Geography Themes

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When a person studies about the American colonies, Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania, they often think about how they transformed into what they currently are. The themes of geography can ultimately be used to answer the simple, yet complicated question. Two themes that will be used to answer the question are movement as well as human and environment interaction. In order to understand these two better, the reader must know what each theme specifically means. Movement is a method by which people, goods or ideas can travel using various methods like, communication. Human and environment interaction deals with how humans affect the land and how the land affects the humans. These two themes worked together to transform America into what it currently is.

Movement occurred because many Europeans wanted to escape and avoid political and religious unrest. Others, for example slaves and convicts, were deported to the new world involuntarily to serve as servants to the families that already resided there.

Many people fled Europe to the new world because of religious persecution. The Pilgrims started it all in 1620 while other religiously persecuted groups followed in their footsteps and came to America to worship their own way; the Roman Catholics came from England, the Jews came from throughout Europe, and the Huguenots came from France. This migration led to an increase of population, which was a key factor in establishing the colonies. According to the World Book 2000 Millennium Edition, in the 1700's, the population was about 250,000. By 1775, the population rose to an astounding 2-½ million people.

With this migration to the new world, people brought new ideas. Many laborers came, like merchants, and contributed to economic prosperity. If one desires economic prosperity, one must also have mercantilism. The cash crop grown in the central and southern colonies was tobacco. It was an in-demand product in Europe and the farmers thought they could make a profit from it, trying to fulfill what they came to achieve, mercantilism. Mercantilism comes into play when the farmers export more crops and they buy more supplies to harvest the crops. Proprietary colonies were set up so the proprietors could earn money from the colony. In the beginning, many proprietary colonies were not successful because there was no revenue from them.

Human and environment interaction influenced the way the colonies developed in a totally different way. Another key factor to a successful colony is money, for which a natural resource is land. The land affected all the colonies. The northern colonies, could not establish large plantations because the land was rocky, therefore, they turned to the timber and fish for money. The central and southern colonies established large plantations to make a profit by farming cotton and tobacco. The land was a key factor in how the colonists made money to support the colony, which was crucial in the development of a colony, otherwise, the colony would fail and so would its inhabitants.

Mercantilism was also varied in the different colonies. The southern and central colonies used the land to make profit. If there was no land, there would be no crops, no money, and ultimately no colony. If one researches why most of the colonies were established it was because of mercantilism; the investors wanted to make money using the colony. Therefore, to make mercantilism, the humans interacted with the land by planting or fishing, to make a profit for the colony and themselves.

As you see, the development of the colonies, Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania, was heavily affected by movement as well as human and environment interaction. The colonists used the land to allow proprietors to make money for more colonies, using the ideas of mercantilism. Ultimately they used the land to make money, and a profit for themselves, the colony, and the proprietors, utilizing the principles of mercantilism and human and environment interaction.

Works CitedEragonski, Jason. Themes of Geography. London: RH, 2006Middleton, Saphira. The Realms of Geography. New York: 1993Varden, Arya. World Geography. Philadelphia: 2001