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NORTH AMERICA

Area 24,709,000 km2 Population 528,720,588 Pop. Density 22.9/km2 Countries 23 Named after the Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci

The United States of America


American History

Pre-Colonial America
United States was originally populated by people migrating from Central Asia via the Beringia land bridge(Bering strait) between Eastern Serbia and present day Alaska starting some 20,000 years ago. These people became the indigenous people who inhabited the Americas prior to the arrival of European explorers in the 1400s and who are now called Native Americans.

(Credit: Image courtesy Ripan Mahlir)

Pre-Colonial America

Homo Sapiens Neanderthals Early Hominids

Pre-Colonial America

Pre-Colonial America
Many cultures thrived in the Americas before Europeans came, including the Puebloans (Aztec) in the southwest and the Adena Culture in the east. Several such societies and communities, over time, intensified this practice of established settlements, and grew to support sizeable and concentrated populations.

Pre-Colonial America

Map showing the approximate location of major tribes and settlements

Colonial America
After a period of exploration by various European countries, Dutch, Spanish, English, French, Swedish, and Portuguese settlements were established. Christopher Columbus was the first European to set foot on what would one day become U.S. territory when he came to Puerto Rico in 1493. In the 15th century, Europeans brought horses, cattle and hogs to the Americas. Christopher Columbus (1451 May 2, 1506) was a navigator, colonizer and one of the first Europeans to explore the Americas after the Vikings. His 1st voyage of 1492, he did not actually reach the South American mainland until his 3rd voyage in 1498.

Spanish, Dutch and French colonization (1493 various dates)


Spanish explorers were the first Europeans to come to what is now the United States, beginning with Christopher Columbus' second expedition, which reached Puerto Rico in November 19, 1493. The first European known to set foot in the continental U.S. was Juan Ponce de Len, who arrived in Florida in 1513, though there is some evidence suggesting that he may have been preceded by John Cabot in 1497. the Spanish became the first Europeans to reach the Appalachian Mountains, the Mississippi River, the Grand Canyon and the Great Plains. Juan Ponce de Len

Spanish, Dutch and French colonization (1493 various dates)


In 1540, De Soto undertook an extensive exploration of the present US and, in the same year, Francisco Vzquez de Coronado led 2,000 Spaniards and Mexican Indians across today's Arizona-Mexico border and traveled as far as central Kansas. The Spanish sent some settlers, creating the first permanent European settlement in the continental United States at St. Augustine, Florida, in 1565 and later Santa Fe, New Mexico, San Antonio, Tucson, San Diego, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Most Spanish settlements were along the California coast or the Santa Fe River in New Mexico.

Spanish, Dutch and French colonization (1493 various


dates) New Netherland was the 17th century Dutch colony centered on present-day New York City and the Hudson River Valley. The colony was taken over by Britain in 1664. New France was the area colonized by France from 1534 to 1763.

North America in 1702

English/British Colonial America (1585-1776)


The strip of land along the seacoast was settled primarily by English colonists in the 17th century, along with much smaller numbers of Dutch and Swedes. Colonial America was defined by a severe labor shortage that gave birth to forms of unfree labor such as slavery, and by a British policy of benign neglect (salutary neglect) that permitted the development of an American spirit distinct from that of its European founders. The first successful English colony was established in 1607, on the James River at Jamestown.

English/British Colonial America (1585-1776)


One example of conflict between Native Americans and English settlers was the 1622 Powhatan uprising in Virginia, in which Indians had killed hundreds of English settlers. The largest conflict between Native Americans and English settlers in the 17th century was King Philip's War in New England. The Plymouth Colony was established in 1620. New England was founded primarily by Puritans who established the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1629.

The massacre of Jamestown settlers in 1622.

English/British Colonial America (1585-1776)


The Middle Colonies, consisting of the present-day states of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware, were characterized by a large degree of diversity. The first attempted English settlement south of Virginia was the Province of Carolina, with Georgia Colony the last of the 13 Colonies established in 1733. Several colonies were used as penal settlements from the 1620s until the American Revolution. 1750

English/British Colonial America (1585-1776)

Map of territorial claims by 1750

English/British Colonial America (1585-1776)


Process of finding colonies 1607: Jamestown, Virginia 1620: Massachusetts 1636: Rhode Island

1733: 13 colonies along Atlantic Coast


1763: Canada and North America east of the Mississippi

Conflict between England and its colonies


CAUSES - Stamp Act of 1765. England imposed new taxes. - 1773, the new tax on tea. EFFECTS Colonists resented the taxes as tensions escalated in the late 1760s and early 1770s. The event: Boston tea party was a direct action by activists. War broke out on July 4, 1776, the continental Congress adopted a Declaration of Independence

British Parliament cracked down and closed Boston harbor to shipping

Formation of the United States of America (1776-1789) Revolution War


The French and Indian War (17541763) was a watershed event in the political development of the colonies.The United States declared its independence in 1776 and defeated Great Britain with help from France and Spain in the American Revolutionary War. Moreover, the war effort resulted in greater political integration of the colonies, as reflected in the Albany Congress and symbolized by Benjamin Franklin's call for the colonies to "Join or Die". Franklin greatest invention was the concept of a United States of America, which emerged after 1765 and was realized in July 1776. On July 4, 1776, the Second Continental Congress, declared the independence of a nation called "the United States of America" in the Declaration of Independence, primarily authored by Thomas Jefferson.

Formation of the United States of America


(1776-1789) Revolution War

North America 1762-83

Formation of the United States of America


(1776-1789)
The colonists' victory at Saratoga led the French into an open alliance with the United States. In 1781, a combined American and French Army, acting with the support of a French fleet, captured a large British army led by General Charles Cornwallis at Yorktown, Virginia.

Formation of the United States of America


(1776-1789)
A series of attempts to organize a movement to outline and press reforms culminated in the Congress calling the Constitutional Convention of 1787, which met in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. George Washingtona renowned hero of the American Revolutionary War, commander and chief of the Continental Army, and president of the Constitutional Convention became the first President of the United States under the new U.S. Constitution in 1789. The national capital moved from New York to Philadelphia and finally settled in Washington DC in 1800.

Westward expansion (17891849)


The Louisiana Purchase, in 1803, gave Western farmers use of the important Mississippi River waterway, removed the French presence from the western border of the United States, and provided U.S. settlers with vast potential for expansion. The United States and Britain came to a draw in the War of 1812 after bitter fighting that lasted until January 8, 1815.

Westward expansion (17891849)


The Treaty of Ghent, officially ending the war, essentially resulted in the maintenance of the status quo ante bellum; however, crucially for the U.S., the British ended their alliance with the Native Americans. The Monroe Doctrine, expressed in 1823, proclaimed the United States' opinion that European powers should no longer colonize or interfere in the Americas.. The Monroe Doctrine was then invoked in the Spanish-American War as well as later in the proxy wars between the United States and Soviet Union in Central America. In 1830, Congress passed the Indian Removal Act, which authorized the president to negotiate treaties that exchanged Indian tribal lands in the eastern states for lands west of the Mississippi River. The act resulted most notably in the forced migration of several native tribes to the West, with several thousand Indians dying en route, and the Creeks' violent opposition and eventual defeat.

Westward expansion (17891849)

1835

Westward expansion (17891849)


The Indian Removal Act also directly caused the ceding of Spanish Florida and subsequently led to the many Seminole Wars. Mexico refused to accept the annexation of Texas in 1845, and war broke out in 1846. The U.S., using regulars and large numbers of volunteers, defeated Mexico which was badly led, short on resources, and plagued by a divided command. The 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ceded California, New Mexico, and adjacent areas to the United States. In 1850, the issue of slavery in the new territories was settled by the Compromise of 1850 brokered by Whig Henry Clay and Democrat Stephen Douglas.

Civil War era (18491865)


In the middle of the 19th century, white Americans of the North and South were unable to reconcile fundamental differences in their approach to government, economics, society and African American slavery. Abraham Lincoln was elected President, the South seceded to form the Confederate States of America, and the Civil War followed, with the ultimate defeat of the South.

Civil War era (18491865)


The causes: Abraham Lincoln, a foe of slavery , was elected president in 1860. - 11 states left Union and proclaim themselves an independent nation, the Confederate State of America. Process of the war: The Confederate Army had brilliant tacticians especially General Robert E. Lee The Union Army had superior and resources to draw upon, leaded by General Ulysses S. Grant.

Civil War era (18491865)


Result The Confederates surrendered. Historical meaning: the civil war was the most traumatic episode in American history, but it resolved two matters: + put an end to slavery + decided that the country was not a collection of semiindependent states but an indivisible whole.

Reconstruction and the rise of industrialization


(18651918)
America experienced an accelerated rate of industrialization, mainly in the northern states. Civil Rights : a state of economic, social and political servitude. Monopolies plagued the United States and corruption within the oil, steel, and railroad businesses was vast. U.S. Federal government policy, since the James Monroe Administration, had been to move the indigenous population beyond the reach of the white frontier into a series of Indian reservations. In 1876, the last major Sioux war erupted when the Black Hills Gold Rush penetrated their territory. This period was capped by the 1917 entry of the United States into World War I.

Reconstruction and the rise of industrialization (18651918) - Immigration


The level of immigration grew steadily after 1896. Most new arrivals unskilled workers from eastern and southern Europe, who found jobs working in the steel mills, slaughterhouses and construction crews in the mill towns and industrial cities. The start of World War I in 1914 suddenly stopped most international movement, which only resumed after 1919. Starting in the 1880s, the labor unions aggressively promoted restrictions on immigration, especially restrictions on Chinese and other Asians. The basic fear was that large numbers of unskilled, low-paid workers would defeat the union's efforts to raise wages through collective bargaining.

Post-World War I and the Great Depression


(19181940)
Following World War I, the U.S. grew steadily in stature as an economic and military world power. Red Scare The United States Senate did not ratify the Treaty of Versailles imposed by its Allies on the defeated Central Powers; instead, the United States chose to pursue unilateralism, if not isolationism. In 1920, the manufacture, sale, import and export of alcohol were prohibited by the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Prohibition encouraged illegal breweries and dealers to make substantial amounts of money selling alcohol illegally. The Prohibition ended in 1933, a failure.

Post-World War I and the Great Depression


(19181940)
During most of the 1920s, the United States enjoyed a period of unbalanced prosperity: farm prices and wages fell, while industrial profits grew. The boom was fueled by a rise in debt and an inflated stock market. The recovery was rapid in all areas except unemployment, which remained fairly high until 1940.

World War II (1940-1945) and Home front-United States-World War II


As with World War I, the United States did not enter World War II until after the rest of the active Allied countries had done so. Its decision to declare war followed Japan's surprise attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941. Until then, the United States isolationism had bound the country to neutrality. the American armed forces were significantly smaller than the equivalent forces of France, Germany, Britain, the Soviet Union and Japan. On 31 October 1941, less than two months before the attack on Pearl Harbor, an American destroyer escorting cargo ships in the Atlantic was sunk by a German U-boat. War, however, was not declared on Germany.

World War II (1940-1945) and Home front-United States-World War II


On 7 December 1941, Japan launched a surprise attack on the American naval base in Pearl Harbor, citing America's recent trade embargo as justification. The following day, Franklin D. Roosevelt successfully urged a joint session of Congress to declare war on Japan, calling 7 December 1941 "a date which will live in infamy." Four days after the attack on Pearl Harbor, on December 11, Nazi Germany declared war on the United States, drawing the country into a two-theater war.

Battle against Germany


Upon entering the war the United States realized they could not fight both Japan and Germany at once. The United States first step was to set up a large air force in Britain to concentrate on bombing raids into Germany itself. By May 1943, the British 8th Army had expelled the Germans from North Africa and the Allies controlled this vital link until the end of the war. The American navy also played an active role in the Atlantic protecting the convoys bringing vital American war material to Britain. The allied bombing raids on Germany increased to unprecedented levels after the D-Day invasion, with over 70% of all bombs dropped on Germany occurring after this date. Germany was flattened, the country was physically and emotionally rubble.

Battle against Germany


On 30 April 1945, with Berlin completely overrun with Russian forces and his country in tatters, Adolf Hitler committed suicide. On 8 May 1945, the war with Germany was over, following its unconditional surrender to the Allied forces. The first years of the war against Japan was largely a defensive battle with the United States Navy attempting to prevent the Japanese Navy from asserting dominance of the Pacific region. Initially, Japan won the majority of its battles in a short period of time. Japan quickly defeated and created military bases in Guam, Thailand, Malaya, Hong Kong, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and Burma. The turning point of the war was the Battle of Midway in June 1942. The United States Navy had broken the Japanese communication codes.The Americans began fighting towards China.During this period, they inadvertently triggered what would become their most comprehensive victory in the entire war.

Battle against Japan


The Pacific war became the largest naval conflict in history. The decision to use nuclear weapons to end the conflict has been one of the most controversial decisions of the war. The first bomb was dropped on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, unexpected by the Japanese. The second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki on August 9. On August 15, 1945, the Japanese surrendered unconditionally and the war was over, avoiding a bloody invasion.

Cold War beginnings and the Civil Rights Movement


(19451964)
Following World War II, the United States emerged as one of the two dominant superpowers. The post-war era in the United States was defined internationally by the beginning of the Cold War, in which the United States and the Soviet Union attempted to expand their influence at the expense of the other, checked by each side's massive nuclear arsenal and the doctrine of mutual assured destruction. Within the United States, the Cold War prompted concerns about Communist influence, and also resulted in government efforts to encourage math and science toward efforts like the space race. Germany became a divided country: + Western zone under joint British, French & American occupation + Eastern zone under Soviet Union occupation.

Cold War beginnings and the Civil Rights Movement


(19451964)
4/1949, NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) was formed by U.S, Canada, Denmark, France, Italy.

Soviet Union responded by the establishment of the Warsaw Pact & Soviet Allies in socialist faction in Europe: Poland, Hungary,.

Cold War beginnings and the Civil Rights Movement


(19451964)
John F. Kennedy was elected President in 1960. During his time in office, the Cold War reached its height with the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. The Americans move from farms into the cities and experienced a period of sustained economic expansion. At the same time, institutionalized racism across the United States was increasingly challenged by the growing Civil Rights movement and African American leaders such as Martin Luther King, Jr.

Cold War (19641980)


The Cold War continued through the 1960s and 1970s. The United States entered the Vietnam War. In the early 1970s, Johnson's successor, President Richard Nixon was forced by Congress to bring the Vietnam War to a close, and the American-backed South Vietnamese government subsequently collapsed. The war had cost the lives of 58,000 American troops and millions of Vietnamese.

Cold War (19641980)


The Cold War continued through the 1960s and 1970s. The United States entered the Vietnam War. In the early 1970s, Johnson's successor, President Richard Nixon was forced by Congress to bring the Vietnam War to a close, and the American-backed South Vietnamese government subsequently collapsed. The war had cost the lives of 58,000 American troops and millions of Vietnamese. The OPEC oil embargo and slowing economic growth led to a period of stagflation.

OPEC - 1973 oil crisis OIL EMBARGO


The 1973 oil crisis started in October 1973. BACKGROUND 1971 Nixon Shock 0r Nixon Price Freeze.
(U.S. exits BRITTON WOODS ACCORD and floats US dollar)

RESPONSE Rest of the countries also float their currency and also increased their reserve. RESULT Depreciation of US dollar as well as other countries. OPEC Cartel issued decision of pricing oil against gold.

OPEC - 1973 oil crisis OIL EMBARGO


The 1973 oil crisis started in October 1973. BACKGROUND 1971 Nixon Shock 0r Nixon Price Freeze.
(U.S. exits BRITTON WOODS ACCORD and floats US dollar)

RESPONSE Rest of the countries also float their currency and also increased their reserve. RESULT Depreciation of US dollar as well as other countries. OPEC Cartel issued decision of pricing oil against gold.

End of the Cold War (19801988)


Ronald Reagan produced a major realignment with his 1980 and 1984 landslides. In 1980, the Reagan coalition was possible because of Democratic losses in most socialeconomic groups. "Reagan Democrats" were those who usually voted Democratic but were attracted by Reagan's policies, personality and leadership, notably his social conservatism and hawkish foreign policy.

History of the United States (1988present)


After the fall of the Soviet Union, the United States emerged as the world's sole remaining superpower and continued to involve itself in military action overseas, including the 1991 Gulf War. Following his election in 1992, President Bill Clinton oversaw the longest economic expansion in American history. In 1993, Islamic terrorist, Ramzi Yousef, planted explosives in the underground garage of One World Trade Center and detonated those killing six people and injuring thousands, Beginning of an age of terrorism.

History of the United States (1988present)


The presidential election in 2000 between George W. Bush (R) and Al Gore (D) was one of the closest in American history.

VS

GEOGRAPHY
Northern portion of the landmass generally referred to as the New World, the Western Hemisphere, the Americas, or simply America. North America's only land connection to South America is at the Isthmus of Panama. The continent can be divided into four great regions
The Great Plains (from the Gulf of Mexico to the Canadian Arctic) Mountainous west (the Rocky Mountains, the Great Basin) California and Alaska (flat plateau of the Canadian Shield in the northeast) The varied eastern region (the Appalachian Mountains, the coastal plain along the Atlantic seaboard, and the Florida peninsula)

GEOGRAPHY

DEMOGRAPHICS
The prevalent languages in North America are English, Spanish, and French. North America is a racially and ethnically diverse continent. Its three main racial groups are Caucasians, Mestizos and Blacks. (significant minority of Indigenous Americans and Asians).

DEMOGRAPHICS
Native Languages of North America

DEMOGRAPHICS

Socially and culturally, Canada and the United States have a similar culture and similar traditions as a result of both countries being former British colonies. Common cultural and economic market between the two nations because of the strong economic and historical ties. Spanish-speaking North America shares a common past as former Spanish colonies. Mexico and the Central American countries where civilizations like the Maya developed, indigenous people preserve traditions across modern boundaries. Northern Mexico, particularly in the cities of Monterrey, Tijuana, Ciudad Jurez, and Mexicali, is strongly influenced by the culture and way of life of the United States. Economically, Canada and the United States are the wealthiest and most developed nations in the continent, followed by Mexico, a newly industrialized country.

POPULATION

United States 311.6 million Mexico 112,322,757 Canada 32,623,490 Caribbean island-nations Under 1 mil. The largest cities in North America, by far are Mexico City and New York. (over 8 mil.) Next in size are Los Angeles, Chicago, Toronto, Havana, Santo Domingo, and Montreal. Cities in the sunbelt regions of the United States, such as those in Southern California and Houston, Phoenix, Miami, Atlanta, and Las Vegas, are experiencing rapid growth. Cities near the United States border, particularly in Mexico, are also experiencing large amounts of growth. Most notable is Tijuana, a city bordering San Diego that receives immigrants from all over Latin America and parts of Europe and Asia. Eight of the top ten metropolitan areas are located in the United States. The proximity of cities to each other on the Canada - United States border and Mexico - United States border has led to the rise of international metropolitan areas. These urban agglomerations are observed at their largest and most productive in DetroitWindsor and San DiegoTijuana and experience large commercial, economic, and cultural activity.

POPULATION
The top ten largest North American metropolitan areas by population as of 2010, based on national census numbers from the United States of America, and census estimates from Canada and Mexico.

BIGGEST METRO CITIES


MEXICO NEW YORK

LOS ANGELES

CHICAGO

BIGGEST METRO CITIES


TORONTO

HOUSTON

BIGGEST METRO CITIES


WASHINGTON D.C.

MIAMI

POPULATION
Population density 2000

POPULATION
Settlements Points

POPULATION
More than four out of five people specified at least one ancestry. The largest European ancestries have decreased in population, while African American, Hispanic, and Asian ancestries have increased. Seven percent of the U.S. population reported their ancestry as American.

GEOLOGY
Canadian geology Geologically, Canada is one of the oldest regions in the world. Canada's mineral resources are diverse and extensive. Across the Canadian Shield and in the north there are large iron, nickel, zinc, copper, gold, lead, molybdenum, and uranium reserves. Large diamond concentrations have been recently developed in the Arctic, making Canada one of the world's largest producers. Throughout the Shield there are many mining towns extracting these minerals. The largest, and best known, is Sudbury, Ontario.

U.S. geological provinces The 48 U.S. states can be divided into roughly five physiographic provinces: 1. The American cordillera. 2. The Canadian Shield. 3. The stable platform. 4. The coastal plain. 5. The Appalachian orogenic belt. The geology of Alaska is typical of that of the cordillera, while the major islands of Hawaii consist of Neogene volcanics erupted over a hot spot.

GEOLOGY

GEOLOGY
Central American geology Central America is geologically active with volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occurring from time to time. In 1976 Guatemala was hit by a major earthquake, killing 23,000 people; Managua, the capital of Nicaragua, was devastated by earthquakes in 1931 and 1972, the last one killed about 5,000 people; three earthquakes devastated El Salvador, one in 1986 and two in 2001; one earthquake devastated northern and central Costa Rica in 2009 killing at least 34 people; in Honduras a powerful earthquake killed 7 people in 2009. Central America has many mountain ranges; the longest are the Sierra Madre de Chiapas, the Cordillera Isabelia and the Cordillera de Talamanca. Between the mountain ranges lie fertile valleys that are suitable for the people; in fact most of the population of Honduras, Costa Rica and Guatemala live in valleys. Valleys are also suitable for the production of coffee, beans and other crops.

CLIMATE

ECONOMY
Canada, Mexico and the United States have significant and multifaceted economic systems. The United States has the largest economy in North America, and in the world. In 2011, the US has an estimated per capita gross domestic product (PPP) of $47,200, and is the most technologically developed economy in North America. United states Service sector 76.7 % Industry 22.2 % Agriculture 1.2 %

ECONOMY

GDP growth_1923-2009

ECONOMY

ECONOMY

ECONOMY

ECONOMY
Canada's economic trends are similar to that of the United States, with significant growth in the sectors of services, mining and manufacturing. Canada's GDP (PPP) was estimated at $39,400 in 2010. Canada Service sector 78% Industry 22% Agriculture 2% Mexico has a GDP (PPP) of $15,113 per capita and as of 2010 is the 11th largest economy in the world. Mexico maintains both modern and outdated industrial and agricultural facilities and operations. Its main sources of income are oil, industrial exports manufactured goods, electronics, heavy industry, automobiles, construction, food, banking and financial services.

ECONOMY
The North American economy is well defined and structured in three main economic areas. North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) Caribbean Community and Common Market (CARICOM) Central American Common Market (CACM) In addition to the larger trade blocs there is the Canada-Costa Rica Free Trade Agreement among numerous other free trade relations; often between the larger, more developed countries, and Central American and Caribbean countries. The North America Free Trade Agreement forms one of the four largest trade blocs in the world. (implemented in 1994)

Twenty Largest Economies by GDP at Given Years The following is a list of twenty largest economies by nominal GDP at a specific year according to IMF (International Monetary Fund)

The following is a list of twenty largest economies by GDP (PPP) at a specific year according to IMF and the World Bank

1980 1990 - European Union, United States and Japan lead expansion

1990 2000 - United States dominates expansion

2000 2010 Rise of Developing and Emerging Economies

URBAN EXTENTS

WORLD POPULATION COUNT

1990

WORLD POPULATION COUNT

1995

WORLD POPULATION COUNT

2000

WORLD POPULATION DENSITY

1990

WORLD POPULATION DENSITY

1995

WORLD POPULATION DENSITY

2000

WORLD URBAN EXTENTS

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