Culture Walls

Geography

Massachusetts ranks 13 out of the 50 states. Massachusetts is 9,241 sq. mi. Massachusetts' capital city is Boston.

Connecticut River Valley is very important to Massachusetts.  Massachusetts can be divided into six major geographical regions. In the E is the Atlantic Coastal Plain, which encompasses Cape Cod and the islands of Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard. In this region glacial deposits lie on top of sedimentary rocks; the deposits are generally sandy, and wave action and the northward sweep of the Gulf Stream ocean current have reworked the material into the fine beaches of the region and have given the Cape its distinctive shape.    

Massachusetts' population is roughly around 6,409,000 people.

Climate

The west side of Massachusetts is around 21 degrees. The east side is somewhat milder. Two huge disasters came to Massachusetts. One was a hurricane, and the other was a huge Blizzard. Did you know that 70% of Massachusetts is forest?

History

Waves of immigrants settled in Massachusetts because they wanted to settle in different places. Massachusetts became part of the United States on February 6, 1788. The colonial period of Massachusetts’s history began when the Pilgrims—members of a dissident religious community that had broken away from the Church of England—landed at Plymouth on Dec. 21, 1620. Theirs was the first permanent settlement by Europeans in Massachusetts.

Plymouth Plantation in Plymouth, Mass.

Kolk, Melinda. plimouthplantation1.jpg. Apr-02. Pics4Learning. 1 Jun 2003 <http://pics.tech4learning.com>

Economy

Massachusetts was an important center of commerce, fishing, and shipbuilding in colonial times. In the early 19th century its economy became increasingly dominated by manufacturing, especially the production of textiles and footwear. These industries declined in the 20th century, but manufacturing remained a leading economic activity. The Boston area became known as a center for advanced research and for the production of high-technology electronic items. The state also has a big summer tourist industry. Boston is a major financial and insurance center.

The tourist industry is extremely important; about 33 million tourists visit the state each year, contributing more than $11.7 billion to the state economy. Attractions include the summer vacation areas of Cape Cod and nearby Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket islands and the historical sites and cultural institutions of the Boston area. Many travelers also visit the upland areas of the Berkshire Hills in the W; especially popular here is the summer Berkshire Music Festival at the Tanglewood estate in Lenox. Massachusetts maintains 192 state parks, recreation areas, and historic sites.

Food

Massachusetts is known as the Cranberry State. Here's a recipe for Boston Baked Beans

Boston Baked Beans

• 1 lb. dry Great Northern beans or other dry beans, soaked overnight and drained
• 1 lg. onion
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 c. molasses
• 1 tsp. dry mustard
• 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 c. firmly packed brown sugar
• 1/4 lb. bacon

Place beans in large kettle. Cover with water, sprinkle with 1 tablespoon baking soda. Bring to boil. Cook covered for 30 minutes or until beans are just tender. Drain; reserve liquid. Combine salt, molasses, mustard, Worcestershire sauce and brown sugar. Place 1/3 of beans in Crock Pot with small amount of reserved liquid. Cover with 1/3 of molasses mixture. Place 3 slices of bacon on top. Place onion on top of this layer. Repeat layers; add part of reserved liquid with each layer. Cover beans with liquid. Cook on low and for 8 to 10 hours or until beans are tender.

Printer-Friendly Copy of this Baked Beans Recipe

Recipe from: http://southernfood.about.com/library/cprec/bl36_5.htm?once=true&

Cultural Arts

In Boston, there is the Boston Conservatory.

• The Fogg Art museum is in Massachusetts and so is the Museum of Science.

• Daniel Chester Freanch made the Abraham Lincoln Monument. 

• Some of the finest U.S. art museums are here, including the Museum of Fine Arts (1870), in Boston, known for its American, European, and Asian treasures; the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (1900), in Boston, noted for its Italian Renaissance art; the Worcester Art Museum (1896), in Worcester; the Fogg Art Museum (1895) and the Busch-Reisinger Museum (1901) of Harvard University, in Cambridge; and the Addison Gallery of American Art (1931), in Andover. Also of note are the De Cordova Museum and Sculpture Park (1948), in Lincoln; the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute (1957), in Williamstown; the American Textile History Museum (1960), in Lowell; the Norman Rockwell Museum (1967), in Stockbridge; the Museum of Science (1830), in Boston; the New Bedford Whaling Museum (1903), in New Bedford; the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology (1866), in Cambridge; and the Peabody Essex Museum of Salem (1799), with exhibits on maritime history and ethnology.

• Boston is the home of many of the state’s entertainment institutions, including several theaters, the noted Boston Symphony Orchestra (1881), a number of ballet and modern dance organizations, and the Opera Company of Boston. The Tanglewood estate in Lenox serves as the summer home of the Boston Symphony, and summer theater is particularly popular in Stockbridge and on Cape Cod.

Holidays

To learn about United States holidays, please visit our Federal Holidays WebQuest!

Religion

Just about every religion in the world is represented in the United States.

Fun and Recreation

Massachusetts’s ocean coastline, rivers, lakes, and mountains provide ample opportunity for swimming, hiking, boating, fishing, hunting, golf, and winter sports. Cape Cod National Seashore includes ocean beaches and dune land. The first 25-mile leg of the 100-mile Mohican-Mohawk Trail, an Indian trail that is being re-created as a hiking trail, was dedicated in 1997.

The state’s professional sports teams include the Boston Red Sox (major league baseball), the Boston Celtics (basketball), the Boston Bruins (ice hockey), and the New England Patriots (football), in Foxboro.

Family Values

In Massachusetts, mostly the father works. But sometimes the mother and/or father can work. So basically any parent can work.

Massachusetts is known for its many fine educational institutions as well as its historical sites and cultural institutions. The first public school in the U.S. colonies, the Boston Latin School, was opened by the Puritans in 1635.Branford Hall Career Institute is in Springfield.