Why So Few Americans Live In This HUGE Area Of The West Coast

The West Coast of the United States is a heavily populated area of the country overall. From San Diego and Los Angeles to San Francisco and Sacramento and California and Portland and Seattle in the Pacific Northwest, the West Coast is home to over 50 million Americans. While the entire region is home to a lot of people, this large area in the middle is almost entirely empty. So why don't more people live in the empty West Coast? Hello, and welcome to Geography by Jeff. Today we're going to look at an area of the West Coast of the United States that has very few people living in it, which is weird because if you look to the South of this region, you have the bulk of California with over 40 million people living in it. And if you look to the north, you have Portland and Seattle, two major Pacific Northwest cities. But right in between, very few people call this place home. And as usual, there's a geographic reason for this. But first, consider supporting me over on Substack. Premium subscribers get access to these extra special perks. And of course, every subscriber helps me continue to make geography week in, week out. So Sign up today. Often when one thinks of the West Coast, it's of the tech heavy Bay Area or Seattle regions, the Southern California beaches in Hollywood, or even the quirky bicycle friendly Portland, OR. But nestled in between these areas lies a beautiful stretch of land comprising the northern portion of California and the southern part of Oregon, a region also known as the state of Jefferson, which we'll get to in a little bit, but for now, let's run through the geography of this region as a whole. Starting in this southern part of the empty W. The California coast is renowned for its rugged beauty with rocky Bluffs, golden beaches, and huge marine ecosystems, but also its vast forests such as the Tahoe National Forest, Trinity National Forest, 6 River National Forest, and many more. These forests are home to some of the tallest and oldest trees on earth, and protruding out of these forests is the southern end of the Cascade Mountain range and the northern end of the Sierra Nevada Mountain range. This would include one of the most prominent mountain peaks in the entire country, Mount Shasta, with a height of 14,179 feet. the US Geological Survey currently monitors the mountain for volcanic activity and ranks it as a very high threat for volcanic eruption. Moving N we have. Southern Oregon, often overshadowed by its northern counterpart, is a sparsely populated but still geographically rich area. The Oregon coast is a blend of sandy beaches, towering sea stacks, and ocean cliffs. Inland, the Rogue Valley offers a fertile landscape known for its agriculture, including a burgeoning wine industry. With a climate that's warmer and drier than the northern part of the state, it presents a unique sphere within Oregon. Perhaps the most iconic feature of Southern Oregon's landscape is Crater Lake. Located in the Cascade Mountains, Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the United States and 2nd deepest in North America. It was formed by the collapse of Mount Mazama nearly 7700 years ago. Finally, the empty W eastern boundary is marked by the Great Basin, a high desert landscape that's home to a unique array of plant and animal species. It offers a stark contrast to the coastal and forested regions of Southern Oregon and Northern California, having far more in common with Nevada than the other areas. The Empty W is a truly striking region of the United States, but if you haven't picked up on it yet, it's this exact unique geography that makes it almost impossible to establish large population centers. We're going to explore why that is, both historically and in the modern day. And of course, if you're enjoying this video, hit that subscribe button. More fun geography videos are just a single click away. But first, today's video is sponsored by Incogni. Your data has a geography unto itself. When you travel around the web and do things like buy stuff, create accounts, or manage your personal business, there are data brokers who are collecting, analyzing, and selling your data to buyers all over the planet. And this is a problem because when so many organizations are passing around your data, it makes it easier for someone even more nefarious to sneak in and steal your data at some point. I've had my data stolen recently and as a result, have had to deal with some pretty agonizing bureaucracies to fix it. I can't stress this enough. It was not fun. But even scarier is that there are specific websites where people can directly find your information. All someone needs to do is input your name and get access to sensitive information such as your address, phone numbers, employment, and even information on your children. 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However, with the acquisition of the Louisiana Purchase of 18 O3, which added a massive 828,000 square miles to the young nation, expansion to the West was inevitable. This acquisition was a catalyst for the United States expansion, propelling explorers like Lewis and Clark to venture into these new territories and report back on their potential. The discovery of fertile lands and the allure of new opportunities set in motion a wave of pioneer who embarked on challenging journeys to the West. In particular, early settlers made their way to the Willamette Valley of modern day Oregon by way of the Oregon Trail, a wagon route stretching over 2000 miles from Missouri to Oregon. This was a particular draw for settlers because of a series of geologic events that occurred thousands of years prior called the Missoula Floods. These floods were the result of a large glacial dam breaking and flooding Eastern Washington and the Willamette Valley over and over again. And each time it happened, it would bring more sediment and soil that would eventually create one of the most agriculturally fertile areas in the Willamette Valley. And with the incredibly large Columbia River running along the Willamette Valley, it made growing and shipping agricultural products to the world much easier. Between 1841 and 1869, it's estimated that more than 400,000 settlers, miners, farmers, and ranchers would use the Oregon Trail to reach western lands. The next significant push westward came with the California Gold Rush in 1848. The lure of gold brought an estimated 300,000 people to Northern California, drastically altering the states demographics. San Francisco More from a small settlement of around 200 residents in 1846 to a booming town of about 36,000 by 1852. To facilitate this migration and make the journey less treacherous, the Transcontinental Railroad was constructed between 1863 and 1869. This massive feat of engineering linked the existing Eastern rail network with the Pacific Coast at San Francisco, effectively bridging the continent and heralding a new era of westward expansion. The passing of the Homestead Act of 1862 further encouraged westward migration by providing settlers with 160 acres of public land nearly free of charge. In exchange, homesteaders were required to build a dwelling and cultivate crops. This act led to the distribution of 270 million acres of land by 1934, largely in the western states. This steady flow of settlers to the West continued well into the 1900s, bolstered by factors such as the Dust Bowl of the 1930s, which drove many farming families from the prairies of the Midwest to the southwest part of the country. But while the Oregon Trail and Columbia River drew settlers to the northern part of Oregon, and the Gold Rush and Port of San Francisco lured vast amounts of people to the central part of California, the large swathe in between didn't have much of anything pulling people to settle it. Which is why growth during this period of time was rather anemic compared to its northern and southern neighbors. Today, the empty W is one of the least populated areas of the country, and much of this has to do with the natural geography of the region. Most human settlements begin because of a variety of factors that include access to fertile lands for agriculture and places that would naturally be susceptible to establishment of shipping and trade. Unfortunately, this region makes both of these incredibly challenging. Outside of the Sacramento Valley in Northern California, this entire region is very mountainous. Between the Sierra Nevada and Cascade mountain ranges, there's relatively few low lying flat lands available to establish large cities, and those that do exist, such as in the Rogue Valley in Southern Oregon, are fairly small and not amenable to establishing transportation infrastructure such as large ports. The Rogue River, for example, is much smaller than the Columbia River that connects Portland, OR to the Pacific Ocean, and it's this complicated natural geography that makes it so hard to build out infrastructure. Highways, rails, and even ports are incredibly challenging to build within this region. Even on the coast, the Northern California and Oregon beaches are often rugged and rocky, with few areas where a sizable port such as the ones found in Seattle, San Francisco, and Los Angeles could be built. It's for this region that the largest city in the empty W is Eugene, OR, with about 380,000 people within the metro region. Eugene exists in the far southern tip of the Willamette Valley. This would be about 1/7 the size of the Portland metro region. Eugene would be followed by the Medford, OR metro region with 223,000 people and the Chico, CA metro region with about 211,000 people. Bend, OR and Redding, CA round out what would be the only other medium sized cities in the region with 99,000 and 94,000 people respectively. Though it should be noted that Bend has constantly made the top ten fastest growing cities in the country over the last decade, and it's because of this overall lack of infrastructure and general difference in geography that has led to some calling for a new state to be made entirely. Some watching this video might better know the general area I've been talking about as the long desired 51st state of Jefferson. Tracing its roots back to the early 1940s, residents of several counties in Northern California and Southern Oregon proposed the formation of a brand new state. This was largely due to perceived neglect from their respective state governments and feeling alienated from their urban counterparts. These residents would choose the name Jefferson in honor of the third U.S. President, Thomas Jefferson, who championed the ideals of rural independence and agrarian democracy. The region even went so far as to inaugurate a governor and design A flag featuring 2 exes signifying their double cross by the Oregon capital in Salem and California capital in Sacramento. The movement was put on hold due to the outbreak of World War 2, but it never truly dissipated. In recent years, the push for the state of Jefferson has seen a resurgence. Modern proponents argue that their rural communities lack adequate representation in state government, leading to discontent over issues such as land use regulations, taxation, and natural resource management. Currently, the state of Jefferson is more a state of mind than an actual recognized entity. Unfortunately for Jefferson Statehood proponents, creating a new state is very challenging and requires approval from both the state's legislator and U.S. Congress. And that's even if the region itself actually still wants to form a new state at all. Not everyone within the area is on board the Jefferson Statehood train, but despite these challenges, the dream of the state of Jefferson endures. The Empty W is largely empty because of some unique geographic issues. And despite being part of California and Oregon respectively, this region has its own unique identity that is the draw for millions of Americans. And in fact, it's this exact geography and low population that is attractive to the people who live there. I hope you enjoyed learning more about America's Empty W. If you did, please subscribe to my channel and if you want to watch more of my videos, you can do so here. Thanks for watching, see you next time.