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106-634: Alabama ( / ˌ æ l ə ˈ b æ m ə / AL -ə- BAM -ə ) is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama is the 30th largest by area and the 24th-most populous of the 50 U.S. states . Alabama is nicknamed the Yellowhammer State , after

212-484: A poll tax and literacy test . The 1901 constitution required racial segregation of public schools. By 1903 only 2,980 African Americans were registered in Alabama, although at least 74,000 were literate . This compared to more than 181,000 African Americans eligible to vote in 1900. The numbers dropped even more in later decades. The state legislature passed additional racial segregation laws related to public facilities into

318-597: A tripoint . Various examples are found in the list below. A number of major cities, such as Chongqing , St. Louis , and Khartoum , arose at confluences; further examples appear in the list. Within a city, a confluence often forms a visually prominent point, so that confluences are sometimes chosen as the site of prominent public buildings or monuments, as in Koblenz , Lyon , and Winnipeg . Cities also often build parks at confluences, sometimes as projects of municipal improvement, as at Portland and Pittsburgh . In other cases,

424-681: A border state that remained with the Union while being contested by the Confederacy and Confederate government of West Virginia . Following the Reconstruction era in the 1870s, many Southeast state legislatures passed Jim Crow laws . The American segregation era spanned from the late 19th century to the mid-1960s. In the mid-to-late 20th century, the Southeast saw many shifting changes take place population wise and economically. The Southeast started to see

530-414: A confluence can be divided into six distinct features which are commonly called confluence flow zones (CFZ). These include The broader field of engineering encompasses a vast assortment of subjects which concern confluences. In hydraulic civil engineering , where two or more underground culverted / artificially buried watercourses intersect, great attention should be paid to the hydrodynamic aspects of

636-619: A confluence is an industrial site, as in Philadelphia or Mannheim . Often a confluence lies in the shared floodplain of the two rivers and nothing is built on it, for example at Manaus , described below. One other way that confluences may be exploited by humans is as sacred places in religions . Rogers suggests that for the ancient peoples of the Iron Age in northwest Europe, watery locations were often sacred, especially sources and confluences. Pre-Christian Slavic peoples chose confluences as

742-482: A corresponding shift in habitat characteristics." Another science relevant to the study of confluences is chemistry , because sometimes the mixing of the waters of two streams triggers a chemical reaction, particularly in a polluted stream. The United States Geological Survey gives an example: "chemical changes occur when a stream contaminated with acid mine drainage combines with a stream with near-neutral pH water; these reactions happen very rapidly and influence

848-650: A few days, it joined the Confederate States of America . The Confederacy's capital was initially at Montgomery. Alabama was heavily involved in the American Civil War . Although comparatively few battles were fought in the state, Alabama contributed about 120,000 soldiers to the war effort. A company of cavalry soldiers from Huntsville, Alabama, joined Nathan Bedford Forrest 's battalion in Hopkinsville, Kentucky . The company wore new uniforms with yellow trim on

954-584: A hideout of Jesse James ; Stephens Gap Cave, in Jackson County , which has a 143-foot pit and two waterfalls and is one of the most photographed wild cave scenes in America; Little River Canyon, near Fort Payne, one of the nation's longest mountaintop rivers; Rickwood Caverns , near Warrior , which has an underground pool, blind cave-fish, and 260-million-year-old limestone formations; and the Walls of Jericho canyon, on

1060-560: A lawsuit and court order. Beginning in the 1940s, when the courts started taking the first steps to recognize the voting rights of black voters, the Alabama legislature took several counter-steps designed to disfranchise black voters. The legislature passed, and the voters ratified [as these were mostly white voters], a state constitutional amendment that gave local registrars greater latitude to disqualify voter registration applicants. Black citizens in Mobile successfully challenged this amendment as

1166-554: A local aerospace industry. Alabama's economy in the 21st century is based on automotive, finance, tourism, manufacturing, aerospace, mineral extraction, healthcare, education, retail, and technology. The name of the Alabama River and state is derived from the Alabama people , a Muskogean-speaking tribe whose members lived just below the confluence of the Coosa and Tallapoosa rivers on

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1272-437: A number of notable universities, public and private, whose research exert influence globally. Chief among public universities are: There are a number of well-known private institutions, as well. Notable among these are: The region is home to the greatest number of historically black colleges and universities in the nation. The three largest in the region are: There are nine National Football League (NFL) franchises across

1378-583: A significant minority in the state, they had been unable to elect any representatives in most of the at-large jurisdictions. As part of settlement of this case, five Alabama cities and counties, including Chilton County , adopted a system of cumulative voting for election of representatives in multi-seat jurisdictions. This has resulted in more proportional representation for voters. In another form of proportional representation, 23 jurisdictions use limited voting , as in Conecuh County . In 1982, limited voting

1484-580: A slight majority of those disenfranchised by these laws: 600,000 whites vs. 520,000 African Americans. Nearly all Blacks had lost the ability to vote. Despite numerous legal challenges which succeeded in overturning certain provisions, the state legislature would create new ones to maintain disenfranchisement. The exclusion of blacks from the political system persisted until after passage of federal civil rights legislation in 1965 to enforce their constitutional rights as citizens. The rural-dominated Alabama legislature consistently underfunded schools and services for

1590-565: A spur of new economic growth in the 1930s, which stemmed from New Deal policies such as the Tennessee Valley Authority and the Fair Labor Standards Act instituting a minimum wage for the entire nation. World War II further helped growth within the Southeast, as military bases and military production drew workers from farming or low-wage industries into a new economy. With farming mechanization picking up to speed in

1696-443: A variety of sciences. Hydrology studies the characteristic flow patterns of confluences and how they give rise to patterns of erosion, bars, and scour pools. The water flows and their consequences are often studied with mathematical models . Confluences are relevant to the distribution of living organisms (i.e., ecology ) as well; "the general pattern [downstream of confluences] of increasing stream flow and decreasing slopes drives

1802-584: A violation of the Fifteenth Amendment . The legislature also changed the boundaries of Tuskegee to a 28-sided figure designed to fence out blacks from the city limits. The Supreme Court unanimously held that this racial " gerrymandering " violated the Constitution. In 1961,   ... the Alabama legislature also intentionally diluted the effect of the black vote by instituting numbered place requirements for local elections. Industrial development related to

1908-455: Is abundant across the southeastern United States in summer, as the rainfall often comes in quick, but intense downpours. The mid-South, especially Tennessee, and the northern halves of Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia, have maximum monthly rainfall amounts in winter and spring, owing to copious Gulf moisture and clashes between warm, moist air from the Gulf of Mexico and cold, dry air from Canada during

2014-709: Is also an NCAA Division I conference made up of Southeastern college teams, including the: Alabama Crimson Tide , Arkansas Razorbacks , Auburn Tigers , Florida Gators , Georgia Bulldogs , Kentucky Wildcats , LSU Tigers , Ole Miss Rebels , Mississippi State Bulldogs , South Carolina Gamecocks , Tennessee Volunteers , and Vanderbilt Commodores . The Sugar Bowl , Orange Bowl , Peach Bowl , Citrus Bowl , and Music City Bowl , are notable college football bowls held in Southeastern cities. 34°N 85°W  /  34°N 85°W  / 34; -85 Confluence Confluences are studied in

2120-562: Is common in the U.S.; an estimated 26 states have names of Native American origin. Sources disagree on the word's meaning. Some scholars suggest the word comes from the Choctaw alba (meaning 'plants' or 'weeds') and amo (meaning 'to cut', 'to trim', or 'to gather'). The meaning may have been 'clearers of the thicket' or 'herb gatherers', referring to clearing land for cultivation or collecting medicinal plants. The state has numerous place names of Native American origin . An 1842 article in

2226-520: Is mostly mountainous, with the Tennessee River cutting a large valley and creating numerous creeks, streams, rivers, mountains, and lakes. Alabama is bordered by the states of Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama has coastline at the Gulf of Mexico, in the extreme southern edge of the state. The state ranges in elevation from sea level at Mobile Bay to more than 2,000 feet (610 m) in

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2332-451: Is no official U.S. government definition for the region, and it is defined variably among agencies and organizations. The history of the present-day Southeastern United States dates to the dawn of civilization in approximately 11,000 BC or 13,000 BC. The earliest artifacts from the region were from the Clovis culture . Prior to the arrival of European colonialists, Native Americans occupied

2438-519: Is today southern Clarke County , northernmost Mobile County , and most of Washington County . What are now Baldwin and Mobile counties became part of Spanish West Florida in 1783, part of the independent Republic of West Florida in 1810, and finally part of the Mississippi Territory in 1812. Most of what is now the northern two-thirds of Alabama was known as the Yazoo lands beginning during

2544-735: Is used to describe the meeting of tidal or other non-riverine bodies of water, such as two canals or a canal and a lake. A one-mile (1.6 km) portion of the Industrial Canal in New Orleans accommodates the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway and the Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet Canal ; therefore those three waterways are confluent there. The term confluence can also apply to the process of merging or flowing together of other substance. For example, it may refer to

2650-717: The American Southeast or simply the Southeast , is a geographical region of the United States located in the eastern portion of the Southern United States and the southern portion of the Eastern United States . The region includes a core of states that reaches north to Maryland and West Virginia , bordering the Ohio River and Mason–Dixon line , and stretches west to Arkansas and Louisiana . There

2756-618: The Blaine Amendment , prohibiting public money from being used to finance religious-affiliated schools. The same year, legislation was approved that called for racially segregated schools. Railroad passenger cars were segregated in 1891. The new 1901 Constitution of Alabama included provisions for voter registration that effectively disenfranchised large portions of the population, including nearly all African Americans and Native Americans, and tens of thousands of poor European Americans, through making voter registration difficult, requiring

2862-532: The Jacksonville Republican proposed it meant 'Here We Rest'. This notion was popularized in the 1850s through the writings of Alexander Beaufort Meek . Experts in the Muskogean languages have not found any evidence to support such a translation. Indigenous peoples of varying cultures lived in the area for thousands of years before the advent of European colonization. Trade with the northeastern tribes by

2968-640: The Montgomery bus boycott (1955–1956), Freedom Rides in 1961, and 1965 Selma to Montgomery marches. These contributed to Congressional passage and enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965 by the U.S. Congress. Legal segregation ended in the states in 1964, but Jim Crow customs often continued until specifically challenged in court. According to The New York Times , by 2017, many of Alabama's African Americans were living in Alabama's cities such as Birmingham and Montgomery. Also,

3074-498: The Muskogee tribes developed distinct cultures and languages. The Spanish were the first Europeans to reach Alabama during their exploration of North America in the 16th century. The expedition of Hernando de Soto passed through Mabila and other parts of the state in 1540. More than 160 years later, the French founded the region's first European settlement at Old Mobile in 1702. The city

3180-709: The Natchez Trace Parkway , the Selma To Montgomery National Historic Trail , and the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail . Natural wonders include the "Natural Bridge" rock, the longest natural bridge east of the Rockies , just south of Haleyville ; Cathedral Caverns , in Marshall County , named for its cathedral-like appearance, which features one of the largest cave entrances and one of

3286-654: The Ohio River began during the Burial Mound Period (1000   BCE – 700   CE) and continued until European contact . The agrarian Mississippian culture covered most of the state from 1000 to 1600 CE, with one of its major centers built at what is now the Moundville Archaeological Site in Moundville, Alabama . This is the second-largest complex of the classic Middle Mississippian era, after Cahokia in present-day Illinois , which

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3392-855: The Thirteen Colonies who sent delegates to the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia , which declared independence from the British Crown , which was established with the colonies' victory over the British in the American Revolutionary War . During the American Civil War , the Confederate States of America consisted of the southeastern states of Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Tennessee, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Louisiana, and Arkansas. Texas

3498-662: The United States Virgin Islands , and Virginia . There is no official United States Census Bureau definition of the Southeastern United States. They instead divide a larger region which includes Texas , Oklahoma , Maryland , Delaware , Washington, D.C., and West Virginia , designated as "the South," into three separate subregions, none of which are conventionally considered to define the Southeast. The nonprofit American Association of Geographers defines

3604-587: The Upper South brought slaves with them as the cotton plantations in Alabama expanded. The economy of the central Black Belt (named for its dark, productive soil) was built around large cotton plantations whose owners' wealth grew mainly from slave labor. The area also drew many poor, disenfranchised people who became subsistence farmers . Alabama had an estimated population of under 10,000 people in 1810, but it increased to more than 300,000 people by 1830. Most Native American tribes were completely removed from

3710-532: The Yazoo land scandal . Spain kept a claim on its former Spanish West Florida territory in what would become the coastal counties until the Adams–Onís Treaty officially ceded it to the U.S. in 1819. Before Mississippi's admission to statehood on December 10, 1817, the more sparsely settled eastern half of the territory was separated and named the Alabama Territory . The United States Congress created

3816-1064: The northeast , to Mount Cheaha at 2,413 ft (735 m). Alabama's land consists of 22 million acres (89,000 km) of forest or 67% of the state's total land area. Suburban Baldwin County , along the Gulf Coast, is the largest county in the state in both land area and water area. Areas in Alabama administered by the National Park Service include Horseshoe Bend National Military Park near Alexander City ; Little River Canyon National Preserve near Fort Payne ; Russell Cave National Monument in Bridgeport ; Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site in Tuskegee; and Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site near Tuskegee. Additionally, Alabama has four National Forests : Conecuh , Talladega , Tuskegee , and William B. Bankhead . Alabama also contains

3922-435: The state bird . Alabama is also known as the "Heart of Dixie " and the "Cotton State". The state has diverse geography, with the north dominated by the mountainous Tennessee Valley and the south by Mobile Bay , a historically significant port. Alabama's capital is Montgomery , and its largest city by population and area is Huntsville . Its oldest city is Mobile , founded by French colonists ( Alabama Creoles ) in 1702 as

4028-403: The "Magic City". By 1920, Birmingham was the 36th-largest city in the United States. Heavy industry and mining were the basis of its economy. Its residents were under-represented for decades in the state legislature, which refused to redistrict after each decennial census according to population changes, as it was required by the state constitution. This did not change until the late 1960s following

4134-438: The 1940s, promotion of different industries, and federal spending on defense and space programs, the Southeast saw further economic transformation in the ensuing years and decades of the 20th century. The Southeast benefitted from its business and warm climate in its population growth during the late 20th century, as it helped in attracting job seekers and retirees from other U.S. regions. Florida in particular went from being

4240-402: The 1950s: jails were segregated in 1911; hospitals in 1915; toilets, hotels, and restaurants in 1928; and bus stop waiting rooms in 1945. While the planter class had persuaded poor whites to vote for this legislative effort to suppress black voting, the new restrictions resulted in their disenfranchisement as well, due mostly to the imposition of a cumulative poll tax. By 1941, whites constituted

4346-550: The 27th most populated U.S. state in 1940 with 1.9 million residents, to being the 4th most populated U.S. state and having nearly 13 million residents in 2000 . Southeast states such as North Carolina and Georgia saw large population growth increases as well during the late 20th century. The United States Geological Survey defines Southeastern United States as including the states of Alabama , Arkansas , Florida , Georgia , Kentucky , Louisiana , Mississippi , North Carolina , South Carolina , Tennessee , Puerto Rico ,

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4452-653: The 53 °F (12 °C) range. As one nears the Gulf of Mexico, coastal plain, and coastal areas of Georgia and the Carolinas, winters become warm, with daytime highs near or over 60 °F (16 °C). Once in Florida, daytime highs are above 70 °F (21 °C) from just south of St. Augustine on the Atlantic coast and Clearwater on the Gulf Of Mexico. Extreme southern Florida has the warmest winter temperatures (mid 70's F) in

4558-492: The Alabama Territory on March 3, 1817. St. Stephens , now abandoned, served as the territorial capital from 1817 to 1819. Alabama was admitted as the 22nd state on December 14, 1819, with Congress selecting Huntsville as the site for the first Constitutional Convention . From July   5 to August 2, 1819, delegates met to prepare the new state constitution. Huntsville served as temporary capital from 1819 to 1820, when

4664-515: The Alabama legislature." In the United States Supreme Court cases of Baker v. Carr (1962) and Reynolds v. Sims (1964), the court ruled that the principle of " one man, one vote " needed to be the basis of both houses of state legislatures, and that their districts had to be based on population rather than geographic counties. African Americans continued to press in the 1950s and 1960s to end disenfranchisement and segregation in

4770-564: The Alabama–Tennessee border. A 5-mile (8 km)-wide meteorite impact crater is located in Elmore County , just north of Montgomery. This is the Wetumpka crater , the site of "Alabama's greatest natural disaster". A 1,000-foot (300 m)-wide meteorite hit the area about 80 million years ago. The hills just east of downtown Wetumpka showcase the eroded remains of the impact crater that

4876-761: The Atlanta area; the two largest research parks in the country: Research Triangle Park in the Triangle area of North Carolina (the world's largest) and the Cummings Research Park in Huntsville, Alabama (the world's fourth largest); corporate headquarters of Bank of America , Truist Financial , and Wells Fargo in Charlotte, North Carolina , the corporate headquarters of Verso Paper and FedEx in Memphis, Tennessee as well as

4982-634: The Black Belt region across central Alabama "is home to largely poor counties that are predominantly African-American. These counties include Dallas, Lowndes , Marengo and Perry ." In 1972, for the first time since 1901, the legislature completed the congressional redistricting based on the decennial census. This benefited the urban areas that had developed, as well as all in the population who had been underrepresented for more than sixty years. Other changes were made to implement representative state house and senate districts. Alabama has made some changes since

5088-702: The British colonial period. It was claimed by the Province of Georgia from 1767 onwards. Following the Revolutionary War, it remained a part of Georgia, although heavily disputed. With the exception of the area around Mobile and the Yazoo lands, what is now the lower one-third of Alabama was made part of the Mississippi Territory when it was organized in 1798. The Yazoo lands were added to the territory in 1804, following

5194-494: The Charlotte area along with the sports operations headquarters and media outlets. Tracks in the region include Atlanta Motor Speedway , Bristol Motor Speedway , Charlotte Motor Speedway , Darlington Raceway , Daytona International Speedway , Homestead-Miami Speedway , Martinsville Speedway , Nashville Superspeedway , North Wilkesboro Speedway , Richmond Raceway , and Talladega Superspeedway . The southeast also hosts two of

5300-549: The Knight of Elvas and Rodrigo Ranjel wrote Alibamu and Limamu , respectively, in transliterations of the term. As early as 1702, the French called the tribe the Alibamon , with French maps identifying the river as Rivière des Alibamons . Other spellings of the name have included Alibamu , Alabamo , Albama , Alebamon , Alibama , Alibamou , Alabamu , and Allibamou . The use of state names derived from Native American languages

5406-583: The Mississippian peoples; it is one of the primary means by which their religion is understood. Among the historical tribes of Native American people living in present-day Alabama at the time of European contact were the Cherokee , an Iroquoian language people; and the Muskogean-speaking Alabama ( Alibamu ), Chickasaw , Choctaw , Creek, and Koasati . While part of the same large language family,

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5512-419: The South to have some of the lowest unemployment rates in the United States. In Alabama, there is the large-scale manufacturing project owned by the German steel megacorporation ThyssenKrupp , which operates a massive, state-of-the-art facility in Mobile . Even with certain states and areas in the Southeast doing well economically, many Southeast states and areas still have a high poverty rate when compared to

5618-451: The Southeast, out of a total of ten such areas in the United States: Two others tie some areas on the margins of the Southeast to urban centers in other regions: These are the combined statistical areas of the Southeastern region which exceed 1  million in population according to the United States Census Bureau 's 2016 estimates. Note that the metropolitan areas of Tampa and Richmond are not included in any CSAs, so they are included in

5724-519: The Southeast: the Atlanta Braves , Baltimore Orioles , Miami Marlins , Tampa Bay Rays , and Washington Nationals . The Southeast has five National Hockey League (NHL) franchises: the Carolina Hurricanes , Florida Panthers , Nashville Predators , Tampa Bay Lightning , and Washington Capitals . Major League Soccer currently holds six clubs: Atlanta United FC , Charlotte FC , DC United , Inter Miami CF , Nashville SC and Orlando City SC . The majority of NASCAR teams are headquartered in

5830-417: The Southeastern United States as including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. The OSBO (Organization Supporting Business Owners) uses the same states, but includes Arkansas and Louisiana. The states of Delaware and Missouri , along with the U.S. capital of Washington, D.C., are also sometimes added in definitions of

5936-423: The U.S. nationally. In 2017, seven Southeast states were in the top ten nationwide when it came to having the highest poverty rate. Research Triangle Park in the Raleigh–Durham urban area of North Carolina, has emerged as a major hub of technology, governmental, and biotechnological research and development. The Cummings Research Park in the Huntsville, Alabama area, is the second-largest research complex in

6042-458: The United States is dominated by the humid subtropical climate (Cfa/Cwa). As one nears the southern portion of Florida, the climate gradually becomes tropical, as the winter season and all months have a mean temperature above 64.4 °F (18.0 °C) (the defined coldest monthly mean temperature of tropical climates). Seasonally, summers are generally hot and humid throughout the entire region. The Bermuda High pumps hot and moist air mass from

6148-427: The United States with 52,419 square miles (135,760 km) of total area: 3.2% of the area is water, making Alabama 23rd in the amount of surface water, also giving it the second-largest inland waterway system in the United States. About three-fifths of the land area is part of the Gulf Coastal Plain , a gentle plain with a general descent towards the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico. The North Alabama region

6254-419: The United States. Winters tend to be very dry and sunny across Florida, with a gradual increase in winter rainfall with increasing latitude, especially west of the Appalachian Mountains. The Southeast economically has changed dramatically since the late 20th century. There has been a boom in its service economy , manufacturing base, high technology industries, and the financial sector. Examples of this include

6360-439: The area, such as Georgia and Florida. In 2001, Alabama Supreme Court chief justice Roy Moore installed a statue of the Ten Commandments in the capitol in Montgomery. In 2002, the 11th US Circuit Court ordered the statue removed, but Moore refused to follow the court order, which led to protests around the capitol in favor of keeping the monument. The monument was removed in August 2003. A few natural disasters have occurred in

6466-449: The capital of French Louisiana . Greater Birmingham is Alabama's largest metropolitan area and its economic center. Politically, as part of the Deep South , or " Bible Belt ", Alabama is a predominantly conservative state, and is known for its Southern culture . Within Alabama, American football , particularly at the college level, plays a major part of the state's culture. Originally home to many native tribes, present-day Alabama

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6572-526: The cold season. In this area, December, March, or April are typically the wettest months; August to October, the driest months (for example, in Tupelo, MS , Huntsville, AL and Memphis, TN ). Winters are cool in the northern areas like Tennessee , Virginia , Maryland , and western North Carolina , with average high temperatures in the 45 °F (7 °C) range in January. Farther south, winters become milder across interior eastern North and South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama, with average January highs in

6678-529: The construction costs. The fund required the local community and state to raise matching funds to pay the rest. Black residents effectively taxed themselves twice, by raising additional monies to supply matching funds for such schools, which were built in many rural areas. They often donated land and labor as well. Beginning in 1913, the first 80 Rosenwald Schools were built in Alabama for African American children. A total of 387 schools, seven teachers' houses, and several vocational buildings were completed by 1937 in

6784-503: The corporate headquarters of the Coca Cola Company , Delta Airlines , the Home Depot and United Parcel Service in Atlanta , Georgia. Dillards , along with Heifer International , is headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas . Walmart is also headquartered in Arkansas . In 2020, Fortune 500 companies having headquarters in the Southeast region include: 22 in Virginia, 18 in Georgia, 18 in Florida, 13 in North Carolina, and 10 in Tennessee. This economic expansion has enabled parts of

6890-436: The demands of World War II brought a level of prosperity to the state not seen since before the civil war. Rural workers poured into the largest cities in the state for better jobs and a higher standard of living. One example of this massive influx of workers occurred in Mobile. Between 1940 and 1943, more than 89,000 people moved into the city to work for war-related industries. Cotton and other cash crops faded in importance as

6996-408: The disenfranchised African Americans, but it did not relieve them of paying taxes. Partially as a response to chronic underfunding of education for African Americans in the South, the Rosenwald Fund began funding the construction of what came to be known as Rosenwald Schools . In Alabama, these schools were designed, and the construction partially financed with Rosenwald funds, which paid one-third of

7102-399: The early decades of the 20th century as part of the Great Migration out of the South. Reflecting this emigration, the population growth rate in Alabama (see "historical populations" table below) dropped by nearly half from 1910 to 1920. At the same time, many rural people migrated to the city of Birmingham to work in new industrial jobs. Birmingham experienced such rapid growth it was called

7208-420: The fastest-growing area of the United States economically. Multiculturalism has become more mainstream in the Southeastern states. African Americans remain a dominant demographic, at around 30% of the total population of the Southeast. Cities along this corridor from north to south include Raleigh-Durham area, Greensboro, Charlotte, Spartanburg, Greenville, Atlanta, and Montgomery. Most of the southeastern part of

7314-587: The form of structural bracing. The velocities and hydraulic efficiencies should be meticulously calculated and can be altered by integrating different combinations of geometries, components such a gradients, cascades and an adequate junction angle which is sympathetic to the direction of the watercourse’s flow to minimise turbulent flow, maximise evacuation velocity and to ultimately maximise hydraulic efficiency. Since rivers often serve as political boundaries, confluences sometimes demarcate three abutting political entities, such as nations, states, or provinces, forming

7420-399: The freedmen and Republicans. These groups included The Ku Klux Klan , the Pale Faces, Knights of the White Camellia , Red Shirts , and the White League . Reconstruction in Alabama ended in 1874, when the Democrats regained control of the legislature and governor's office through an election dominated by fraud and violence. They wrote another constitution in 1875, and the legislature passed

7526-538: The largest cities in the Southeastern region of the United States by population, according to the United States Census Bureau in 2015: These are the metropolitan areas of the Southeastern region which exceed one million in population according to the United States Census Bureau 's 2023 estimates:as estimated by the United States Census Bureau Beyond Megalopolis by Virginia Tech 's Metropolitan Institute, an attempt to update Jean Gottmann 's work with current trends, defines two " megapolitan areas " contained within

7632-552: The largest stalagmites in the world; Ecor Rouge, in Fairhope , the highest coastline point between Maine and Mexico; DeSoto Caverns , in Childersburg , the first officially recorded cave in the United States; Noccalula Falls , in Gadsden , which has a 90-foot waterfall; Dismals Canyon , near Phil Campbell , which is home to two waterfalls and six natural bridges and is said to have been

7738-536: The late 19th century up until the 1960s. High-profile events such as the Selma to Montgomery marches made the state a major focal point of the civil rights movement in the 1950s and 1960s. During and after World War II , Alabama grew as the state's economy diversified with new industries. In 1960, the establishment of NASA 's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville helped boost Alabama's economic growth by developing

7844-430: The late 20th century and has used new types of voting to increase representation. In the 1980s, an omnibus redistricting case, Dillard v. Crenshaw County , challenged the at-large voting for representative seats of 180 Alabama jurisdictions, including counties and school boards. At-large voting had diluted the votes of any minority in a county, as the majority tended to take all seats. Despite African Americans making up

7950-640: The nation. Located in Huntsville is the Redstone Arsenal , United States Army Missile Command , the U.S. Space & Rocket Center , NASA 's Marshall Space Flight Center and other key government, military, and aerospace agencies. Tullahoma, TN contains the Arnold Air Force Base. The base is home to the Arnold Engineering Development Complex (AEDC), the most advanced and largest complex of flight simulation test facilities in

8056-786: The region for several hundred years during the Woodland period . The first Europeans to arrive in the region were conquistadors associated with the Spanish Empire . In 1541, Hernando de Soto journeyed through the southeast and crossed the Mississippi River . The region hosted the first permanent European settlement in North America , with the Kingdom of England establishing Jamestown, Virginia in 1607. Four southeast states, Georgia , North Carolina , South Carolina , and Virginia , were among

8162-603: The region: the Atlanta Falcons , Baltimore Ravens , Carolina Panthers , Jacksonville Jaguars , Miami Dolphins , New Orleans Saints , Tampa Bay Buccaneers , Tennessee Titans , and Washington Commanders . The Southeast has seven National Basketball Association (NBA) franchises: the Atlanta Hawks , Charlotte Hornets , Memphis Grizzlies , Miami Heat , New Orleans Pelicans , Orlando Magic , and Washington Wizards . Major League Baseball (MLB) maintains five teams in

8268-564: The seat of government moved to Cahaba in Dallas County . Cahaba , now a ghost town , was the first permanent state capital from 1820 to 1825. The Alabama Fever land rush was underway when the state was admitted to the Union, with settlers and land speculators pouring into the state to take advantage of fertile land suitable for cotton cultivation. Part of the frontier in the 1820s and 1830s, its constitution provided for universal suffrage for white men. Southeastern planters and traders from

8374-448: The sites for fortified triangular temples, where they practiced human sacrifice and other sacred rites. In Hinduism , the confluence of two sacred rivers often is a pilgrimage site for ritual bathing. In Pittsburgh, a number of adherents to Mayanism consider their city's confluence to be sacred. Mississippi basin Atlantic watersheds Pacific watersheds Occasionally, "confluence"

8480-608: The sleeves, collar and coattails. This led to them being greeted with "Yellowhammer", and the name later was applied to all Alabama troops in the Confederate Army. Alabama's slaves were freed by the 13th Amendment in 1865. Alabama was under military rule from the end of the war in May 1865 until its official restoration to the Union in 1868. From 1867 to 1874, with most white citizens barred temporarily from voting and freedmen enfranchised, many African Americans emerged as political leaders in

8586-414: The state developed a manufacturing and service base. Despite massive population changes in the state from 1901 to 1961, the rural-dominated legislature refused to reapportion House and Senate seats based on population, as required by the state constitution to follow the results of decennial censuses. They held on to old representation to maintain political and economic power in agricultural areas. One result

8692-452: The state in the twenty-first century. In 2004, Hurricane Ivan , a category 3 storm upon landfall, struck the state and caused over $ 18 billion of damage. It was among the most destructive storms to strike the state in its modern history. A super outbreak of 62 tornadoes hit the state in April 2011 and killed 238 people, devastating many communities. Alabama is the thirtieth-largest state in

8798-445: The state seceded from the United States to become part of the Confederate States of America , with Montgomery acting as its first capital, and rejoined the Union in 1868. Following the American Civil War , Alabama would suffer decades of economic hardship, in part due to agriculture and a few cash crops being the main driver of the state's economy. Similar to other former slave states, Alabamian legislators employed Jim Crow laws from

8904-455: The state through the civil rights movement, including legal challenges. In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Brown v. Board of Education that public schools had to be desegregated , but Alabama was slow to comply. During the 1960s, under Governor George Wallace , Alabama resisted compliance with federal demands for desegregation. The civil rights movement had notable events in Alabama, including

9010-608: The state within a few years of the passage of the Indian Removal Act by Congress in 1830. From 1826 to 1846, Tuscaloosa served as Alabama's capital. On January 30, 1846, the Alabama legislature announced it had voted to move the capital city from Tuscaloosa to Montgomery. The first legislative session in the new capital met in December 1847. A new capitol building was erected under the direction of Stephen Decatur Button of Philadelphia . The first structure burned down in 1849, but

9116-513: The state, particularly Huntsville, benefited from the opening of the George C. Marshall Space Flight Center in 1960, a major facility in the development of the Saturn rocket program and the space shuttle. Technology and manufacturing industries, such as automobile assembly, replaced some the state's older industries in the late twentieth century, but the state's economy and growth lagged behind other states in

9222-682: The state. Alabama was represented in Congress during this period by three African-American congressmen: Jeremiah Haralson , Benjamin S. Turner , and James T. Rapier . Following the war, the state remained chiefly agricultural, with an economy tied to cotton. During Reconstruction, state legislators ratified a new state constitution in 1868 which created the state's first public school system and expanded women's rights. Legislators funded numerous public road and railroad projects, although these were plagued with allegations of fraud and misappropriation . Organized insurgent , resistance groups tried to suppress

9328-475: The state. Several of the surviving school buildings in the state are now listed on the National Register of Historic Places . Continued racial discrimination and lynchings , agricultural depression, and the failure of the cotton crops due to boll weevil infestation led tens of thousands of African Americans from rural Alabama and other states to seek opportunities in northern and midwestern cities during

9434-613: The subsequent transport of metals downstream of the mixing zone." A natural phenomenon at confluences that is obvious even to casual observers is a difference in color between the two streams; see images in this article for several examples. According to Lynch, "the color of each river is determined by many things: type and amount of vegetation in the watershed, geological properties, dissolved chemicals, sediments and biologic content – usually algae ." Lynch also notes that color differences can persist for miles downstream before they finally blend completely. Hydrodynamic behaviour of flow in

9540-1006: The surge in tourism in Florida and along the Gulf Coast ; the numerous new automobile production plants such as Mercedes-Benz in Tuscaloosa ; Hyundai in Montgomery ; Toyota Motors in Blue Springs, Mississippi ; Kia in West Point, Georgia ; BMW production plant in Greer, South Carolina ; Volkswagen in Chattanooga ; GM manufacturing plant in Spring Hill, Tennessee ; with the Nissan North American headquarters in Franklin, Tennessee ; Mercedes-Benz USA ; and Porsche North American headquarters in

9646-655: The surrender of the Spanish garrison at Mobile to U.S. forces on April 13, 1813. Thomas Bassett, a loyalist to the British monarchy during the Revolutionary era, was one of the earliest white settlers in the state outside Mobile. He settled in the Tombigbee District during the early 1770s. The district's boundaries were roughly limited to the area within a few miles of the Tombigbee River and included portions of what

9752-401: The system to ensure the longevity and efficiency of the structure. Engineers have to design these systems whilst considering a list of factors that ensure the discharge point is structurally stable as the entrance of the lateral culvert into the main structure may compromise the stability of the structure due to the lack of support at the discharge, this often constitutes additional supports in

9858-406: The table without constituent areas. The predominant culture of the Southeast U.S. has its origins with the settlement of the region by European colonists and African slaves during the 17th to 19th centuries, as large groups of English , Scottish , Scotch-Irish , Germans , Spanish , French , and Acadians migrated to the region. Since the late 20th century, the " New South " has emerged as

9964-520: The term. The most populous states in the region as of the 2020 United States census are: Florida (21,538,187), followed by Georgia (10,711,908), and North Carolina (10,439,388). Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are located southeast of Florida, and are considered to be in the South / Southeastern U.S. by the FAA , Agricultural Research Service , and the U.S. National Park Service . These are

10070-999: The three legs of the American Triple Crown : the Kentucky Derby in Louisville , and the Preakness Stakes in Baltimore . The Derby is considered the western leg of the crown and the Preakness is traditionally considered the southern leg. The Atlantic Coast Conference is an NCAA Division I conference with many Southeastern college teams, including the: Clemson Tigers , Duke Blue Devils , Florida State Seminoles , Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets , Louisville Cardinals , Miami Hurricanes , North Carolina Tar Heels , NC State Wolfpack , Virginia Cavaliers , Virginia Tech Hokies , and Wake Forest Demon Deacons . The Southeastern Conference

10176-496: The tropical Atlantic Ocean and eastern Gulf of Mexico westward toward the southeast United States, creating the typical sultry tropical summers. Daytime highs are often in the upper 80s to lower 90s F. Rainfall is summer concentrated along the Gulf Coast and the South Atlantic coast from Norfolk, Virginia southward, reaching a sharp summer monsoon -like pattern over peninsular Florida, with dry winters and wet summers. Sunshine

10282-470: The upper reaches of the river. In the Alabama language , the word for a person of Alabama lineage is Albaamo (or variously Albaama or Albàamo in different dialects; the plural form is Albaamaha ). The word's spelling varies significantly among historical sources. The first usage appears in three accounts of the Hernando de Soto expedition of 1540: Garcilaso de la Vega used Alibamo , while

10388-483: The world. The National High Magnetic Field Laboratory in Tallahassee, Florida , is the largest laboratory in the world devoted to the study of magnetism. The University of South Carolina is currently constructing a research campus in downtown Columbia , and the university is the nation's only National Science Foundation -funded Industry/University Cooperative Research Center for Fuel Cells . The region includes

10494-511: Was a Confederate State that isn't defined as part of the southeast region. Missouri and Kentucky had dual competing Unionist and Confederate state governments in the Confederate government of Missouri and Confederate government of Kentucky , while Maryland and Delaware were neutral southern border states that remained with the Union . West Virginia split from Virginia during 1863, and also served as

10600-459: Was a Spanish territory beginning in the sixteenth century until the French acquired it in the early eighteenth century. The British won the territory in 1763 until losing it in the American Revolutionary War . Spain held Mobile as part of Spanish West Florida until 1813. In December 1819, Alabama was recognized as a state. During the antebellum period, Alabama was a major producer of cotton , and widely used African American slave labor . In 1861,

10706-577: Was blasted into the bedrock, with the area labeled the Wetumpka crater or astrobleme ("star-wound") because of the concentric rings of fractures and zones of shattered rock that can be found beneath the surface. In 2002, Christian Koeberl with the Institute of Geochemistry University of Vienna published evidence and established the site as the 157th recognized impact crater on Earth. Southeastern United States The Southeastern United States , also known as

10812-526: Was first tested in Conecuh County. Together use of these systems has increased the number of African Americans and women being elected to local offices, resulting in governments that are more representative of their citizens. Beginning in the 1960s, the state's economy shifted away from its traditional lumber, steel, and textile industries because of increased foreign competition. Steel jobs, for instance, declined from 46,314 in 1950 to 14,185 in 2011. However,

10918-501: Was moved to the current site of Mobile in 1711. This area was claimed by the French from 1702 to 1763 as part of La Louisiane . After the French lost to the British in the Seven Years' War , it became part of British West Florida from 1763 to 1783. After the U.S. victory in the American Revolutionary War , the territory was divided between the United States and Spain. The latter retained control of this western territory from 1783 until

11024-493: Was rebuilt on the same site in 1851. This second capitol building in Montgomery remains to the present day. It was designed by Barachias Holt of Exeter, Maine . By 1860, the population had increased to 964,201 people, of which nearly half, 435,080, were enslaved African Americans, and 2,690 were free people of color . On January 11, 1861, Alabama declared its secession from the Union . After remaining an independent republic for

11130-413: Was that Jefferson County , containing Birmingham's industrial and economic powerhouse, contributed more than one-third of all tax revenue to the state, but did not receive a proportional amount in services. Urban interests were consistently underrepresented in the legislature. A 1960 study noted that because of rural domination, "a minority of about 25% of the total state population is in majority control of

11236-526: Was the center of the culture. Analysis of artifacts from archaeological excavations at Moundville were the basis of scholars' formulating the characteristics of the Southeastern Ceremonial Complex (SECC). Contrary to popular belief, the SECC appears to have no direct links to Mesoamerican culture but developed independently. The Ceremonial Complex represents a major component of the religion of

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