The Mid-Atlantic region of the United States of America, located in the northeastern section of the country, includes the following states and district:

• Delaware
• Maryland
• New Jersey
• New York
• Pennsylvania
• Washington, D.C.
• Virginia

These areas provided the young United States with heavy industry and served as the "melting pot" of new immigrants from Europe. Cities grew along major shipping routes and waterways. Such flourishing cities included New York City on the Hudson River, Philadelphia on the Delaware River, and Baltimore on Chesapeake Bay.

As defined by the US Census Bureau, the Mid-Atlantic is a division of the U.S. Northeast region, and comprises New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. Delaware, Maryland, and Washington, D.C. are treated as being in the U.S. South region.

History

The Mid-Atlantic region was settled by a wider range of people than New England. Dutch immigrants moved into the lower Hudson River Valley in what is now New York State. Swedes went to Delaware. English Catholics founded Maryland, and an English Protestant sect, the Friends (Quakers), settled Pennsylvania. In time, all these settlements fell under English control, but the region continued to be a magnet for people of diverse nationalities.

Early settlers were mostly farmers and traders, and the region, called the Middle Colonies, served as a bridge between North and South. Philadelphia, midway between the northern and southern colonies, was home to the Continental Congress, the convention of delegates from the original colonies that organized the American Revolution. The same city was the birthplace of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and the U.S. Constitution in 1787.

Economy

Like New England, the Mid-Atlantic region has seen much of its heavy industry relocate elsewhere. Other industries, such as drug manufacturing and communications, have taken up the slack.

Related topics

• List of regions of the United States