The United States of America, One State a Day

[Somnifor]

I am really enjoying this thread.

[brothejr]

We’ll head next to: North Carolina


North Carolina (IPA: /ˌnɔrθˌkɛrəˈlaɪnə/) is a state located on the Atlantic Seaboard in the southern region of the United States of America. The capital is Raleigh.

North Carolina was one of the original Thirteen Colonies, originally known as Carolina, and the home of the first English colony in the Americas. On 20 May 1861, it became one of the last Confederate states to secede from the Union, and was readmitted on 4 July 1868. It was also the location of the first successful manned powered heavier-than-air flight, by the Wright brothers, at Kill Devil Hills near Kitty Hawk in 1903. Today, it is a fast-growing state with an increasingly diverse economy and population. As of 1 July 2007, the population estimate is 9,061,032 (a 12% increase since 1 April 2000).

North Carolina has a wide range of elevations, from sea level on the coast to almost 6,700 feet (2,042 m) in the mountains. The climate in the coastal and Piedmont regions of eastern and central North Carolina is similar to other southern states such as Georgia and South Carolina, while the climate in the western mountains is closer to that found in New England or the upper Midwest. While the coastal plains, especially the tidewater areas, are strongly influenced by the Atlantic Ocean, the western, mountainous part of the state is more than 300 miles (500 km) from the coast, resulting in considerably less maritime influence. As such, the climate of the state ranges from a warm, humid subtropical climate near the coast to a humid continental climate in the mountains. Most of the state falls in the humid subtropical zone.

Heck-Andrews House
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By Fallingstar

The Heck-Andrews House was finished in 1870 and was one of the first houses in Raleigh, North Carolina to be constructed after the American Civil War. The architectural design is of French influence and is called Second Empire that became popular after 1865. It is located on 309 North Blount Street. It was created by G.S.H. Appleget for Mrs. Mattie Heck, the wife of Colonel Jonathan McGee Heck. It is on the National Register of Raleigh Historic Property. The house has a dramatic central tower capped with a convex mansard roof with a balustrade. The central part of the house is enclosed with a concave mansard roof with patterned slate.

Cape Hatteras Light House
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By joey_foto

Cape Hatteras is a cape on the coast of North Carolina. It is the point that protrudes the furthest to the southeast along the northeast-to-southwest line of the Atlantic coast of North America, making it a key point for navigation along the eastern seaboard. So many ships have been lost around it that the area is known as the "Graveyard of the Atlantic". The nearby shoals are known as Diamond Shoals.

The cape is actually a bend in Hatteras Island, one of the long thin barrier islands that make up the Outer Banks. The first lighthouse at the cape was built in 1803; it was replaced by the current Cape Hatteras Lighthouse in 1870, which at 193 ft is the tallest brick lighthouse in the United States.

In 1999, as the receding shoreline had come dangerously close to Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, the lighthouse was lifted and moved inland over a distance of 2900 feet. Its distance from the seashore is now 1500 feet, about the same as when it was originally built. Most of the 1400 ft of beach lost since the relocation of the lighthouse was due to Hurricane Isabel in 2003.

Oceanographically, it is of interest because it is a point of confluence for two opposing currents: the warm Gulf Stream moving north, and a cold Virginian current moving south. Somewhat analogous to Point Conception in Southern California, this on-the-edge placement leads to unusually diverse biological assemblages. Many species' ranges have either a southern or northern terminus at the cape.

Cape Hatteras is also infamous for being frequently struck by hurricanes that move up the East Coast of the United States. The strike of Hurricane Isabel in 2003 was particularly devastating for the area. Isabel devastated the entire Outer Banks and also split the two small towns of Frisco and Hatteras in half. NC 12, which provides a direct route from Nags Head to Hatteras Island, was broken in half by the hurricane. This nearly demolished the small villages of Cape Hatteras. Students had to use a ferry to get to school for almost a year. Reconstruction of the area began in 2005.

The Lost Colony
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By Aim and shoot!

The Roanoke Colony on Roanoke Island in Dare County in present-day North Carolina was an enterprise financed and organized by Sir Walter Raleigh in the late 16th century to establish a permanent English settlement in the Virginia Colony. Between 1585 and 1587, groups of colonists were left to make the attempt, all of which either abandoned the colony or disappeared. The final group disappeared after a period of three years elapsed without supplies from England, leading to the continuing mystery known as "The Lost Colony." The principal hypothesis is that the colonists disappeared and were absorbed by one of the local indigenous populations, although the colonists may possibly have been massacred by the Spanish. Other possibilities include a massacre by some of the hostile local tribes.

Bellamy Mansion
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By photos-by-sherm
Wilmington is a city in New Hanover County, North Carolina. It was named in honor of Spencer Compton, the Earl of Wilmington, who was Prime Minister under George II and was settled on the Cape Fear River. Wilmington offers its historic downtown as a main tourist attraction and business center and is minutes away from nearby beaches. City residents have the advantage of living nestled between a river and the ocean.

Wright Memorial
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By Wright Memorial

The Wright brothers, Orville (August 19, 1871 – January 30, 1948) and Wilbur (April 16, 1867 – May 30, 1912), were two Americans who invented and built the world's first successful airplane, made the first controlled, powered and sustained heavier-than-air human flight on December 17, 1903. In the two years afterward, the brothers developed their flying machine into the first practical fixed-wing aircraft. Although not the first to build and fly experimental aircraft, the Wright brothers were the first to invent aircraft controls that made mechanical fixed wing flight possible.

[Bahnsteig4]

What a thread!!!

[Raleigh-NC]

It is funny to think that I was working across the Heck-Andrews House 2 years ago Now, I work 2-3 blocks from there. That house is simply marvelous, although the interior is not preserved well. This building will be part of the Blount Street Commons project and will be sold to a private entity for restoration. I wish I had the money to buy it and restore it to its old glory, myself.

Thanks for putting this section together.

[GvilleSC]

Beautiful shots of NC

[brothejr]

Today we are going to see: South Carolina


South Carolina (IPA: /ˌsɑʊθˌkɛrəˈlaɪnə/) is a state in the southern region of the United States of America. Originally known as Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence from the British Crown during the American Revolution. It was the first state to secede from the Union and was part of the Confederate States of America. The state is named after King Charles II of England, as Carolus is Latin for Charles.

Charleston
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By Oquendo

Charleston is a city in the county of Charleston with some incorporated areas located within the boundaries of Berkeley County and Dorchester County in the U.S. state of South Carolina; the city serves as the county seat and largest city of Charleston County. The city proper consists of six distinct areas: the Peninsula/Downtown, West Ashley, Johns Island, James Island, Daniel Island, and the Cainhoy Peninsula. The city was founded as Charlestown or Charles Towne, Carolina in 1670, and moved to its present location in 1680; it adopted its present name in 1783.

Charleston is also known for the part it played in the opening part of the American Civil War. On April 12, 1861, shore batteries under the command of General Pierre G. T. Beauregard opened fire on the Union-held Fort Sumter in the harbor. After a 34-hour bombardment, Major Robert Anderson surrendered the fort. Later on the federal troops bombarded the city until it’s fall in 1865.

Hilton Head
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By MattSal

Hilton Head Island or Hilton Head is a town (located on an island of the same name) in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. It is 20 miles (32 km) north of Savannah, Georgia, and 95 miles (153 km) south of Charleston, South Carolina. The island features 12 miles (19 km) of beachfront on the Atlantic Ocean and is a popular vacation destination.

The island has a rich history that started with seasonal occupation by native Americans thousands of years ago, and continued with European exploration and the Sea Island Cotton trade. It became an important base of operations for the Union blockade of the Southern ports during the Civil War. Once the island fell to Union troops, hundreds of ex-slaves flocked to Hilton Head, which is still home to many 'native islanders', many of whom are descendants of freed slaves known as the Gullah (or Geechee) who have managed to hold onto much of their ethnic and cultural identity.

Middleton Place Plantation House
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By jefg99

Middleton Place (65 acres) is a historic plantation with gardens located along the Ashley River at 4300 Ashley River Road, Charleston, South Carolina. It is open daily; an admission fee is charged.

The plantation was established in 1741 by Henry Middleton, President of the First Continental Congress, and was home to generations of the family including Henry's son, Arthur Middleton, a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence; Arthur Middleton's son, Henry Middleton, Governor of South Carolina and U.S. Minister to Russia; and his son in turn, Williams Middleton, who signed the Ordinance of Secession.

New records show that Middleton Place imported water buffalo from Constantinople in the late 1700's. These records show that these water buffalo were the first in the United States.

In 1865, near the end of the Civil War, the plantation was burned and looted by Union troops in retaliation for the owner's signing of the Ordinance of Secession. The soldiers killed and ate five of the water buffalo and stole six. These six later showed up in Central Park Zoo. Only the south building survived (built 1755), which is now the Middleton Place House Museum. Its gardens were further damaged by the great Charleston earthquake of 1886, and lay neglected until inherited by J. J. Pringle Smith in 1916, who then began their restoration. In 1941, on the garden's bicentennial, the Garden Club of America presented it with the Bulkley Medal "in commemoration of Two Hundred Years of enduring Beauty." In 1974 Smith's heirs donated the plantation to the non-profit Middleton Place Foundation.

Today the plantation's house museum contains a collection of Middleton family furniture, paintings, books, and documents dating from the 1740s through the 1880s. The formal gardens consist of symmetric landscaped terraces, allées, ponds, and garden rooms. The International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) has named them one of six American gardens of international importance.

In the Mel Gibson movie The Patriot, General Cornwallis is shown having a banquet at Middleton Place.

Cooper Library, Clemson University
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By gotigersjf

Thomas Green Clemson, the University's founder, came to the Foothills of South Carolina in 1838, when he married Anna Maria Calhoun, daughter of South Carolina statesman, John C. Calhoun. When Thomas Clemson died on April 6, 1888, he left most of his estate in his will to be used to establish a college that would teach scientific agriculture and the mechanical arts to South Carolinians. Clemson's decision was largely influenced by Benjamin Tillman. Clemson University founder Thomas Green Clemson directed in his will in 1888 that the University be modeled after Mississippi A&M. Tillman strongly lobbied the state legislature to create Clemson as an agricultural institution for the state and in the end, the resolution to accept Clemson's gift and create the institution passed by only one vote.

In November 1889, Governor Richardson signed the bill, thus establishing the Clemson Agricultural College. As a result, federal funds for agricultural education were transferred from South Carolina College to Clemson. See Hatch Act of 1887 and Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act.

Clemson Agricultural College formally opened in July 1893 with an initial enrollment of 446. From its beginning, the college was an all-white male military school. Clemson remained this way until 1955 when it changed to "civilian" status for students and became a coeducational institution. In 1963, Clemson admitted its first African-American student, Harvey Gantt. In 1964, the college was renamed Clemson University as the state legislature formally recognized the school's expanded academic offerings and research pursuits.

Liberty Bridge
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By mbsurf

Greenville's downtown is split by a wooded valley park containing the falls of the Reedy River. The Liberty Bridge is located just downstream from this group of waterfalls, replacing a 6-lane highway bridge that was demolished to improve the visibility and accessibility to the falls and adjacent park. The bridge has a curved clear span over the river that curves away from the falls, providing visitors with an aerial amphitheater from which to view the cascading water. The link gently slopes into the ravine and is supported by twin inclined towers and a single suspension cable with thin cable suspenders only on the side away from the falls, allowing for unobstructed views. The bridge, with a total length of approximately 380' and a clear span of 200', appears to float over the landscape. The twin towers and suspension cable are visible from vantage points around the city, calling attention and drawing visitors to the public park, falls and river.

[Patachou]

Beautiful pictures
Thank you

[GvilleSC]

Looks like home to me

[brothejr]

Today we will be seeing: Georgia


Georgia (IPA: /ˈdʒɔɹdʒə/) is a state in the Southeastern United States and was one of the original Thirteen Colonies that revolted against British rule in the American Revolution. It was the last of the Thirteen Colonies to be established as a colony, in 1733. It was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788. It seceded from the Union on January 21, 1861 and was one of the original seven Confederate states. It was the last state readmitted to the Union, on July 15, 1870. Georgia is also known as the Peach State and the Empire State of the South. Atlanta is the largest city (by population), and the capital.


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By Dizzy Girl

Savannah is a city located in the state of Georgia, United States. It is the largest city in and county seat of Chatham County. Savannah was established in 1733 and was the first colonial and state capital of Georgia. It is known as America's first planned city and attracts millions of visitors, who enjoy the city's architecture and historic buildings: the birthplace of Juliette Gordon Low (founder of the Girl Scouts of the United States of America), the Telfair Academy of Arts and Sciences (one of the South's first public museums), the First African Baptist Church (one of the oldest African American Baptist congregations in the United States), Temple Mickve Israel (the third-oldest synagogue in America), and the Central of Georgia Railway roundhouse complex (the oldest standing antebellum rail facility in America). Today, Savannah's downtown area is one of the largest National Historic Landmark Districts in the United States (designated by the U.S. government in 1966).

Atlanta At Night
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By aldo_castellano

Atlanta (pronounced /ætˈlæntə/) is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia, and the core city of the ninth most populous metropolitan area in the United States. It is the county seat of Fulton County, although portions of the city extend into DeKalb County.

Atlanta has in recent years undergone a transition from a city of regional commerce to a city of international influence. Atlanta is often considered a poster child for cities worldwide experiencing rapid growth and urban sprawl.

During the Civil Rights Movement, Atlanta claimed to stand apart from southern cities that supported segregation, touting itself as "The City Too Busy to Hate." That characterization was sharply disputed by many Atlanta blacks, particularly student activists at Atlanta's black colleges and universities who from 1960 to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 waged a determined effort to desegregate public facilities through nonviolent direct action such as sit-ins and marches. Eventually, the city's progressive civil rights record and existing population of blacks made it increasingly popular as a relocation destination for black Americans. Blacks soon became the dominant social and political force in the city, though today some measure of demographic diversification has taken place. Along with St. Louis and Los Angeles, Atlanta is one of three cities in the United States to have hosted the Summer Olympic Games.

Okefenokee Swamp
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By Coastlander

The Okefenokee Swamp is a shallow, 438,000 acre (1,770 km²), peat-filled wetland straddling the Georgia-Florida border in the United States. A majority of the swamp is protected by the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and the Okefenokee Wilderness. The Okefenokee Swamp is considered to be one of the Seven Natural Wonders of Georgia.

The name comes from the Hitchiti okifanô:ki, meaning "bubbling water", or alternatively "trembling earth", a reference to its spongy bogs. The swamp was formed over the past 6,500 years by the accumulation of peat in a shallow basin on the edge of an ancient Atlantic coastal terrace, the geological relic of a Pleistocene estuary. The swamp is bordered by Trail Ridge, a strip of elevated land believed to have formed as coastal dunes or an offshore barrier island. The St. Marys River and the Suwannee River both originate in the swamp. The Suwannee River originates as stream channels in the heart of Okefenokee Swamp and drains at least 90% of the swamp's watershed southwest towards the Gulf of Mexico. The St. Marys River, which drains only 5 - 10% of the swamp's southeastern corner, flows south along the western side of Trail Ridge, through the ridge at St. Marys River Shoals, and north again along the eastern side of Trail Ridge before turning east to the Atlantic. The Suwanee Canal was dug across the swamp in the late nineteenth century in a failed attempt to drain the Okefenokee. After the company's bankruptcy, most of the swamp was purchased by the Hebard family of Philadelphia, who conducted extensive cypress logging operations from 1909 to 1927. Several other logging companies also ran train tracks into the swamp until 1942, remnants of which can still be seen crossing swamp waterways. On the west side of the swamp, at Billy's Island, logging equipment and other artifacts remain of a 1920's logging town of 600 residents. Most of the Okefenokee Swamp is included in the 403,000 acre (1630 km²) Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.

Pebble Hill Plantation
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By Carla Finley

Thomas Jefferson Johnson; author of the bill creating Thomas County, and founder of Thomasville; built the first house on Pebble Hill about 1827. Julia Ann, his daughter, married a local planter named John W.H. Mitchell and inherited the plantation after her parents died. The Mitchells expanded the cotton planting operations, and in 1850, replaced the original structure with a house designed by gifted young English architect John Wind.

Following the Civil War, Mitchell died and the strong-willed Julia Ann maintained the plantation. After her death, Pebble Hill was sold in 1896 to Howard Melville Hanna, an industrialist of Cleveland, Ohio, who was attracted by the winter climate and quail shooting. Later Hanna gave the property to his daughter, Kate. She married Robert Livingston Ireland and turned Pebble Hill into a showplace. Kate and her second husband, Perry Williams Harvey, continued to make improvements. Abram Garfield, architect and son of President James A. Garfield, built gatehouses, a country store, and a Jersey barn. By the 1920´s Pebble Hill stood a glorious testimony to the sporting life.

An accidental fire in the winter of 1934 consumed all but the east wing, although the furnishings were saved. The undamaged section was incorporated in to the present house which Garfield completed in 1936. When Kate died, her property was divided between her children, Robert Livingston Ireland Jr., and Elisabeth Ireland, or Pansy as she was always known. Miss Pansy inherited Pebble Hill.

Like her mother, Pansy was generous and hospitable. She preserved the Plantation, and it became famous as a haven for guests and friends. House guests included many distinguished artists such as sports painters Ogden Pleissner and Richard Bishop; Gina Bachauer, international concert pianist; presidents Dwight Eisenhower and Jimmy Carter; ambassadors, and the Duke and Duchess of Windsor; 1930´s writer, actress and dramatist, Cornelia Otis Skinner.

Heavenly Georgia
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By yankeepez

Looking down on Mountain City Georgia from Black Rock Mountain State Park

[brothejr]

Oh yea before I forget, here is the next weeks states in order that they will come:

Monday - Florida
Tuesday - Alabama
Wednesday - Mississippi
Thursday - Louisiana
Friday - Arkansas
Saturday - Tennessee
Sunday - Kentucky

[0591]

Great thread, looking forward to see the other states.

[MDguy]

Wow! this thread is STUN-ING! Wow! i had no idea there was this! And for MD you should have included Frederick cus no one even thinks of it! And For DC mabey stuff away from the the mall! but i wont be picky! i really appreciate your work!

[brothejr]

Florida


Florida (IPA: /ˈflɒrɪdə/) is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. Most of the state is a large peninsula with the Gulf of Mexico on its west and the Atlantic Ocean on its east. Much of the state has a humid subtropical climate; southern Florida has a tropical climate. Florida was named by Juan Ponce de León, who landed on the peninsula on 2 April 1513, during Pascua Florida (Spanish for "Flowery Easter," referring to the Easter season). Florida is the fourth most populous state in the country.

Hemingway House, Key West
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By bobindrums

It was in this house that he did some of his best work, including the final draft to "A Farewell to Arms," and the short story classics "The Snows of Kilimanjaro" and "The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber."

The house stands at an elevation of 16 feet above sea level, but is still the second-highest site on the island. It was originally built by Asa Tift, a marine architect and salvage wrecker, in 1851 in colonial southern mansion style, out of limestone quarried from the site. As testament to its construction and location, it survived many hurricanes, and the deep basement remained, and remains, dry. The house was one of the first on the island to be fitted with indoor plumbing, and the first on the island to have an upstairs bathroom with running water, fed from a roof rain cistern. Also notable are a built-in fireplace, and the first swimming pool in Key West, and the only pool within 100 miles in the late 30's. Hemingway's second wife, Pauline, spent $20,000 to have the deep well-fed pool built for her husband while he was away as a Spanish Civil War correspondent in 1938. When Hemingway returned, he was reportedly unpleasantly surprised by the cost, and exclaimed: "Well, you might as well have my last cent." This penny is embedded in concrete today near the pool. In the "Tropic" article, Patrick Hemingway referred to this story, and others told by uncertified guides at the house, as "apocryphal".

In 1935, when the visitor bureau included the house in a tourist brochure, Hemingway hired his friend, driver, and handyman Toby Bruce to build the high brick wall that surrounds it today.

Another of Hemingway's loves was boxing. He set up a ring in his yard and paid local fighters to box with him as well as refereeing matches at Blue Heaven, then a saloon but now a restaurant, at 729 Thomas Street.

The grounds of the house are maintained as a garden, with many tropical plants installed after Hemingway moved to Cuba. In Hemingway's time, the grounds, like the island, were sparse and dry due to lack of water that only came later, with the Navy's installation of a water line from mainland.

The house was originally purchased by Hemingway for $8,000. It was sold after his death, empty, and without furniture or books. Although tour guides claim that certain items belonged to Hemingway, none of the furniture, books, or other items in the house, except for one chandelier, can be documented as having been owned by the author. His writer's studio, where he stayed briefly when visiting from his home in Cuba, once was connected by a second story walkway to the master bedroom.

Inter-coastal Waterway
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By asterion1

The Intracoastal Waterway is a 4,800-km (3,000-mile) recreational and commercial waterway along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States. Some lengths consist of natural inlets, salt-water rivers, bays, and sounds; others are man-made canals.

The waterway runs the length of the Eastern Seaboard (Maine to Miami, Florida), from its unofficial northern terminus at the Manasquan River in New Jersey, where it connects with the Atlantic Ocean at the Manasquan Inlet, to Brownsville, Texas. The waterway is toll-free, but commercial users pay a fuel tax that is used to maintain and improve it. The ICW is a significant portion of the Great loop, a circumnavigation route encircling the Eastern half of the North American continent.

The creation of the Intracoastal Waterway was authorized by the United States Congress in 1919. It is maintained by the United States Army Corps of Engineers. Federal law provides for the waterway to be maintained at a minimum depth of 12 ft (4 m) for most of its length, but inadequate funding has prevented that. Consequently, shoaling or shallow water are problems along several sections of the waterway; some parts have 7-ft (2.1-m) and 9-ft (2.7-m) minimum depths. The waterway consists of two non-contiguous segments: the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, extending from Brownsville, Texas to Carrabelle, Florida, and the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, extending from Key West, Florida to Boston, Massachusetts. The two segments were originally intended to be connected via the Cross Florida Barge Canal across northern Florida, but this was never completed due to environmental concerns.

The Intracoastal Waterway has a good deal of commercial activity; barges haul petroleum, petroleum products, foodstuffs, building materials, and manufactured goods. It is also used extensively by recreational boaters. On the east coast, some of the traffic in fall and spring is by snowbirds who regularly move south in winter and north in summer. The waterway is also used when the ocean is too rough to travel on.

Ft. Lauderdale
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By donelsoncampbell

Fort Lauderdale, known as the "Venice of America" due to its expansive and intricate canal system, is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. It is the county seat of Broward County, and a principal city of the South Florida metropolitan area.

The city is a popular tourist destination. The city is a major yachting center, with 42,000 resident yachts and 100 marinas and boatyards. Fort Lauderdale and its suburbs host over 4100 restaurants and 120 nightclubs.

Fort Lauderdale is named after a series of forts built by the United States during the Second Seminole War. However, development of the city did not begin until 50 years after the forts were abandoned at the end of the conflict. Three forts named "Fort Lauderdale" were constructed; the first was at the fork of the New River, the second at Tarpon Bend, in what is now known as the Sailboat Bend neighborhood, and the third near the site of the Bahia Mar Marina. The forts took their name from Major William Lauderdale, who was the commander of the detachment of soldiers who built the first fort.

Everglades
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By [/b]minds-eye[/b]

The Florida Everglades are subtropical marshland located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, specifically in parts of Monroe, Collier, Palm Beach, Miami-Dade, and Broward counties.

Though modified by agricultural development in central and southern Florida, the Everglades is the southern half of a large watershed arising in the vicinity of Orlando known as the Kissimmee River system. The Kissimmee flows from Taylor Creek, Nubbin Slough, and Fisheating Creek, and discharges into Lake Okeechobee, a very large (730 mi² or 1,890 km²), shallow (10 ft or 3 m) fresh water lake. Water leaving Lake Okeechobee in the wet season forms the Everglades, a shallow, slow-moving flood at one time 40 miles (60 km) wide and over 100 miles (160 km) long moving southward across a nearly flat limestone shelf to Florida Bay at the southern end of the state. The Everglades extends from Lake Okeechobee on the north to Florida Bay on the south and was once bordered by Big Cypress Swamp on the west and the Atlantic Coastal Ridge on the east. It has been called River of Grass (Douglas, 1947) because of the slow flow of water from Okeechobee southward and the predominance of a sedge known as sawgrass. Slightly elevated points in this extremely flat area are covered with trees, usually cypress and red mangrove.

Some 50 percent of the original Everglades has been lost to agriculture. Most of the rest is now protected in a national park, national wildlife refuge, and water conservation areas. Water from the Everglades is still used as a water supply for major cities in the area, such as Miami. The Everglades is crossed from west to east by a toll road called "Alligator Alley", now part of Interstate 75.

There are several small outlets, such as the Miami River and the New River on the east and the Shark River on the southwest. There is a general south to southwesterly movement of surface water.

Castillo de San Marcos
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By MannyDib

The Castillo de San Marcos is a Spanish built fort located in the city of St. Augustine, Florida, United States. It was known as Fort Marion from 1821 until 1942, and Fort St. Mark from 1763 until 1784 while under British control.

The city of St. Augustine was founded by the Spanish in 1565. Over the next one hundred years, the city was defended by nine wooden forts. Following the 1668 attack of the English pirate Robert Searle, it was decided by the Queen Regent of Spain, Mariana, that a masonry fortification be constructed to protect the city. In October 1672 construction began on the fort that would become the Castillo de San Marcos.

The Castillo is a masonry star fort made of a stone called "coquina", literally "little shells", made of ancient shells that have bonded together to form a type of stone similar to limestone. Workers were brought in from Havana, Cuba, to construct the fort. The coquina was quarried from Anastasia Island across the bay from the Castillo, and ferried across to the construction site. Construction lasted twenty-three years, being completed in 1695.

[Somnifor]

I was in Savannah last Christmas for the first time. None of the photo threads I've seen here really convey how beautiful the old part of the city is. You get individual pictures of nice buildings but I think it is hard to photograph the totality of it all.

[philadweller]

Savannah is beautiful but incredible boring. I wish Savannah was the old part of Atlanta.

[brothejr]

Originally Posted by Somnifor

I was in Savannah last Christmas for the first time. None of the photo threads I've seen here really convey how beautiful the old part of the city is. You get individual pictures of nice buildings but I think it is hard to photograph the totality of it all.

Yea, I loved all the older buildings in Savannah. I could not really find any picture that showed the entire old part.

[brothejr]

Alabama


The State of Alabama (IPA: /ˌæləˈbæmə/), is located in the southern region of the United States of America. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west.

From the American Civil War until World War II, Alabama, like many Southern States, suffered economic hardship, in part because of continued dependence on agriculture. More significantly, white rural, minority domination of the legislature until the 1960s meant that urban, contemporary interests were consistently underrepresented. In the years following the war, Alabama experienced significant recovery as the economy of the state transitioned from agriculture to diversified interests in heavy manufacturing, mineral extraction, education, and high technology. Today, the state is heavily invested in aerospace, education, health care, and banking, and various heavy industries including automobile manufacturing, mineral extraction, steel production and fabrication.

Alabama is unofficially nicknamed the Yellowhammer State, which is also the name of the state bird. Alabama is also known as the "Heart of Dixie". The state tree is the Longleaf Pine. The capital of Alabama is Montgomery, and the largest city is Birmingham.

Birmingham at Sunset
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By trent_paulk

Birmingham (IPA: /ˈbɝmɪŋhæm/) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Alabama and is the county seat of Jefferson County. Birmingham was founded in 1871, just after the U.S. Civil War, as an industrial enterprise. It was named after Birmingham, the major industrial city of England. Through the middle of the 20th century, Birmingham was the primary industrial center of the Southern United States. The astonishing pace of Birmingham's growth through the turn of the century earned it the nicknames "The Magic City" and "The Pittsburgh of the South". Much like Pittsburgh in the north, Birmingham's major industries centered around iron and steel production.

Over the course of the 20th century, the city's economy diversified. Though the manufacturing industry maintains a strong presence in Birmingham, other industries such as banking, insurance, medicine, publishing, and biotechnology have risen in stature. Birmingham has been recognized as one of the top cities for income growth in the United States South with an significant increase in per capita income since 1990.

Today, Birmingham ranks as one of the most important business centers in the Southeastern United States and is also one of the largest banking centers in the U.S. In addition, the Birmingham area serves as headquarters to one Fortune 500 company: Regions Financial. Five Fortune 1000 companies are headquartered in Birmingham.

Van Valkenburg-Johnston House
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By jimfrazier

Queen Anne home at 501 Franklin was designed in 1902 by Huntsville architect, Herbert Cowell for Mr. and Mrs. W. R. Van Valkenburgh.

Hole Under Dome
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By sunsurfr

Montgomery is the capital and second most populous city of the U.S. state of Alabama and the county seat of Montgomery County. Montgomery is notable for its historic involvement during the Civil War, for being the first capital of the Confederacy, and for being a primary site in the Civil Rights Movement, including the famous Montgomery Bus Boycott.

Neversink Pit
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By jimmywayne22

Located atop a mountain in the Fackler community of Jackson County. The pit supposedly is only 162 feet deep but it looks much deeper.

Stranglehold
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By Stranglehold

Parker Falls, Sipsey Wilderness Area.

[Dezz]

Wow, I really like al the photo's! In July I'm headin' off to the Deep South, so I can't wait for the next photo's to arrive

[brothejr]

Mississippi


Mississippi (IPA: /ˌmɪsəˈsɪpi/) is a state located in the Deep South of the United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The state's name comes from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, and takes its name from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi ("Great River"). The state is heavily forested, and produces a majority of American catfish. Mississippi is also known for its state symbol, the Magnolia. (From Wikipedea)

Mississippi Bayou
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By Anywayzzz

This is the Big Creek Deadwater in Coahoma County, MS. It's located just outside Clarksdale. It's just a long stretch of backed up bayou water with tons of wildlife. The water was alive with just about everything that could live in something like that. Turtles, snakes, fish, birds, etc.

Oak Alley plantation
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By alajean_g

Oak Alley Plantation is a historic plantation located on the Mississippi River in the town of Vacherie, Louisiana, United States of America. It is protected as a National Historic Landmark. It is named after its distinguishing feature, an alley of a double row of live oaks about 240-meter long, which was planted in the early 18th century, long before the present house was built. The alley leads towards the Mississippi River.
Oak Alley Plantation seen from the direction of the Mississippi River.
Oak Alley Plantation seen from the direction of the Mississippi River.

The mansion on the plantation was built by George Swainy between 1837 and 1839 for Jacques Telesphore Roman. Jacques father-in-law, Joseph Pilie, was an architect and is considered the likely designer. The mansion has a square floor plan, organized around a central hall that runs from the front to the rear on both floors. The outside features a free-standing colonnade of 28 Doric columns, a common feature among the mansions in the Mississippi Valley at the time.

The house is characterized by high ceilings, large windows, a symmetrical facade and interior plan, and a 2nd-floor gallery for viewing purposes. The flooring is made of marble, the roof of slate, the house and columns of brick painted white to look like marble.

Its historical purpose was as an antebellum sugar cane plantation. Its architectural design was influenced by the local French Creole architecture derived from Caribbean plantation design. The plantation was ravaged by the Civil War but later restored.

Oak Alley Plantation, which was originally named Bon Séjour, was sold at an auction in 1866. After passing through the hands of a succession of owners, it had fallen into disrepair in the 1920s. In 1925, the property was acquired by Andrew and Josephine Stewart, who commissioned the architect Richard Koch to conduct extensive restoration work.

After Josephine Stewart's death, the management of the plantation was placed in the hands of a nonprofit organization, which opened the plantation to the public.

The street address of Oak Alley Plantation is: 3645 Highway 18 (Great River Road), Vacherie, LA 70090, USA.

Oak Alley Plantation is also located adajcent to St. Joseph Plantation on La. 18, the Great River Road. Both plantations are National Register of Historic Places of the United States.

Eudora Welty House
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By ejmc

"Eudora Welty (1909-2001), one of the most acclaimed writers of the twentieth century, lived in this house for seventy-six years. The house was built by Welty's parents, Christian and Chestina Welty, in 1925. Eudora Welty wrote all of her major works here, including the Pultzer Prize-winning novel 'The Optimist's Daughter.' Welty and her mother were devoted gardeners, and many of the flowers and bushes they planted still grow in the garden. The Eudora Welty House is a National Historic Landmark." (from the MS Dept of Archives & History marker at the house)

Mississippi State Capital Building
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By maedeans

Mississippi Queen
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By panoramman

The Mississippi Queen is docked in the Yazoo Diversion Canal in Vicksburg Mississippi

[brothejr]

Louisiana


The State of Louisiana (IPA: /luːˌiːziˈænə/ or /ˌluːziˈænə/, French: État de Louisiane, pronounced [lwizjan]) is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. The capital of Louisiana is Baton Rouge and the most populous city is New Orleans. The largest parish by population is Jefferson Parish and largest by area is Terrebonne Parish (Louisiana is the only state divided into parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties). The New Orleans metropolitan area is Louisiana's largest.

Louisiana has a unique multicultural and multilingual heritage. Originally part of New France, Louisiana is home to many speakers of Cajun French and Louisiana Creole French. African American/Franco-African, and French/French Canadian form the two largest groups of ancestry in Louisiana's population.

Rosedown Plantation
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By videovisionsla

Rosedown Plantation in St. Francisville, LA. Built in 1834 by Daniel Turnbull and Martha Barrow. Martha created the beautiful 28 acre formal garden.

New Orleans French Quarter
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By jrgts

New Orleans (pronounced /nʲuːˈɔɹliˌɛnz/, locally /ˌnuːˈɔːlɛnz/; French: La Nouvelle-Orléans [lanuvɛlɔʀleɑ̃] ) is a major United States port city and the largest city in Louisiana.

New Orleans is located in southeastern Louisiana along both the east and westbanks of the Mississippi River. The city is bordered by Lake Pontchartrain. It is coextensive with Orleans Parish meaning that the boundaries of the city and the parish are the same. Although the city is nearly 70 miles upriver from the Mississippi River Delta, the shape of the Louisiana coastline is so that Orleans Parish borders on the waters of Lake Borgne to its east. The city is named after Philippe II, Duc d'Orléans, Regent of France, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. New Orleans is known for its multicultural heritage as well as its music and cuisine and is considered the birthplace of jazz.

Its status as a world-famous tourist destination is due in part to its architecture, music, cuisine, its annual Mardi Gras, and other celebrations and festivals. The city is often referred to as "The most unique city in America".

Louisiana Swamp
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By Tamilyn Jean

The surface of the state may properly be divided into two parts, the uplands and the alluvial, including coast and swamp regions. The alluvial regions, including the low swamps and coast lands, cover an area of about 20,000 square miles (52,000 km²); they lie principally along the Mississippi River, which traverses the state from north to south for a distance of about 600 miles (1,000 km) and ultimately empties into the Gulf of Mexico; the Red River; the Ouachita River and its branches; and other minor streams. The breadth of the alluvial region along the Mississippi is from 10 to 60 miles (15 to 100 km), and along the other rivers it averages about 10 miles (15 km). The Mississippi flows upon a ridge formed by its own deposits, from which the lands incline toward the low swamps beyond at an average fall of six feet per mile (3 m/km). The alluvial lands along other streams present very similar features.

Oak Alley, Louisiana
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By Leto A

Oak Alley Plantation is a historic plantation located on the Mississippi River in the town of Vacherie, Louisiana, United States of America. It is protected as a National Historic Landmark. It is named after its distinguishing feature, an alley of a double row of live oaks about 240-meter long, which was planted in the early 18th century, long before the present house was built. The alley leads towards the Mississippi River.

The mansion on the plantation was built by George Swainy between 1837 and 1839 for Jacques Telesphore Roman. Jacques father-in-law, Joseph Pilie, was an architect and is considered the likely designer. The mansion has a square floor plan, organized around a central hall that runs from the front to the rear on both floors. The outside features a free-standing colonnade of 28 Doric columns, a common feature among the mansions in the Mississippi Valley at the time.

The house is characterized by high ceilings, large windows, a symmetrical facade and interior plan, and a 2nd-floor gallery for viewing purposes. The flooring is made of marble, the roof of slate, the house and columns of brick painted white to look like marble.

Its historical purpose was as an antebellum sugar cane plantation. Its architectural design was influenced by the local French Creole architecture derived from Caribbean plantation design. The plantation was ravaged by the Civil War but later restored.

Oak Alley Plantation, which was originally named Bon Séjour, was sold at an auction in 1866. After passing through the hands of a succession of owners, it had fallen into disrepair in the 1920s. In 1925, the property was acquired by Andrew and Josephine Stewart, who commissioned the architect Richard Koch to conduct extensive restoration work.

After Josephine Stewart's death, the management of the plantation was placed in the hands of a nonprofit organization, which opened the plantation to the public.

Oak Alley Plantation is also located adajcent to St. Joseph Plantation on La. 18, the Great River Road. Both plantations are National Register of Historic Places of the United States.

Old State Capitol - Baton Rouge
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By Pat Peeve

Baton Rouge (French: Bâton Rouge pronounced /ˌbætən ˈruːʒ/ in English, and [bɑtɔ̃ ʀuʒ] in French) is the capital and the second largest city in Louisiana behind New Orleans. The effects of Hurricane Katrina have reduced the population of Orleans Parish such that East Baton Rouge Parish is currently more highly populated than Orleans Parish. Baton Rouge serves as the parish seat of East Baton Rouge Parish.

Baton Rouge is located in the southeast portion of the state along the Mississippi River. It owes its location and its historical importance to its site upon Istrouma Bluff, the first bluff upriver from the Mississippi delta, which protects the city’s 224,097 residents from flooding and other natural disasters. In addition to the natural protection, the city sports a levee system stretching from the bluff southward to protect the riverfront and the southern agricultural areas.

Baton Rouge is a major industrial, petrochemical, and port center of the American South. The Port of Baton Rouge is the tenth largest in the United States in terms of weight.