North American Regions: The Central Lowlands (1967)

[Music] the people of the central lowlands produce more automobiles and more farm machinery than people in any comparable region of north america they are leaders in producing steel industrial machinery and electrical equipment equal to their tremendous industrial productivity is their agricultural productivity in no other region of comparable size do the people grow more corn and oats they also raise tons of fruits vegetables and soybeans their dairy cattle are among the most productive in the world it has been said of this heartland region of the continent the central lowlands that it could exist as an independent nation why let's consider three reasons an industrial and agricultural balance a high degree of specialization in industry and agriculture and a third favorable physical geography favorable physical geography begins with the region's interior position on the continent this helps produce a climate in which summers are hot and winter is not too severe there are many sunny days most precipitation comes in the spring and summer occasionally heavy spring rains and melting snows cause destructive floods floods are possibly the only serious drawback to the favorable physical geography of the region the land which is flat to gently rolling and extremely fertile provides excellent conditions for agriculture while corn is grown in nearly all parts of the central lowlands other crops are grown extensively in certain specialization areas so along with corn we'll find wheat farms dairy farms northern specialty mainly fruit orchards and southern specialty mainly tobacco farms but in the corn belt corn is the specialized crop the size of the average corn belt farm is more than 200 acres and the trend is toward even larger farms which make for greater efficiency efficiency concerns most farmers who are as much businessmen as they are food raisers working land on which almost any crop will grow they tend to plant those crops which will return the largest profit this is why they plant about half their acreage to corn corn is ideally suited to the soil and climate today's central lowlands farmer grows more than two and a half times as much corn as his father did machines are an essential part of his business he must know how to operate and maintain machines from fertilizer spreaders to harvesters machines also have contributed to the increasing yields of other corn belt crops mainly soybeans wheat hay oats and clover acreage given over to supplementary crops varies with the particular system of crop rotation a farmer's choice of supplementary crops is also influenced by another factor the price his crops will bring when marketed both corn and supplementary crops can be converted into cash in the grain market so the farmer businessman continually studies market prices to determine crops which will bring the best price in the future other financial page items livestock prices are also closely followed by farmers because the raising and feeding of beef cattle is another area of corn belt specialization the superior quality of central lowlands beef results from corn feeding automation of the feeding process has made it efficient and economical to fatten cattle imported from the great plains as well as those raised on local farms corn is also fed to hogs the high value of corn then stems from the fact that it can be efficiently and economically converted into meat an agricultural commodity in constant demand this specialized activity includes the raising of poultry in quality though less diversified than corn belt farms rain farms in other belts are very productive mechanized and specialized these farmers tend to specialize in grains sold for seed and feed specialty belt farmers to the south grow tobacco while those around the great lakes specialize in fruits and truck crops and farmers in the dairy belt specialize in growing forage crops for dairy cattle so favorable physical geography and specialization underlie the agricultural productivity of the central lowlands agricultural production helps support the region's many cities the industry and commerce of the urban centers are basic to the industrial and agricultural balance of the central lowlands favorable physical geography has played a vital role in the flourishing industrial economy take the major waterways of the region for example industry thrives where there is efficient and economical water transport among the water routes of the central lowlands that have stimulated trade and industry is the broad navigable mississippi river which links the central lowlands with the gulf coastal region to the south and east the missouri river ties the central lowlands to the great plains to the north and west the great lakes are water highways to the markets of the northeastern states and canada the central lowlands are open to european markets through the st lawrence seaway which joins the great lakes with the atlantic ocean railroads are another leading means of industrial transport favorable physical geography in the form of flat terrain has contributed to the fine rail system in the central lowlands flat terrain has also made it relatively economical to build excellent road systems extensive road rail and water transport for industry and trade is founded on favorable physical geography favorable geography in relation to industry is seen also in the mining activities in the central lowlands the region has great seams of high-grade coal and limestone these raw materials combined with taconite a low-grade ore from which iron is refined are the essential ingredients of steel materials and facilities for producing steel are essential to any modern industrial economy modernization and automation of facilities have helped to maintain the consistently high output of steel steel is basic to the industrial and agricultural balance of the region though steel is produced in many of the larger cities there is a great deal of specialization in using steel in detroit for example steel is used almost exclusively in the manufacture of automobiles and other motorized vehicles more than 150 kinds of steel are supplied for use in the automobile plants of detroit in addition to steel modern automobile manufacture requires electrical devices glass rubber paint and fabrics these are mainly supplied from specialized factories in communities in and around detroit the economy of the neighboring canadian city of windsor across the detroit river is also centered around automobile manufacturing toronto is one of the several canadian industrial cities along the shores of the great lakes and the st lawrence river access to navigable waterways has helped these cities develop as centers of processing industries timber for wood pulp and paper ores for steel and other metals and farm produce pass through central lowland cities of canada for processing back across the border chicago is also a major processing center and rail center but its own particular industrial specialization is based on steel steel which is shaped to form the giant machines that make other machines chicago and industrial cities nearby are the leading machine makers for both the factories and farms of the nation thanks to their abundant steel central location and skilled labor force st louis illustrates another form of industrial specialization served by the wide mississippi river st louis is a chief rail center of the western central lowlands and a distributing and processing city consumer goods from st louis factories are marketed over a wide area in the midwest and south farther north along the mississippi are the twin cities of minneapolis-st paul historically industrial specialization here is based on agriculture stored in the huge elevators are the vast amounts of grain from the wheat belts of the central lowlands and the neighboring great plains cereals and flour for human consumption and feeds for livestock are processed in the mills of minneapolis-st paul and transported to all parts of the country by rail railroads and highways also join farms of the corn belt with the meat packing centers cities like omaha and kansas city are market centers for the fattened cattle and hogs of the corn belt here meat packing has developed as a specialized industry in several of the cities of the dairy belt the processing of dairy foods is the specialized industry the economics of the urban communities then from the small cities in the dairy belt to the large metropolises along the great lakes contribute to the industrial and agricultural balance of the central lowlands we've seen that this economic balance is one of the characteristics of this region the balance begins with favorable physical geography a generally flat terrain fertile soil and invigorating climate from this has come specialized crops and livestock there is further economic balance as agricultural products are sent to the cities of the region for processing meat packing is only one form of specialized industry in the central lowlands there is a wide range of specialized industry and manufactured products this too is made possible through a skilled highly trained labor force adequate natural resources and superb water and rail facilities by combining favorable physical geography with agricultural and industrial balance and specialization in agriculture and industry man has developed the central lowlands into a rich region with a thriving economy you