Video Transcript – Operation Exploration: The West Part 2 – U.S. Geo for Kids! Video
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Transcribed by YouTube Transcription for www.Miacademy.co
Juan [0:00]
Hi everyone, I’m Juan. Guess what? I’m doing something very important. I am helping a good friend of mine. She’s moving to the West region of the United States for three whole months to visit some friends and to see all the amazing places in the West. But she doesn’t know which state to move to because she doesn’t know which is the best state to find a job that she will enjoy. You want to help us out? Yes! Great, let’s go! Today, let’s explore some of the different regions of the U.S. to see what their economy is like, and what type of industries support their populations. Welcome to Operation Exploration, where we’re going to be exploring… regions of the United States!
[0:59]
In this video, we’re going to explore some of the industries, economies, and natural resources in the West region of the U.S. The West region states we’ll be talking about today are Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Nevada, California, Oregon, Washington, Alaska, and Hawaii. Maybe you live in one of these states and you’ll already know about some of the things we’re going to discover.
[1:29]
Do you remember what an economy is? Well, I have another friend that is going to help us research some of these places. Maybe she can tell us what an economy is! Let’s text her. “Hey Mia, Juan here. Thank you so much for helping us out today. I was wondering if you could help us define the word ‘economy’ please.” Ah, there we go! Economy: the way people make and spend money. Well, that’s important! A region’s climate and resources are very important to its industries and, therefore, its economy. Huh! Well, then let’s talk about how the natural resources in the West led to the economy that it has today. Mia, are you ready? Yes! Let’s go!
[2:38]
Most of the West’s climate is hot and dry. In the southwest mountains, it is cool and dry. Mia, show us, please! Along the Pacific coast, there is a lot of rain and cooler temperatures. But even in this part of the region, there are some drier places where farmers grow crops that don’t need as much rain or they use irrigation, which means they water the crops themselves. In these areas, they grow crops like wheat, potatoes, cabbage, and onions.
[3:11]
During the Gold Rush days, farming and mining were the West region’s major industries. What exactly are the Gold Rush days you ask? Well, the California Gold Rush was the biggest migration or movement of people in American history. It brought about 300,000 people to California! The story begins back on January 24, 1848. James W. Marshall found gold on his land in Coloma, California. People came from Oregon, Hawaii, and Latin America in search of gold in the West. By the end of the next year, 1849, others from all over the U.S., Europe, Australia, and China arrived in hopes of striking gold.
[3:58]
At first, there was so much gold that you could pick it up, right off the ground! After all the gold was gone, they found it in the streams and the rivers with the use of pans. After about 5 years, the gold was getting harder to reach. But do you think the miners gave up? No! Right! They just made more sophisticated methods like hydraulic mining. However, this type of mining was not good for the earth. That’s one of the reasons that we study history, so we can learn from what other people have done in the past.
[4:34]
Anyway, the Gold Rush, part of the overall Westward Expansion from the east to the west in the United States, resulted with the very fast development of roads and towns in California and helped California become an official U.S. state by 1850. By 1869, the Transcontinental Railroad was built, making it much easier to migrate west. In 1862, the Homestead Act allowed people to own 160 acres of free land as long as they were willing to live on it, farm it, and build a home. 30 homesteading states gave away 270 million acres.
[5:13]
President Theodore Roosevelt termed his movement “The Great Leap Westward.” The result? In less than a century or 100 years, westward expansion stretched across the Pacific Coast up to Alaska and down all the way to Hawaii. We can’t talk about the Westward Expansion without talking about the American Indians who already lived on the land in the west when all these people arrived. Unfortunately, they were displaced and lost much of their land. Remember when I said that part of the reason that we study history is so that we won’t make the same mistakes as the people before us? If you’re interested in learning more about their struggles, ask a grown-up to help you research the Trail of Tears and Indian Reservations in the west during the 1800s.
[6:02]
To summarize, Mia, we need your help! In the 1800s, the U.S. already had the Gulf Coast and the Atlantic Coast for trade. Now, we have the Pacific coast! The Western Expansion gave the U.S. vast natural resources and ports along the side the Pacific coasts for exports and imports, a key part of creating the world superpower in trade that America is today. This expansion and the wild rush to get rich also paved the road for California to eventually become what it is today… the U.S. state with the most population, or people, at almost 40 million! That’s almost 12% of the total of the U.S. population!
[6:52]
Today, mining is not the industry that it was during the Gold Rush, but it continues in many of the West region’s states. In Arizona and New Mexico, minerals like silver, turquoise, and copper are used to manufacture products for jewelry. Rings, bracelets, and necklaces are made by American Indian craftspeople. Mia, can you help us check out Utah’s copper industry? Yes! Great! In Utah, copper is mined above ground. Utah has the largest open pit mine in the world. The copper is manufactured into electrical wires and plumbing pipes.
[7:39]
New Mexico mines uranium, which is used in nuclear power plants. These plants make electricity. Mining is one of New Mexico’s biggest industries for their economy. This means it makes a lot of money and provides a lot of jobs for the people who live in this state. Besides minerals, another valuable natural resource in the West region is oil. Oil was discovered in Alaska in the 1960s on the North Slope near the Arctic Ocean. The Trans-Alaska Pipeline was built to carry oil from the North Slope to the U.S. and all around the world. The oil is pumped into supertankers that carry the oil to cities like San Francisco, California. San Francisco has oil refineries that manufacture the oil so it can be used in homes and businesses for things like fuel, shoes, balloons, tires, crayons, and much more!
[8:34]
Oil is only one of the products that is manufactured in the West. Mia, how would you feel about doing a search for us on products manufactured in the West region? Ah, great, thanks! Idaho and Oregon have a huge economy in manufacturing computer parts and products. Since we’re talking about computers, I should mention another natural resource, silicon. Have you ever heard of Silicon Valley in San Francisco, California? Silicon is a valuable mineral that is used to make electronic chips that store information in computers. The silicon is mined and sent to the valley where many companies manufacture these chips for computer makers.
[9:25]
Aircraft are made in places like San Diego, California and Seattle, Washington. Many airline companies get their airplanes from California. Fishing boats, tankers, and battleships are made in Washington State and Hawaii. Because there’s so much open space in the Great Basin, there are research centers in Nevada and New Mexico, owned by the government, where they test products like missiles and aircraft. Mia’s making that face again. Hey Mia, what do you want to talk about?
[10:05]
Agriculture! You remember that word, right? The glorious art of farming! Mia has taken us to Colorado and Montana to show us that they are big producers of wheat. Wheat is in a ton of products that Americans eat every day, like cereal, bread, pasta, and cake. Oh, Idaho! Idaho is the biggest producers of potatoes in the U.S. That’s a lot of potatoes! And let’s not forget about Oregon! In Oregon, they produce a lot of agricultural commodities such as cattle and milk, hay, and grass seed. Their top agriculture industry is greenhouses, which they make and sell.
[10:45]
Oh yes, Mia, that’s right! Even in Alaska, there are vegetables and fruit farms. Here is a historic dairy farm in Fairbanks, Alaska. Hawaii is famous for its pineapples. They used to grow so many pineapples but many pineapple growers have left to grow somewhere cheaper. However, they still have a successful pineapple farm in Maui. Today, the biggest cash crops here are macadamia nuts, coffee beans, papayas, and avocados. Of course, Mia! California’s Central Valley. Here you will find fruit and vegetable farms. California is one of our top fruit-producing states, with fruit like apricots, grapefruit, oranges, peaches, and strawberries are grown in the valley.
[11:40]
The last industry that we’re going to talk about in the West region is tourism. Mia is super excited to show us some videos of the amazing and beautiful natural features that draw many visitors each year. Mia, are you ready? Yes! Let’s go! In Los Angeles, California tourists flock to Disneyland. Millions of tourists travel to Las Vegas, Nevada, famous for its casinos and shows. People travel to Alaska on a cruise ship to see its beautiful glaciers. And to Hawaii for its landforms and tropical weather.
[13:18]
From its manufacturing to its farm to its tourism, the West region has so much to offer. I think my friend is going to have so many great jobs to choose from! Thank you Mia for all your help! You are an amazing friend. What is the economy like where you live? What are some of the companies or industries that employ people in your state? Maybe it’s a cell phone factory! I bet you can do some research on your own and learn about your town. Check out our other videos where we explore more fun and interesting things about the United States. And in the meantime, remember to always be clever!