Land in the Middle Colonies

The land in the Middle Colonies was very different from the New England colonies.  It was also different in different parts of the Middle Colonies.  The land in New Jersey and Delaware was flat and gently rolling.  The land of New York and Pennsylvania stretched across the Appalachian Mountains. 

        The rolling hills between the coast plain and the Appalachian Mountains had many rivers that flowed by on their way to the sea.  As the river dropped from the hills to the low coastal plains, they formed rapids and waterfalls.  The dividing line between the plain and the mountains was called the Fall Line.

        The rivers of this land led the settlers’ inland from the coast in search of beavers.  There were streams filled with animals and thick forests.  There was also rich farmland.  The colonists were able to use the rivers as a “highway” to send furs, lumber and food to the coastal cities where they could be sold.

        The riverboats could not get past the Fall Line.  But, colonists figured out a way to use the waterfalls.  They built water-powered sawmills for cutting lumber and mills for making flour.

        The most important rivers in the Middle Colonies were the Hudson and the Delaware.  They were wide and deep rivers.  Each river had a large harbor where ships were able to load and unload their goods. 

        Farming was easier in the Middle Colonies than it was in New England.  The Middle colonies had six to seven months of warm weather for growing crops.  There was plenty of rain in the summer. Farming was successful in the middle colonies.

        The Middle Colonies had many resources.  They had rich farmland, forests, beavers, wide rivers with good harbors and waterfalls for power.