Geography of South America Great American Interchange. The Andes, likewise a comparatively young and seismically restless mountain range, runs down the western edge of the continent; the land to the east of the northern Andes is largely tropical rain forest, the vast Amazon River basin. The continent also contains drier regions such as eastern Patagonia and the extremely arid Atacama desert. The South American continent also includes various islands, most of which belong to countries on the continent. The Caribbean territories are grouped with North America. The South American nations that border the Caribbean Sea—including Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana—are also known
Cherokee County, South Carolina backcountry area was initially settled especially by immigrant Ulster Scots people, Germans and Anglo-Americans migrating into the area. In later years, some plantations were developed and African-American slaves were brought into the area as labor. The Battle of Cowpens, a decisive engagement of the American Revolution's southern theatre, was fought on January 17, 1781, in northwestern Cherokee County, north of the town of Cowpens. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.1%) is water. It is the third-smallest county in South Carolina by land area and fourth-smallest by