What are some interesting facts about Pennsylvania?

What are some facts about Pennsylvania?

• Answer:

  Meaning of Pennsylvania: Penn's Woods Named after the father of Admiral William Penn. Pennsylvania history. William Penn was given the land and at first, white men did not realize the vastness of the United States. So, William Penn declared ownership from ocean to ocean-- not realizing that the Pacific Ocean was a great distance away. At first, colonists settled in areas near the Atlantic Coast and near waterways extending from the coast. Areas such as Philadelphia became heavily settled. But farms extended north to the Maryland border, North to the New York border, and extended west to the eastern side of the Appalachian Mountains. But very quickly, areas became congested. People needed more room. At the same time, treaties were made and often broken with the Native American tribes, whose lands extended into New York and Pennsylvania. As well, the French were apt explorers by using waterways from Southern States and up into Ohio and Pennsylvania. The French and Indian War was, in part, a result of the fight between the British and French to wrestle control of land from each other and to claim ownership of more expansive land. A Lord from overseas at one point claimed over 5 MILLION acres extending from his main residence in Virginia, BUT no one knew what lay beyond the mountains. This Lord hired George Washington, who was just 16 years old and who had taught himself the art of surveying, to go across the Blue Ridge Mountains (part of the Appalachian chain) to survey the Lord's 5 million acres. George did go, but spent much more time simply writing descriptions of what he saw and he wrote about his meetings with Indians who had hunting lodges in that area. George Washington went on to lead troops in the war...and later became the country's first President after fighting the British in the Revolutionary War. Pennsylvania's boundaries at one point were more northerly than they are today, on the southwest corner. For example, at one point, Pennsylvania included part of what is now the Panhandle of West Virginia. The Mason-Dixon line controversy and conclusion established the southern border of Pennsylvania. Although Pennsylvania has no active volcanoes now, geologists believe that it may have had a volcano billions of years ago, around the time that all continents were one (called Pangea). The presence of metamorphic rocks shows evidence of high temperatures. As well, Pennsylvania had been covered by an inland sea extending from midwestern States and up into the southwest corner of PA. In the east, peat bogs had existed which created thick coal seams. In the eastern half of Pennsylvania, the peat formed Anthracite coal, a very hard type of coal. Beyond the mountains in southwestern Pennsylvania, swampy peat land formed bituminous coal. To the north, in northwest Pennsylvania, as well as to the south in now West Virginia, oil formed. This oil was known to Native American Indians who used to scoop up oil from small puddles that formed on the surface. They used it for "medicinal" purposes and shared their uses of oil with colonists. But, it took until the 1860s-1870s before White Men would figure out how to drill to get the oil from underground. (See Drake's oil well). The petroleum found in this crude puddled oil was used as skin softener for humans as well as hides and was sold as "medicine" through the early 1920s at least. From colonial days to present, Pennsylvania has primary fostered farming - especially in eastern counties. Western counties are more rocky with partly sandy and partly clay soils. As well, the mountains and Pittsburgh Plateau (geological region in SW PA) have a rocky nature. So agriculture also included cattle raising in some areas, but mostly sheep raising in western counties. Farmers also raise hogs, chickens, and other fowl. Pennsylvania remains the largest seller of mushrooms. Wildlife has changed since colonial days when there were many more coyotes and even a few mountain lions. But Pennsylvania has always had great reserves of fish, black bears, brown bears, copperhead snakes, water mocassin snakes, and wild fowl such as pheasants etc. Deer hunting and fishing remain a passion for many outdoor enthusiasts. One major geological feature of Pennsylvania, besides the folding of the Appalachian Mountains (with variously named ranges) caused by the fault-folding that occurred under the Atlantic Ocean and which pulled Africa away from the present North American continent, is the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon in the east. It is now part of a wildlife reserve, but attracts thousands of tourists, hikers, and campers. Pennsylvania has a moderate environment, with summer daytime highs of 70-90 degrees F, and nighttime summer temps from 50s to low 70s; and winter daytime highs of 0-40 degrees and nighttime highs of below-zero to 20s F. Pennsylvania has plenty of rainfall which helps produce the beautiful fall foliage. Visitors come during the fall just to see how the leaves have changed.