Fifty Stars of the Western Union E-Book

Ellias Aghili Dehnavi

• Herausgeber: tredition
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 47

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2022

Beschreibung

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, on the Gulf Coast. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia, and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With more than 21 million inhabitants in 2019, it is the third most populous state in the country after California and Texas. With an area of 170,451 km2, Florida ranks 22nd among the federated states. Its political capital is Tallahassee, but the most populous metropolitan area is Miami, which has a population of over 6.1 million (estimated in 2017).

Leseprobe

Fifty Stars of the Western Union

Fifty Stars of the Western Union

The Sunshine State

Ellias Aghili Dehnavi, Sepideh Hekmat Shoar

© 2022 Ellias Aghili Dehnavi, Sepideh Hekmat Shoar

Illustrated by: Mahdi Amini (messengersofpeace.net)

Typesetting by tredition, created with the tredition Text Designer

ISBN Softcover: 978-3-347-71522-6

ISBN Hardback: 978-3-347-71529-5

ISBN E-Book: 978-3-347-71535-6

ISBN Large print: 978-3-347-71538-7

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Fifty Stars of the Western Union

The Sunshine State

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, on the Gulf Coast. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia, and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With more than 21 million inhabitants in 2019, it is the third most populous state in the country after California and Texas. With an area of 170,451 km2, Florida ranks 22nd among the federated states. Its political capital is Tallahassee, but the most populous metropolitan area is Miami, which has a population of over 6.1 million (estimated in 2017).

Florida is made up of a peninsula about 630 km long to the east and a narrow coastal strip about 330 km long to the west in the shape of a panhandle. Its geography is marked by an extensive coastline, the omnipresence of water, and the threat of hurricanes. The relief is characterized by low altitudes – the highest point reaching only 105 meters above sea level – and sedimentary terrain, the climate varying from subtropical in the north to tropical in the south. Its iconic animals, like the manatee and the alligator, can be spotted in the Everglades, one of the world's best-known national parks.

Since its discovery, in 1513, by Juan Ponce de León, a Spanish explorer, and conquistador, Florida has been a challenge for the European colonial powers before integrating the United States in 1845. Florida was the theater of the Seminole Wars, against the Native Americans, then of racial segregation, after the Civil War; it is distinguished by its large Cuban community and strong population growth raising environmental issues. Its economy is based mainly on tourism, agriculture, and transport, which developed at the end of the 19th century. It is known for its amusement parks, the production of oranges, and the Kennedy Space Center.

Floridian culture reflects multiple influences and heritages, Native American, African-American, Euro-American, and Hispanic, heritages that can be found in its architecture and gastronomy. Florida attracts many writers such as Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Ernest Hemingway, and Tennessee Williams and continues to attract stars and athletes. It is internationally renowned for tennis, golf, motor racing, and water sports.

Florida owes its name to the conquistador Juan Ponce de León, who discovered the region at the time of Palm Sunday, in April 1513. This holiday is then known in France under the name "Flowered Easter" and in Spain as Pascua Florida.

History of Floridas

Florida's earliest history dates back more than 12,000 years when the first Native Americans populated the area. It was discovered by the Spaniard Juan Ponce de León in 1513 and baptized. A challenge for the colonial powers, it successively passed under the sovereignty of Spain and Great Britain. It became a territory (1822) and then an American state (1845).

Florida in Prehistory

The Paleoamericans (Paleo-Indians) entered the current territory of Florida at least 12,000 years ago1,2,3, probably arriving from Asia, after crossing North America. Due to the large volume of water trapped in the ice during the Wisconsin glaciation, the sea level was then a hundred meters lower than today. As a result, the Florida peninsula was twice as large as it is today. Its climate was also drier and cooler, its natural environments were very different: there were few rivers and swamps, and the environment was semiarid. Now extinct megafauna populated the region: saber-toothed tigers, giant armadillos, camels, etc. Given the lack of drinking water, Native Americans lived near sinkholes and limestone basins. For example, the prehistoric site of Page-Ladson revealed to archaeologists Native American objects, including points from the Clovis culture.

The glaciers began to retreat around 8000 BC. under the effect of global warming which caused a rise in the average level of the seas. Florida's climate became warmer and wetter. These changes caused the emergence of new Native American cultures: this period, described as "archaic" by specialists, is characterized by gathering and fishing. One of the main archaeological sites is Windover Pond. The first communities settled near the coasts from 5000 BC. Around 3000 BC, at the end of the archaic period, the current environment of Florida was set up. The Native Americans were at the origin of the sambaquis, that is to say deposits of shells that undergo chemical fossilization by the rain. They built mounds like those of Horr's Island or Crystal River. Fired pottery made its appearance around 2000 BC. Archaic culture diversified around 500 BC. and gave birth to regional cultures. The peoples present in present-day northwest Florida were influenced by the Mississippi civilization, while those who lived to the south and east retained characteristics inherited from the Archaic period. Corn cultivation spread north of a line from Daytona Beach to Tampa Bay. It arrived in the south of the peninsula around the 5th