5.3 Regions of the United States

Notes

The United States is often divided into five regions.

• Northeast: dense cities such as Boston, New York and Philadelphia; the megalopolis from Boston to Washington, D.C.; early industry and trade.
• Southeast: warm climate, farming (cotton, tobacco, citrus), growing cities like Atlanta and Miami.
• Midwest: the "heartland" with fertile soil, the Corn Belt, the Great Lakes and manufacturing cities such as Chicago and Detroit.
• Southwest: dry climate, deserts, oil, growth of cities such as Phoenix, and Spanish and Native American influences.
• West: Rocky Mountains, Pacific coast, forests, tech (Silicon Valley), Hollywood, and Alaska and Hawaii.
• The Sun Belt is the warm southern band that grew quickly after 1950. The Rust Belt is the older industrial area of the Northeast and Midwest where many factories closed.