The Western United States is the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term the West changed. Before about 1800, the crest of the Appalachian Mountains was seen as the western frontier. The frontier moved westward and eventually the lands west of the Mississippi River were considered the West.
The U.S. Census Bureau’s definition of the 13 westernmost states includes the Rocky Mountains and the Great Basin to the Pacific Coast, and the mid-Pacific islands state, Hawaii. To the east of the Western United States is the Midwestern United States and the Southern United States, with Canada to the north, and Mexico to the south.
Arizona. El Tovar Hotel, Grand Canyon National Park, 1947
The West contains several major biomes, including arid and semi-arid plateaus and plains, particularly in the American Southwest; forested mountains, including three major ranges, the Sierra Nevada, the Cascades, and Rocky Mountains; the long coastal shoreline of the American Pacific Coast; and the rainforests of the Pacific Northwest.
Here is a set of amazing color photos from dianp that show American West in 1947.
Arizona. Grand Canyon National Park view from Watchtower, 1947
Arizona. Hopi boy in doorway of Pueblo at El Tovar, Grand Canyon National Park, 1947
Arizona. Hopi Indian and Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, 1947
Arizona. Hopi Indian dance at El Tovar, Grand Canyon National Park, 1947
Arizona. Hopi Indian dance at El Tovar, Grand Canyon National Park, 1947
Arizona. Signpost at El Tovar, Grand Canyon National Park, 1947
Arizona. The Watchtower at Desert View, South Rim, Grand Canyon National Park, 1947
Arizona. Wishing Well at Hermit’s Rest, Grand Canyon National Park, 1947
California. Beverly Hills Hotel, Beverly Hills, 1947
California. Boatman at Fisherman’s Wharf, San Francisco, 1947
California. Cable car being turned by hand, San Francisco, 1947
California. Cable car near Powell and Geary streets, San Francisco, 1947
California. Cable car on California Street, San Francisco, 1947
California. Cable car on Powell Street, San Francisco, 1947
California. Cable car, corner of Market and Powell streets, San Francisco, 1947
California. Civic Center, San Francisco, 1947
California. Cliff House and Seal Rocks, San Francisco, 1947
California. Cloisters at Leland Stanford University, Palo Alto, 1947
California. Fisherman's Wharf, San Francisco, 1947
California. Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco, 1947
California. Grant Ave, Chinatown, San Francisco, 1947
California. Hill Street, Los Angeles, 1947
California. Looking down Market Street from Twin Peaks, San Francisco, 1947
California. Mission San Luis Rey, founded 1798, Oceanside, 1947
California. Mission Santa Barbara, founded 1786, Santa Barbara, 1947
California. Mosaics over chapel entrance at Stanford University, Palo Alto, 1947
California. Oakland Bay Bridge at night, San Francisco, 1947
California. Oakland Bay Bridge, San Francisco, 1947
California. Oakland Bay Bridge, San Francisco, 1947
California. Pershing Square, Los Angeles, 1947
California. Redwood Highway near Golden Gate, San Francisco, 1947
California. San Francisco Bay, 1947
California. Southern Pacific Railway Station, San Luis Obispo, 1947
California. View towards Venice Pier from dining room of Del Mar Beach Club, Santa Monica, 1947
California. Wilshire Boulevard, near Beverly Drive, Beverly Hills, 1947
California. Yacht Harbor, San Francisco, 1947
New Mexico. Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe freight locomotive, Clovis, 1947
New Mexico. Santa Fe Diesel in Clovis, 1947
Oregon Coast, 1947
Oregon. Mt. Hood in winter, 1947
Oregon. Mt. Hood near Portland, 1947
Oregon. Shepherd's Dell, Columbia River Valley, 1947
Washington. Deception Pass Bridge, 1947
Washington. Deception Pass Bridge, 1947
Washington. Lake Washington floating bridge, Seattle, 1947