The "Outer Lands"

The Outer Lands is a term denoting the prominent archipelagic region off of the southern coast of New England in the United States. This region of Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New York, comprises the peninsula of Cape Cod and the islands of Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, Block Island and Long Island, as well as surrounding islets. The Mergui Archipelago An archipelago is a landform which consists of a chain or cluster of islands. ... The states marked in red show New England. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, the remainder of this article may require cleanup. ... Official language(s) None Capital Providence Largest city Providence Area  Ranked 50th  - Total 1,214* sq mi (3,144* km²)  - Width 37 miles (60 km)  - Length 48 miles (77 km)  - % water 32. ... Official language(s) English de facto Capital Albany Largest city New York City Area  Ranked 27th  - Total 54,520 sq mi (141,205 km²)  - Width {{{WidthUS}}} miles (455 km)  - Length 330 miles (530 km)  - % water 13. ... Cape Cod and Cape Cod Bay from space. ... Map of Marthas Vineyard. ... Nantucket is an island south of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, formed of glacial moraine. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Mercator projection of Long Island Long Island is an island in New York, USA. It has an area of 1,377 square miles (3567 km²) and a population of 7. ...

Though the existence of the archipelago is widely acknowledged in geographers, it is rarely given a specific name, and "Outer Lands" is an older term used by naturalists and adopted by author Dorothy Sterling for her natural history guide of the same name.

Divisions

The Massachusetts section is often called the "Cape and Islands", with the "Islands" subregion very specifically referring to Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket.

Lomg Island is often informally considered a part of the "New York islands", together with Staten Island and Manhattan. These islands are geographically contiguous with the broader region. Staten Island, in yellow, lies to the southwest of the rest of New York City. ... The Borough of Manhattan, highlighted in yellow, lies between the East River and the Hudson River. ...

Geology

The Outer Lands forms the insular northeasternmost extension of North America's Atlantic Coastal Plain. The region has been greatly shaped by the terminal moraine left by the Wisconsin glaciation. The Atlantic Coastal Plain is the rather flat stretch of land that borders the Atlantic Ocean (including the Gulf of Mexico). ... Moraine at Mono Lake, California, United States Moraines clearly seen on a side glacier of the Gorner Glacier, Zermatt, Switzerland. ... The Wisconsin (in North America), Weichsel (in Scandinavia), Devensian (in the British Isles), Midlandian (in Ireland) and Würm glaciation (in the Alps) are the most recent glaciations of the Pleistocene, which ended around 10,000 BC. The general glacial advance began about 70,000 BC, and reached its maximum...

Culture

The region has historically had a strong maritime culture, with an emphasis on fishing. From eastern Long Island on, much of the region has in recent decades taken on a summer colony character. The term summer colony is often used, particularly in the United States and Canada, to describe well-known resorts and upper-class enclaves, typically located near the ocean or mountains of New England or the Great Lakes. ...