Key Issue 2: Where Do People Migrate Within a Country?Describe the History of Interregional Migration in the United States

Internal Migration is less disruptive to people than international migration.

Most people travel from rural areas to urban areas in search of jobs.

Interregional MigrationMigration between Regions of the United States The history of interregional migration in the United States was largely an east-to-west phenomenon (people migrated in search of farm land-moved away from densely settled regions to the frontier) with the exception of an early start in California. More recently the center of U.S. population has been moving slowly southward, but interregional migration in the twenty-first century is relatively small. 1790: Hugging the Coast -Few colonists leave the Atlantic Coast because they relied upon the Atlantic trade with the British for supplies.The Appalachian Mountains also block the path west.The Native Americans also deter settlement to the west.1800-1840: Crossing the Appalachians -Transportation improvements (Canals) open the interior of the country. Most important was the Erie Canal-travel from New York to the Great lakes. Encouraged by the opportunity to own land, people moved to the river valleys between the Appalachians and Mississippi rivers. They cut down the trees and used the wood to build homes, barns, and fences. People move west to the Mississippi helped along by the promise of large swaths of free land.

1850-1890: Rushing to Gold –Population center shifts west Instead of settling west of the Mississippi to cultivate crops, people passed the Great Plains and moved straight to California. The Gold Rush in 1849 attracted people to California. Passing the Great Plains, most people believed the Plains had no ability to cultivate crops, and was called the ‘Great American Desert’.1900-1940: Filling in the Great Plains –Westward movement slows

Immigrants began to settle the Great Plains as more people migrated to the American East Coast. People began to settle in the plains area. Farmers used advances in agricultural technology to cultivate the Great

Plains. Barbed wired fences, steel plow, windmills, and water well drilling. Railroads and land grants allowed for farmers to transport goods to cities easily and attain large amounts of land

for little money.1950-2010: Moving south –Americans moved south because job opportunities and a warmer climate provided reasons to move to the southern regions. The South has had a growth of industry in recent years because of (relocation from the Northeast/Midwest) or the formation of newly established companies.Interregional migration has greatly diminished in recent years. Net migration between regions is close to zero due to employment prospects less dramatic and a recession in 2008.

Migration between Regions in the Two Largest Countries The world’s largest countries in land area are Russia and Canada. Interregional migration has been an important means to opening up regions of these large countries for economic development. Migration in Canada was voluntary and in Russia during the Soviet Era it was sometimes forced.RUSSIA

Most of the population is located in the western portion of the country.

Soviet policy stimulated interregional migration to the Asian portion of the country because most factories were located near the resources they needed.

The Far North (Siberia) contains 45% of the land, but only contains 2% of the population.

The Far North also contains the majority of resources-fossil fuels, minerals, and forests.

The Soviets originally forced people to move the Far North, then abandoning it for heavily incentivized voluntary migration.

The incentives failed to draw people due to the harsh climate and remoteness, so people began to move back to their old homes or population cluster areas.

The Soviet government decided to send young male volunteers called the Komsomol to Siberia to construct infrastructure there during school vacations.

When the Soviet Union collapsed, the migration policies collapsed with it.Migration Between Regions in Canada, China and Brazil The world’s largest countries in land area other than Russia, Canada, and the United States are China and Brazil. Canada

Interregional migration from east to west. Alberta, British Columbia, and Saskatchewan are the

destinations for most migrants within Canada. Net-Out migration recorded from Manitoba eastward.

China 100 million people have emigrated from China’s

rural interior to the urban manufacturing centers that lay along the east coast of the country.

Brazil Most of Brazil’s people live near the Atlantic Coast

such as Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro as opposed to the country’s interior.

Brazil has begun to develop the interior of the country, jumpstarted by the government moving the capital from Rio de Janeiro to Brasilia, 1,000 miles from the coast. Thousands of people have migrated to Brasilia in search of jobs. Many people live in favelas outside Brasilia while looking for jobs in the interior.

Intraregional MigrationExplain the differences among the three forms of Intraregional Migration♠More people move within a Region than any form of Migration♠Worldwide=Rural to Urban♠United States=Cities to SuburbsMigration from Rural to Urban Areas Ravenstein felt that people were much more likely to migrate to a closer location. More developed countries underwent urbanization (moving from rural to urban areas) with the industrial era. This trend is now occurring in LDCs.

The Industrial Revolution triggered movement to urban areas.

Urbanization has occurred in developing countries in Asia, Latin America, and Africa.

Globally, more than 20 million people move from rural areas to urban areas annually.

Most people move because they seek economic advancement. They are pushed by decreasing opportunities in the primary sector and increasing opportunities in the secondary

and tertiary sectors of the economy.Migration from Urban to Suburban Areas

People typically move to the suburbs because they believe that their quality of life will improve.

In the developed world, nearly twice as many people migrate from cities to the surrounding suburbs as people migrate from suburbs to cities.

This does not coincide with job movement, meaning there is another ulterior motive to their movement.

People are pulled to the suburbs by the promise of a suburban lifestyle. Detached housing, larger yards, and garages, jobs, shops, recreational facilities.

Suburban areas usually have superior educational facilities (schools) as opposed to urban areas.

Farms on the periphery of urban areas are converted to housing and commercial developments. New roads, sewers, and other services must be built.

Migration from Urban to Rural Areas = Net Migration from urban to rural=counterurbanization

The late twentieth century Developed countries saw a trend to move from urban to rural areas. From cities to small towns and rural communities.

People perform counterurbanization because they make a lifestyle choice to move to rural areas.

People prefer a slower paced lifestyle and smaller communities where they can work with people who they live near, own larger animals, and grow vegetables.

With modern technology, no location is ever truly isolated, making migration less economically important over time.

Intraregional migration has slowed as a result of the global recession because people are unwilling to move. They couldn’t get loans for a new house or buyers for their old house.