7.

7: Human Activity and Water

How Water Shaped America

● Given enough time, water cuts through stone and wears deep grooves through mountains, creating
features like the Grand Canyon.
● Water determines how people _______ and where people _______.
○ Without fresh water, land is uninhabitable.
○ With fresh water, land can be fertile and people can thrive.
○ Water is used for much more than drinking; it irrigates farms, transports goods, and is a source
of power. It is a key part of a thriving ecosystem.

Rivers, Rapids, and Falls

● The ________________________ is a large, mostly

flat low area along the mid-Atlantic and southeast
regions. Farther inland is an area where the land goes
from low and flat to an elevated highland; this area is
called the fall line.
● The fall line marks the boundary between the
Piedmont Plateau and the coastal plain.
○ the fall line is where waterfalls and rapids are
found.

● What is the definition of fall line?

Upstream and Downstream

How does the river flow?

Upstream

Downstream

Explore how rivers and the fall line continue to shape America’s East Coast using the interactive feature in the
slide.

How Water Shaped Richmond- Read about the history of Richmond and answer the following
questions:

1. What made the Powhatan stop wanting to have a peaceful trading relationship with the English?
2. How did the colonists rely on the James River?

3. Why did George Washington want to build a canal?

4. Why was the canal ultimately abandoned?

5. List three ways that water resources were important to Richmond’s development.