East Coast of the United States | |
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 The East Coast of theUnited States. States with a coastline on theAtlantic Ocean are highlighted in dark blue. States considered part of the East Coast without a coastline are highlighted in light blue. | |
| Country |  United States |
| Principal cities | Portland Boston Providence Hartford New York City Newark Philadelphia Baltimore Washington, D.C. Richmond Virginia Beach Raleigh Charlotte Charleston Atlanta Jacksonville Orlando Tampa Miami |
| Largest city | New York City |
| Largest metropolitan area | New York metropolitan area |
| Population | |
• Total | 122,601,503[a] |
• Estimate (2024) | 127,509,444 |
| Time zones | |
| most of East Coast | UTC−05:00 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−04:00 (EDT) |
| Florida Panhandle west of theApalachicola River | UTC-06:00 (Central) |
| • Summer (DST) | -05:00 |
TheEast Coast of the United States, also known as theEastern Seaboard, theAtlantic Coast, and theAtlantic Seaboard, is the region encompassing thecoastline where theEastern United States meets theAtlantic Ocean; it has always played a major socioeconomic role in the development of the United States.
The region is generally understood to include theU.S. states that border the Atlantic Ocean:Connecticut,Delaware,Florida,Georgia,Maine,Maryland,Massachusetts,New Hampshire,New Jersey,New York,North Carolina,Rhode Island,South Carolina, andVirginia, as well as some landlocked states (Pennsylvania,Vermont,West Virginia, and the district ofWashington, D.C.).[1]
Thetoponym derives from the concept that the contiguous 48 states are defined by two major coastlines, one at thewestern edge and one on the eastern edge. Other terms for referring to this area include the Eastern seaboard, which is another term for coastline, Atlantic Coast, and Atlantic Seaboard because the coastline lies along theAtlantic Ocean.[2]
The 14 states that have a shoreline on the Atlantic Ocean are (from north to south):Maine,New Hampshire,Massachusetts,Rhode Island,Connecticut,New York,New Jersey,Delaware,Maryland,Virginia,North Carolina,South Carolina,Georgia, andFlorida.Pennsylvania andWashington, D.C. border theDelaware River and thePotomac River, respectively, both of which aretidal arms of the Atlantic Ocean.[3]
The originalThirteen Colonies ofGreat Britain inNorth America all lay on or near the East Coast.[b]
Two additional U.S. states on the East Coast were not among the original Thirteen Colonies:Maine became part ofMassachusetts Bay Colony in 1677[4] andFlorida was held by the British from the end of theFrench and Indian War until 1781 and was part ofNew Spain until 1821.[5]
In present-day Florida, Spanish explorerJuan Ponce de León made the first textual records of the state during his 1513 voyage. The state was initially named for Ponce de León, who called the peninsula La Pascua Florida in recognition of the verdant landscape and because it was theEaster season.[6]
Delaware Colony and the provinces ofNew Jersey,New York, andPennsylvania had been colonized bythe Dutch asNew Netherland until they were ceded to theBritish in the mid- to late-17th century.[7]Until 1791,Vermont was an independent nation as theVermont Republic.[8]
In simplest terms, three (3) basic climate regions occur on the East Coast; 1) A cold continental climate, from the US-Canadian border south to southern Rhode Island and western Maryland, 2) a temperate climate, from coastal Rhode Island south towestern North Carolina, and 3) a subtropical climate from extreme southeast Virginia south to central Florida.
Thehumid continental climate region (Dfa/Dfb/Dc) includes Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, most of Massachusetts, most of Rhode Island, most of Connecticut, most of New York State, most ofNorth Jersey, most of Pennsylvania, andwestern Maryland. This region features warm to occasionally hot summers and cold winters with frequent snow (especially in Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire). All locations have a least one month with a mean temperature below 0° C (32 °F) and four to seven months averaging above 10° C (50° F).
The area from southern Rhode Island southward (coastal Connecticut,Long Island,New York City, most of New Jersey, most of Delaware, most of Maryland, most of Virginia, and western NC) has a warmtemperate climate (Cfa/Do) with long, hot, humid summers and cool to cold winters with occasional snow. The mean temparature in the coldest month is 0° C (32° F) or higher. Normally, at least one month has a mean temperature over 22°C (71.6°F) and six to seven months average above 10° C (50° F)..
The area from the southernDelmarva Peninsula, southeast Virginia, andcentral North Carolina south to central Florida is humidsubtropical (Cfa/Cf), with hot summers that have almost daily (but brief) thundershowers and mikd and drier winters. In this zone, at least eight months have a mean temperature above 10° C (50° F). The region of Florida from the south-central region of the state south to theFlorida Keys has atropical climate (Af/Aw/Ar) that is usually frost-free and warm to hot all year, and all of the 12 months of the year average above 18 °C (64.4 °F). This region of Florida is the only tropical climate in the continental United States.[citation needed]
The least common climate on the East Coast is theoceanic (Cfb/Do), which is only found onBlock Island,Nantucket, and the Outer Cape andChatham onCape Cod, and in areas of the southernAppalachian Mountains. This zone has all monthly averages between 0 and 22 °C and six to seven months above 50 °F. Although winter precipitation is more likely to fall as rain than as snow, occasional heavy snow is possible.[citation needed]
Although landfalls are rare, the Eastern Seaboard is susceptible tohurricanes in the Atlantic hurricane season, officially running from June 1 to November 30, although hurricanes can occur before or after these dates.[9] HurricanesHazel,Hugo,Bob,Isabel,Irene, andSandy, and most recentlyFlorence,Isaias,Henri, andIda are some of the more significant storms to have affected the region.[citation needed]
The East Coast, with the exception of Eastern Maine, is a low relief,passive margin coast.[10] It has been shaped by thePleistocene glaciation in the far northern areas in New England, with offshore islands such asNantucket,Martha's Vineyard,Block Island, andFishers Island. Fromnorthern New Jersey southward, the coastal plain broadens southwards, separated from thePiedmont region by theAtlantic Seaboard fall line of the East Coast rivers, often marking the head of navigation and prominent sites of cities.[citation needed]
The coastal areas fromLong Island south to Florida are often made up ofbarrier islands that front the coastal areas, with the long stretches of sandy beaches. Many of the larger capes along the lower East Coast are in fact barrier islands, like theOuter Banks of North Carolina andCape Canaveral, Florida. The Florida Keys are made up of limestone coral and provide the onlycoral reefs on the U.S. mainland.[citation needed]
In 2010, the population of the states that have shoreline on the East Coast was estimated at 112,642,503 (about 36% of the country's total population).New York City is both the largest city and the largest metropolitan area on the East Coast. The East Coast is the most populated coastal area in the United States.[11]
The primaryInterstate Highway along the East Coast isInterstate 95, completed in 2018,[12][13] which replaced the historicU.S. Route 1 (Atlantic Highway), the original federal highway that traversed all East Coast states, exceptDelaware.[14]
By water, the East Coast is connected from the Annisquam River inGloucester, Massachusetts toMiami, Florida, by theIntracoastal Waterway, also known as the East Coast Canal, which was completed in 1912.[15][16] Amtrak'sDowneaster andNortheast Regional offer the mainpassenger rail service on the Seaboard. TheAcela Express offers the onlyhigh-speed rail passenger service in the Americas. Between New York and Boston, theAcela Express has up to a 54% share of the combined train and air passenger market.[17][18]
Some of the largest airports in the United States are located along the East Coast of the United States, such asJohn F. Kennedy International Airport inQueens,New York City,Logan International Airport inBoston,Newark Liberty Airport inNewark, New Jersey,Philadelphia International Airport inPhiladelphia,Baltimore–Washington International Airport nearBaltimore,Dulles International Airport nearWashington, D.C.,Hartsfield–Jackson International Airport inAtlanta,Miami International Airport inMiami,Charlotte Douglas International Airport inCharlotte, North Carolina,Tampa International Airport inTampa, andOrlando International Airport inOrlando, Florida.
As the first spot in the United States that immigrants arrived and the close proximity ofEurope, theCaribbean, andLatin America, the East Coast is home to a diverse population and home to multi-cultures when compared to the rest of the U.S. From the strongLatin culture insouthern Florida, to the 200-year-oldGullah culture of the low country coastal islands ofGeorgia andSouth Carolina, to the many historic cities in theMid-Atlantic, where a strong English, German, Italian, Irish, and French culture are present, the East Coast is significantly more diverse than the rest of the United States. NumerousChinatowns inNew York City, andLittle Havana inMiami, are examples of such cultural centers in the bigger cities.
The East Coast is home to much of the political and financial power and a center for resort and travel destinations in the United States.New York City is the most populous city in the country and a major world financial center. Seventy-one of the world's Fortune 500 companies have their corporate headquarters in New York City, whileMidtown Manhattan, with 400 million square feet of office space in 2018, is the largestcentral business district in the world.Washington, D.C. is the federal capital and political nerve center of the United States. Many organizations such as defense contractors, civilian contractors, nonprofit organizations, lobbying firms, trade unions, industry trade groups and professional associations have their headquarters in or near Washington, D.C., in order to be close to thefederal government.
Miami is one of the top domestic and international travel destinations in the United States. Miami is the warmest major city in the continental United States in winter, which contributes to it being a major tourism hub for international visitors. Miami has one of the largest concentrations of international banks in the United States, and the third-largest skyline in the U.S. with over 439 high-rises, 68 of which exceed 490 ft (149 m).Port of Miami is the busiest cruise port in the world in both passenger traffic and cruise lines, with over 5.5 million cruise passengers passing through the port each year. The center for tropical plant culture and research in the United States is based in Miami atFairchild Tropical Botanic Garden. The state of Florida is the second-largest producer oforanges in the world behindBrazil.
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