Search

Presents a reply to the commentary of John W. Pawling regarding the author's paper "Early Perception of a High Plain in Michigan." Summary of the main points of the paper; Examination of the reviewer's comments; Contentions on Pawling's claims.

Comments on the paper "Early Perception of a High Plain in Michigan," by Bernard C. Peters that was previously published in the 1972 issue of "Annals of the Association of American Geographers." Inappropriateness of the paper's title; Ambiguity of the topic under discussion; Failure of Peters to document the reality of the interior plateau.

The ‘high plain’ shown on many early maps of Michigan was not a fanciful creation, but reality as perceived by early travelers. Their perception of a high plain was as much the result of a change in vegetation as of an actual change in landforms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article profiles Charles Caryle Colby, a geographer. Colby was born in Romeo, Michigan, on April 13, 1884. After a B.S. from the University of Chicago he became instructor and Head of the Department of Geography at Minnesota State Normal School in Winona, Minnesota. Charles Colby was an idea man, whether in the classroom, in the discussion of possible dissertations with students, in professional meetings, or in consultation with governmental agencies or on public issues. Colby was interested particularly in the people, places, and problems he knew personally. He had an intense loyalty to his own region and to his own discipline.

The management of shoreline dune systems in the Great Lakes has long been contested. Some parties have viewed them as a consumable resource, while others have argued for their preservation. These differences arise out of con-trasting views about both the value of the dunes as well as which kind of value overrides which. Some of their value has been seen as residing in their geomorphic uniqueness, an interpretation based on older (largely qualitative) field studies that suggest they are fossil landscape features. Recent findings indicate, however, that most dunes arise from episodic, ongoing processes. Contradictory management implications of this new research can flow either from the heightened empirical uncertainty it has created (which gestures toward preservation) by undermining the prevailing views of dune development and chronology, or from diminished-value arguments it has stimulated (which lessen constraints on consumptive use) by calling into question older views about the geomorphic uniqueness of the dunes. Faced with such a dilemma, for practical guidance on the management of special places we turn to environmental ethics literature, where we find that long-standing disputes about where value in the environment is seated provide little further guidance. Accordingly, we propose that the ethical principle of respecting what others value out of respect for them be applied in such matters. This principle is consistent with both moral intuition and widespread practice, and its application in environmental policy would bypass some of the recalcitrant questions left open by other analyses of environmental value. With certain qualifications, this view then supports preservation of special places like lakeshore dunes regardless of the signal from empirical certainty or uncertainty or disagreement about just why valued places are valuable in the first place. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An assemblage of landforms in a complex interlobate area in southeast Michigan may be used to identify the surficial contact between Saginaw and Huron-Erie drifts even though the sediments from both glacial lobes appear similar and cannot be reliably differentiated in the field. The correct placement of the boundary is confirmed by X-ray diffraction data for clay-sized particles from more than forty drift samples. This study demonstrates that in some instances morphology may equal or exceed the usefulness of rock-, soil-and geologic-climate units for the determination of certain stratigraphic relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, hypotheses based on land-use patterns within cities are tested. Grocery store locations in the city of Lansing, Michigan, for the time periods 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, 1940, 1950 and 1960 were used to indicate commercial land-use patterns. As a check on some of this work, a quadrant method, based on the Poisson distribution was used. The advent of new and faster means of transportation, better roads and the ability of nearly all of gainfully employed people to own an automobile have caused a transportation revolution.

The article presents a reply to the comments made by professor A.Steven Messenger on the author's article. North Indiana represents a broad ecological tension zone or region of contact, between the relatively mesic plant associations of Lower Michigan. The author is convinced that the final solution to all related problem will come only when the expertiser of several disciplines is focused on the lndiana Michigan dunes ecology to define positively the range of environmental stresses present and, simultaneously, to consider the limits of tolerance of the dune flora.

Copyright of Annals of the Association of American Geographers is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Annals of the Association of American Geographers is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Annals of the Association of American Geographers is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Glacial Lake Algonquin, the most widespread proglacial lake in the Great Lakes basin, attained a high (Main) stage at about 11,000 b.p., at which time it developed a conspicuous shoreline. Several lower, less obvious Algonquin shorelines also exist. Previous research on this lake has involved three drawbacks: (1) imprecise methods of establishing the location and elevation of shoreline features, (2) misidentification of some offshore coastal landforms as beach ridges, and (3) tenuous and difficult correlation of named shorelines across wide distances. We believe that more than one name is used for some lake phases, making correlation difficult. Our study focused on these problems by surveying and mapping 160 Algonquin wave–cut bluffs throughout northern Michigan. We utilized global positioning system (GPS) technology to precisely record the three–dimensional positions of the bases of these bluffs and statistically fit trend surfaces to these positions. Classification of bluff data indicates that four strong Algonquin shorelines exist in the region, for which we recommend these names: Main, Ardtrea, Wyebridge, and Payette. Weak evidence for a possible fifth, lower shoreline was observed at five locations. Maps of the landscape during each lake phase were created, revealing islands not previously recognized. Rebound curves and maps of the lake during each phase, using the positional data set, indicate that isostatic rebound in the study area appears to be greatest in the northeast sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents an obituary for geographer Paul Wheatley who died on October 30, 1999 in Michigan.

Reports on a study centered on lower Michigan which provides evidence on the hypothesis of a paleolake and adds to the knowledge of postglacial landscape evolution in the upper midwest. Evidence from sediments, soils and landforms; Use of data on soils, stratigraphy and paleotopography; Relationship of soil series and their sedimentary environments.

About eighty percent of all larger lakes and more than sixty percent of second- and third-order streams in the drift plains of southcentral Michigan overlie preglacial bedrock valleys. The longest axes of linear lakes generally follow the trend of the underlying buried bedrock valleys; linear assemblages of lakes always overlie such features in the subsurface. Even in areas where lakes are largely absent, streams are partially adjusted to an angular drainage pattern associated with the buried bedrock surface. Segments of the surface drainage system cut across topographic trends and join at high angles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Some facets of the evolution of consumer food shopping behavior are examined by a comparison of revealed preference studies in regions of differing economic development: Aguascalientes, Mexico (1968): Iowa (1934); Iowa (1960); and Michigan (1966-1968). The majority of rural Mexicans obey the Christallerian nearest neighbor axiom, but a few patronize the capital and regional centers regardless of distance. This behavioral variance is a function of household income. Comparison of the four study areas reveals that food shopping behavior may be universally subject to a dual assignment rule: households within a limited range of an opportunity exhibit a high probability of patronizing the closest place, whereas households at some distance from the nearest opportunity prefer shopping in larger places at greater distances. The absolute range within which the Christallerian axiom is applicable increases considerably (from two to thirteen miles) with level of economic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An analysis of forest types within the zone of sand dunes along the south-east shoreline of Lake Michigan indicated that mesophytic tree species, principally Quercus rubra (red oak) and Acer saccharum (sugar maple), were dominant in Berrien County, Michigan, whereas the more xerophytic Quercus velutina (black oak) was dominant in Porter County, Indiana. Greater climatic modification by Lake Michigan in Berrien County was the hypothesized control of this forest distribution, and a preliminary climatic survey during the summer of 1967 suggested that nocturnal relative humidity values may he typically higher in that area. A causal relationship between this climatic pattern and the higher incidence of fires iii Porter County is proposed, and it is suggested that the Quercus velutina forests may be perpetuated by fire. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of acculturation, developed largely by anthropologists and sociologists, has not been sufficiently incorporated into geographical research on minority groups. One area in which the concept may be advantageously used is in the study of the origin and spatial evolution of ethnic neighborhoods in American cities. In pointing a way, this study analyses the changing residential patterns of the Dutch in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and relates these changes to differences in acculturation. The Dutch initially dispersed throughout the city, both the result and the partial cause of rapid acculturation; later, residential clustering developed in response to rapid Dutch immigration, and acculturation proceeded more slowly. In the final stage, the city's ethnic ghettos were almost entirely obscured through the acculturation of later-generation families whose residential dispersion comprehended the entire metropolitan area. The example of the Kalamazoo Dutch suggests that the residential patterning of any minority group derives from the individual's identification with his ethnic community distributed areally and his sense of territoriality largely defined on the basis of that distribution. Thus, future geographic study might focus on the attachment of persons to place and the relationship between geographical distance and the social distance derived therefrom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acceptance of the notion that population is a measurable surrogate for city complexity is requisite for many central place studies. In doing this, however, the researcher is at once confronted with the problem of classifying settlements into equal size categories. The method proposed by Thomas to expand the central place model is discussed in detail and applied to those cities and towns in Michigan having populations greater than one hundred. After noting an inconsistency which arises from this approach, an alternate technique is suggested and demonstrated. Utilizing most of Thomas' ideas, this second method relies on rank, rather than number of inhabitants, to delimit "equal size" intervals which are unique for each population value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents an introduction of the writer, Charles Warren Thornthwaite, by the author. Thornwaite was the eldest of three children from an improvident father who suffered from ill health. He grew up in a rural township of Bay County, Michigan, began to make his own living while still in high school, who was obliged to contribute to contribute to the support of other members of his family before he concluded his formal education. He completed his college education at the Student's Army Trading Corps.

This article focuses on ideology and culture of Michigan. The purpose of this article is to put a geographic view of culture and cultural process, and to demonstrate that ideology contains the fundamental bases from which decisions are made and distinctive ways of organizing area are derived. Dutch reformed communities of southwestern Michigan formed affiliation are said to constitute a particular culture because they have created a distinctive way of life within the American culture complex. The role that perception and decision making have played in shaping Dutch-reformed culture in southwestern Michigan cannot be overemphasized.

In this article, the application of physiography and geography to public business is illustrated by many features of the boundary suit between the States of Michigan and Wisconsin which was acted upon by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1926. The case demonstrates how lawyers, geographers, engineers, legislators, soldiers, Indian guides and pilots and members of other occupations and professions can work together. It shows some of the simple uses of maps. It reveals the elementary nature of what constitutes material evidence in the highest judicial body.

Presents an urban field study of Marquette, Michigan. Functions in the Upper Lakes region; Steel industry; Work-working plants; Modes of transportation; Harbors; Railways.

The article focuses on the influence of lake Michigan upon its opposite shores. Lake Michigan influences air temperatures--especially the maximum and minimum temperatures--for some twenty miles inland from its eastern shore.The shore counties receive from ten to twenty inches more snowfall than the interior counties, and considerably more than the Wisconsin shore counties receive. On the Michigan side it is mainly a matter of climate, resulting in a high development of fruit growing and of summer resorts. On the Wisconsin side neither of these developments has taken place, but the lake has induced a very marked concentration of population, wealth, industry, and commerce

All the arguments for and against the use of artificial waterways in general apply to the Erie-Michigan canal, besides some peculiar to itself. The tonnage to be carried between its terminals is enormous and certain to increase. The demand for larger and cheaper transportation facilities is imperative. The problem of the part to be played by waterways in the future economy of the country is too complex to permit a clear view of its solution. The Erie-Michigan canal has legitimate claims to serious consideration. It would form a supplement and analogue to tie New York barge canal. Its construction is feasible and free from unusual engineering difficulties. The geographical conditions are too favorable to be ignored, and perhaps in this case the saying of Geddes, ‘in the long run geography disposes,’ will come true. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]