The Pacific coastal region from California to Alaska became known as the Oregon Country.

Russia controlled Alaska, Spain – California, but British and Americans clams on Oregon were stronger.

19^th c. – Russia, Spain gave up their claims.

1818 – boundary between the US and British North America (now Canada) was established along the 49^th line from the Great Lakes to the Oregon Country.

California – Mexican control

1820-1830 – British trading posts outnumbered American ones there.

1843 – ‘Oregon fever’ – American settlements in the Oregon Country in order to outnumber the British.

‘manifest destiny’ – to span the continent from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean

1844 - James K. Polk (committed to ‘manifest destiny’) was elected a president.

1846, June 15 – southern part of the Oregon Country became a part of the US.

Texas and the Southwest

1833 – General Antonio Lopes de Santa Anna overthrew the Mexican government and claimed himself a dictator of all Mexico.

October 1835- Texas revolted and proclaimed a Lone Star republic.

March 1836 – Texans defeated Mexican Army. General Santa Anna was captured. Independence of Texans. Not all of them wanted it.

1845 – Texas became the state of the USA.

April 1846 – Mexicans killed 63 Americans on land claimed by Texas.

War with Mexico.

February 1848 – peace treaty. Boundary between Texas and Mexico along the Rio Grande River.

Immense California and New Mexico were purchased to the USA.

1867 – Alaska was purchased from Russia.

1898 – Hawaii annexed to the USA.

1959 – Alaska, Hawaii became states.

HOMESTEAD

1848 - gold was discovered in California
1849 - a massive gold rush
1852 - population increased from 15000 to 260 000

A homestead - a lot of the land (160 acres) that people were given by the government to live on it for 5 years and improve it. Such farmers were called homesteaders.

NEED FOR CONSERVATION

mid 1800s - urgent need to conserve natural resources (wild animals, forests, rivers, lakes)
Chief naturalist - John Muir campaigned for saving natural wonders for future generations
1890 - Yosemite Grant was made a national park
1901 - president Roosevelt began fighting for conservation
1916 - national park service was set up

REGIONALISM

American motto - e pluribus unum - out of many, one, is found on any coin. It means that the US is one country made up of many parts.
It's a country of several large regions, which are cultural rather than governmental units. There are 6 regions: New England, the middle Atlantic region, the South, the Midwest, the Southwest and the West.

Pie of boysenberries, abalone –popular dishes for San Francisco

In New England people pronounce “idea” as “idear”, “Boston” as “Bahstun”.

“Southern drawl” – dialect (slow speech) of the people from southern regions.

Center on -in the East, newspapers are concentrated on the events in Europe, North Africa and Western Asia; in the South – Latin America; in California – East Asia and Australia.

New England

NE can lay a historical claim to having a dominant role in the development of modern America (17-19 was the nation’s preeminent region with regard to economics and culture.

Town meeting (an outgrowth of the meeting of church elders) – citizens gathered to discuss and deside on the local issues.

The maintains of the region became shipbuilding, fishing and trade. 19 c. region possessed the largest merchant marine in the world. New Englanders are shrewd, thrifty, inventive.

Boston –“hub of the universe”

Newer universities sprang up. Harvard, Yale, Brown University, Dartmouth College were originally religious, but became more secular.

New Englanders transplanted themselves and many of their ideas to Ohio, northern Midwest, Pacific Northwest and Hawaii.

“However your life is, meet it and live it, do not shun it and call hard names”(David Thoreau)

Boston became the center of American Puritanism and a fount of culture and intellect.

Because of the cultivated tastes of Bostonians the city became known as the “Athens of America”

Freedom Trail – begins at Boston Common (am. oldest park), 2.4 km, historical places are situated there.

Symphony Hall - one of the world’s most perfect acoustical settings.

The Middle Atlantic Region

NY and Pennsylvania-centers of heavy industry

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-a birthplace of the Declaration of Independence(1776) and the United States Constitution(1787)

Walt Whitman (American poet) said: The US became “not merely a nation, but a teeming nation of nations”

NY(Big Apple)

1525-The NY bay at the Hudson River was first seen by an Italian navigator, Giovanni de Verrazano

1609-The NY bay was explored by Captain Henry Hudson(who discovered Hudson River and Manhattan Island)

1626-Dutch colonists under the leadership of Peter Minuit set up New Amsterdam

1664-the colony was captured by the British fleet under Duke of York and renamed NY.

“Island of tears”(1892-1954)-Ellis Island was used to detain immigrants while examining their qualifications for legal entry into The US

NY-----5 boroughs—

The Bronx -more residential then industrial part of the city

Queens -residential and industrial part of the city

Brooklyn- “bedroom of NY”

Richmond -over the bay is borough of piers and warehouses

Manhattan (13 miles long,2 miles wide):

Downtown (business center)-

Ø Wall Street (1650-wall from river to river to protect from Indians);

Ø Greenwich Village(Bohemian quarters)

Ø Broadway is the symbol of American theatre.(“Great White way”-illumination in Broadway) The intersection of Broadway and

Ø Seventh Avenue forms world famous Times Square, where New Year’s Eve celebrations always take place.

Ø Park Avenue represents luxury and fashion because of its large expensive apartment houses. Fifth Avenue is the most famous shopping center.

MIDTOWN

v Empire State Building (after “Empire State”-a nickname of NY)1973- the tallest twin 110-story towers of NY’s World Trade were completed.

v United Nations -is the meeting place of representatives of the member nations NY Public library -the biggest library in NY

v Rockefeller Center (“Radio city”) -a city within city-with own restaurants, stores, theatres and so on.

v Carnegie Hall(1891)- a lot of renowned and accomplished musicians were presented there

UPTOWN- Columbus Circle-memorial to Christopher Columbus

§ Lincoln center for the performing arts (“Met”)

§ Frick collection -paintings of the 104^th-19^th centuries

§ Solomon R.Guggenheim Museum (completed in 1959)20^th century American and foreign paintings

§ American Museum of National History

§ Metropolitan Museum of Art

§ Columbia university(1754 by royal decree George II,King of England)

§ The Cloisters-branch of metropolitan Museum and has a collection of medieval art

Washington DC(carved from Maryland and Virginia1790)

1912-thosands of cherry trees were given to Washington by the City of Tokyo

Pierre L’Enfant-an architect who designed streets in W DC

1800-Adams and his party moved to W DC

4 sections: North West(NW), North East(NE),South West(SW),South East(SE)

ü The Capitol (Seat of the US Congress)-got its name from the temple in Rome(was begun in 1793)

ü The White House (located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue)

ü The Oval Office-the President’s Office-west wing of White House(US Presidency)

ü The Library of Congress(the biggest existing Library)

ü Pennsylvania Avenue (“Processional Street of America”)

ü The Washington Monument(“Pencil”)

ü The Lincoln Memorial –a temple in Greek style with36 marble columns to represents the states in the union at Lincoln’s death

ü The Tomas Jefferson Memorial(equal opportunity)

ü The Smithsonian In statute-scientific institutes,art galleries, zoos a gift from an Englishman (James Smithson)who has never seen America

ü The Pentagon-Head quarters of the Department of Defense

ü Georgetown-homes of government officials+ Georgetown University

ü The Arlington National Cemetery-tomb of unknown Soldier.(civil war)Kennedy also was buries there

ü Mount Vermon-home of G.Washington

South

The Southern region of the US includes sixteen states (Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Delaware, Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi,Tennessee,Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas).

Several Southern states (Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia) were English Colonies that sent delegates to sign the Declaration of Independence.

The South relied heavily on agriculture, and was highly rural until after 1945.

The Spanish and French established colonies in Florida, Texas, and Louisiana. The Spanish colonized Florida in the 16th century.

In the British colonies, immigration began in 1607 and continued until the outbreak of the Revolution in 1775.

Midwest

The region consists of twelve states in the north-central United States: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.

European settlement of the area began in the 17th century following Frenchexploration of the region and became known as New France(that was given to Spain and Great Britain in 1763)

French control over the area east of the Mississippi River ended in 1763 with the conclusion of the French and Indian War.

Chicago

Chicago is the third most populous city in the United States.

Chicago is located in northeastern Illinois on the southwestern shores of Lake Michigan

The name is derived from a French rendering of the Native American (nicknames "Windy City" and "Second City.)

The first known reference was by Robert de LaSalle around 1679.

Chicago was incorporated as a city in 1837.

Today, the city is an international centerof finance, commerce, industry, telecommunications, and transportation, with O'Hare International Airport being the second-busiest airport in the world.

The Southwest

General characteristics – the city is drier, emptier, different ethnic groups, less populated then the Midwest

Parts of Southwest once belonged to Mexico.

Between 1846 and 1848 the US gained this land.

Mexican border – Texas, New Mexico, Arizona

The West - `last frontier`

11 states are partly mountainous

1980- people from Korea and Southern Asia settled in California.

Hawaii is the only state of Union where Asian-Americans outnumber residents of European Stock.

Among Asian-Americans Japanese is the largest group

1848- Gold Rush

California – is now the first populous city

Los Angeles – entertainment capital of America.

1771 – Los Angeles was founded by Spanish missionaries who named their community the City of Angeles

Climate – favorable, a lot of sunny days and very little rainfall.

Fertile soil made Los Angeles the ` garden spot` of the US producing many fruits

Los Angeles – the second most populous city in the nation(15 million people)

LS - `one storied` city. Has the heaviest concentration of automobiles and vast system of freeways.

Disneyland opened in 1955/ it includes - Magic Kingdom, Adventureland, Fantasyland, Tommorowland, the Hollywood Bowl/

Sights- the Museum of Contemporary Art, Wilshire Boulevard, Country Museum of Art, Griffith Park.

Дата добавления: 2015-11-16