic benefit to the
area. The Okefenokee is also the headwaters to two
main rivers: the Suwannee and the St. Mary’s.
Appalachian Mountains
Appalachian Mountains &
Development in Georgia
• The discovery of gold in the mountains of north
Georgia brought a flood of people and a huge
economic boom to the area. These mountains
however brought the White man into Georgia
long before gold was discovered. Because of
the rough terrain western migration was unlikely
for most therefore many people would travel
south to go around the mountains. With the
mountains ending in Georgia it brought many
travelers. Many of them liking Georgia so much
that they decided to stay.
Chattahoochee River
Chattahoochee River &
Development in Georgia
The river has played a key role in the history of the state.
Paleolithic and Woodland Indians called it home. Moundbuilders
navigated it as far north as present-day Helen. The Cherokee and
Creek used the river as a border, first between their Nations,
then between themselves and early settlers. In its watershed the
first great American Gold Rush occurred. Crossing the river was
a major accomplishment for William Tecumseh Sherman during
the Atlanta Campaign. The flooding of the "...valleys of Hall"
helped to feed Georgia's second "gold rush" -- tourism.
Today, in addition to providing drinking water and power in north
Georgia the Chattahoochee is a major source of recreation.
Fishing, tubing, canoeing, boating, hiking and camping on its banks,
shores, and in its watershed are all popular activities.
Savannah River
Savannah River & Development
in Georgia
•
•
•
On the river’s journey to the sea, the Savannah flows through forests,
agricultural lands, large hydroelectric reservoirs, and extensive swamps. It
is known for its high bluffs, some of which were the locations of prehistoric
Native American villages.
The river provides drinking water to two of Georgia's major metropolitan
areas, Augusta and Savannah, and assimilates their treated wastewater. It
is also a source of drinking water for the cities of Beaufort and Hilton Head
in South Carolina and for many smaller municipalities in the basin. In
addition, the Savannah supplies water for the Savannah River Site in South
Carolina, as well as for the two nuclear reactors of Plant Vogtle, a major
electricity-generating facility operated by Georgia Power Company in Burke
County.
On the coast, the Savannah River is the shipping channel for the Port of
Savannah, the nation's tenth-busiest port for oceangoing container ships.
Before emptying into the Atlantic, the Savannah forms a braided network of
tidal creeks, salt marshes, and freshwater marshes, much of which
constitutes the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge, one of Georgia's prime
bird-watching spots.
Barrier Islands
Barrier Islands & Development in
Georgia
•
This was the first part of Georgia to be explored and settle in Georgia. Before
the White man came to these parts Native Americans traveled to the coast of
Georgia to eat oysters. They threw the shells into heaping piles which still
exist today. These 40 foot mounds are called middens. Because of the nature
deepwater ports in what is now Savannah and Brunswick, this enabled
Oglethorpe’s ships to pull right up to the land and get off the ships. This is the
reason that Savannah became our first city and capital. To this day the cities
of Savannah and Brunswick are the principal ports and centers for industrial
development in Georgia. Coastal fisheries and forest resources support a
number of industries engaged in processing, manufacturing, and marketing
seafoods and wood products. In general, tourism and recreation, shipping at
the ports of Savannah and Augusta, papermaking, commercial fishing, and
forestry have been the most important economic activities of Georgia's modern
coast. Over the decades the pulp and paper industry expanded at the expense
of the fishing industry, which has suffered greatly from pollution caused by the
paper mills.
More on Barrier Islands
• The Barrier Islands first became settled by
White man when some of the wealthiest
people in the world built winter ”cottages”
there.
• The Barrier Islands protect Georgia’s
mainland from damaging hurricanes and
wind, sand and erosion.
Evaluate the impact of climate on
Georgia’s development.
• If you like the idea of living in the sunny South but want to see
breathtaking fall foliage and an occasional snowfall, Georgia is the
place to be. Summers are warm; autumns are brisk and sunny.
Winters are mild and give way quickly to exhilarating springs with
legendary dogwoods and azaleas.
•
• Georgia’s temperatures vary widely because of its wonderfully
diverse topography. Extreme conditions can be found in the
northernmost and southernmost parts of the state, but overall the
state’s climate is moderate. Statewide, summer temperatures
average below 90 degrees and the lowest winter temperatures stay
well above freezing.
•
• The state receives 40 to 50 inches of rain per year. North Georgia
experiences a light snowfall several times a year while other areas,
especially south of the Piedmont region, rarely see snow.
Georgia’s largest cities…
How does climate affect population
growth?