U.S. States

Who owns your image? Even in 1902privacy laws had to grapple with new technology.

Residents in these five states have come up with creative traditions to beat the chill.

Quiet Maine towns became King’s stage for national fears.

Although Montana is the fourth-largest U.S. state by areait's also one of the least densely populated states.

In 1788thousands of people in New York revolted against doctors and dissection.

Maine is the largest state in New England and forms the northeast border of the United States with Canada. It has been a state since 1820.

Kansassituated on the American Great Plainsbecame the 34th state on January 291861. Its path to statehood was long and bloody.

Here’s how Sin City evolved through the decades.

That classic boxcar design evolved from horse-drawn wagons.

Iowa farmers produce more cornpork and eggs than any other state.

Since New England’s forests regenerated in the 1800svisitors have been ogling its patchwork of fall colors.

The Hoosier state is also known as the "Crossroad of the World."

The scoop behind Carmel-by-the-Sea’s harsh law banning an ice cream shop—and the movie star mayor that brought it back.

Idaho farmers produce more potatoes and trout than any other state in the nation

“The Old Line State” is known for its diverse geography and crucial role in the nation’s history.

Legendary warrior chief was first Hawaiian to travel the world.

With a diverse landscapeMississippi history is marked by its role in the Civil Warthe civil rights movement and as the birthplace of the blues.

Colorado claims 18 of the 20 highest towns in the United Statesbut not the highest state capital.

Many Chicagoans still refuse to call the iconic skyscraper by any other name.

From the Space Needle to the Atomiumthese landmarks stand as remarkable legacies of 19th- and 20th-century global exhibitions.

This New Jersey landmark was built before the nation was founded.

Rugged terrain and extreme temperatures contribute to the national park's moniker.

A grieving widow and mother oversaw construction of the maze-like Victorian-era mansion.

Feeling the heat? See if you're living in one of the historically steamiest states in the country.

The exact location of the ancientgnarled bristlecone pine is kept secret for its protection.

It was the West's bloodiest clash over control of the open range.

Missionaries laid the foundation for communities and governance in the American frontier.

The L.A. Aqueduct was celebrated as an engineering marvel at its completion in 1913but it drained distant watersheds for the city's own precarious supply.

Through amendments and legal rulingsthe Constitution has transformed in some critical ways.

Spanish settlersindependent Mexicans and southern frontiersmen jostled for control of Texas until the territory became the 28th U.S. state in 1845.

Oklahoma became the 46th state in 1907following several acts that incorporated more Indian tribal land into U.S. territory.

Wyoming became the 44th state to join the union in 1890. The first U.S. territory to allow women to voteWyoming has the smallest population of all the states.

West Virginia separated from Confederate Virginia to earn statehood in 1863. The state today is known for its coal production and its mountainous terrain.

Tennesseethe 16th U.S. stateis home to the historic music centers of Memphis and Nashville and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Colorado attracted the ancient Pueblo peoples and the Plains Native Americans with its natural resoruces before becoming the 38th state of the union in 1876.

Nebraskaknown as the “Cornhusker State,” is famous for its vast great plainspioneer historyagricultural production and college football.

Arkansas boasts a rich historyfrom its early Native American inhabitants and European exploration to the Civil War and the civil rights movement.

Delawareone of the smallest but most densely populated stateswas the first of the original 13 colonies to ratify the U.S. Constitution in 1787.

Connecticutoften called the "Constitution State," joined the Union on January 91788as the fifth state.

Ohioa U.S. state since 1803has sent seven presidents to the White House and is home to the rock and roll and National Football League halls of fame.

It took an influx of dam workersexiled Los Angeles gambling operators and mob figures to build 'sin city.'

Though far from the main fightingCalifornia made an outsized contribution to the Union victorymostly in the form of gold and troops.

Pennsylvania's largest city is known as the home of the Liberty BellIndependence Hall and the "Rocky" statue.

Boston has played a central role in U.S. historyfrom its settlement by the Puritansto its American Revolutionary battles to its storied universities.

America's second largest city was originally inhabited by indigenous tribes and expanded with settlers from SpainMexico and then gold prospectorsland speculatorslaborersoil barons and those seeking fame in Hollywood.

The deaths of King Kamehameha II and Queen Kamamalu brought on disaster.

Initially built by the Dutch to stave off the EnglishWall Street evolved to represent much more than a Manhattan address.

New Jersey’s Action Park quickly earned the infamous nickname “Accident Park.”

A little more than a decade after Indiana joined the Union on December 111816newspapers began to refer to the residents of the newly admitted state as “Hoosiers.” (Alternate spellings included “Hooshers” and “Hooshores.”) The unusual nickname appeared in print as early as 1832 and gained popular usage the following year after publication of […]

10 surprising facts about the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Explore nine surprising facts about Californiawhich achieved statehood 165 years ago this week.

Find out how Kentucky became the center of the world’s production of the distinctive corn-basedbarrel-aged whiskey.

More than a century agoPunxsutawney residents relied on groundhogs for more than just weather forecasts. They ate them as well.

The nickname has nothing to do with fruit production.

Learn eight surprising facts about America’s 35th state.

Explore nine things you may not know about the Lone Star State.

Sugar barons and businessmen ousted Hawaii’s longstanding monarchysetting the stage for US annexation.

From Franklin to Absarokaa number of upstart territories just missed out on statehood at various points in U.S. history.

Interesting Facts On July 161790a compromise between Thomas JeffersonAlexander Hamilton and James Madison—known as the Residence Act—was passeddeclaring George Washington’s selection of a site on the Potomac River as the nation’s new permanent c...

The Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 was signed into law by President Dwight Eisenhower on June 291956. The bill created a 41,000-mile system of interstate highways that Eisenhower promised would eliminate unsafe roadsinefficient routes and traffic jams.

New Orleanssituated on a bend of the Mississippi River 100 miles from its mouthhas been Louisiana’s most important city and the Gulf of Mexico’s busiest northern port since the early 1700s.

Chicago: Prehistory and Early Years The name Chicago may have come from a Miami Indian word for the wild leeks that grew on the bank of the short Chicago River. Over the centuries the MiamiSaukFox and Potawatomi tribes all lived in the area. The 167...

New York City in the 18th Century In 1664the British seized New Amsterdam from the Dutch and gave it a new name: New York City. For the next centurythe population of New York City grew larger and more diverse: It included immigrants from the Netherl...

Interesting Facts On January 261700a large earthquake 60 to 70 miles off the coast of the Pacific Northwest caused a tsunami roughly 33 feet high to engulf the Washington coastline. Ten hours laterthe tsunami hit the main island of Japan with 6-to...

San Francisco: Prehistory and Founding The first inhabitants of the San Francisco area arrived around 3000 B.C. By the 16th centurywhen the first Europeans sailed along the California coast (always missing the Golden Gate due to fog)the area was inh...

An archipelagoHawaii is the 50th U.S. state and the only state outside North America.

Florida joined the Union as the 27th state in 1845 and is nicknamed the Sunshine State for its balmy climate and natural beauty.

Las Vegas was founded by ranchers and railroad workers but its greatest asset became its casinos. Las Vegas’s embrace of Old West- freedoms—gambling and prostitution—provided a perfect home for East Coast organized crime.

Interesting Facts Originally conceived of in 1928 by Dr. Henry Moore of OntarioCanadathe International Peace Garden was intended to establish a memorial to perpetual peace between Canada and the United States. Encompassing 2,339 acres within North D...

Louisiana became a U.S. territory as part of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 and was admitted to the Union in 1812. The birthplace of jazzthe state is known for its Mardi Gras festival.

Virginia was the first of the original 13 colonies to be permanently settled by the Englishwho established Jamestown on the banks of the James River in 1607. Virginia became a state on May 151776.

Interesting Facts On October 51798congressman Matthew Lyon was indicted under the Sedition Act for criticizing President John Adams in a letter he had written to Spooner’s Vermont Journal. Fined $1,000 and sentenced to four months in jailLyon was ...

Utah became the 45th member of the Union on Jan. 41896. The state is known as a premiere skiing destinationwith mountains near its capital Salt Lake City receiving an average of 500 inches of snow annually.

South Carolina was settled by the English in 1670 and became the eighth state to ratify the U.S. Constitution in 1788.

South Dakota joined the United States in 1803 as part of the Louisiana Purchase. The state is home to Mount Rushmore.

Rhode Island was one of the 13 original coloniesfirst settled by Roger Williams in 1636. In 1776Rhode Island was the first of the colonies to renounce its allegiance to the British Crown. Today it is the smallest U.S. state by landmass.

Pennsylvania was founded by William Penn as a haven for his fellow Quakers.

The state is one of the nation's top producers of winehazelnuts and Christmas trees.

One of the original 13 coloniesNorth Carolina was the first state to instruct its delegates to vote for independence from the British crown during the Continental Congress.

New Jersey’s Native American History Before Giovanni de Verrazano became the first European settler to explore New Jersey in 1524the Delaware Indians had lived in the region for more than 10,000 years. The Delaware Indians, also known as the Lenni-Len...

New Hampshire was the first state to have its own constitution and the 9th to ratify the U.S. Constitution—officially putting the document into effect.

Interesting Facts When the Missouri Territory first applied for statehooda debate ensued over the government’s right to restrict slavery. The Missouri Compromise granted Maine entrance into the Union as a free state while allowing Missouri permission ...

Minnesota is the 32nd state to join the Union and is the most northerly of the 48 conterminous U.S. states. It's home to the Mall of America and the largest continuous network of indoor pedestrian pathways in the United States.

Michigan became a state in 1837. Its largest cityDetroitis home to the American auto industry and is the birthplace of Motown Records.

Massachusetts’ Early Colonial History The first settlers in the state now known as Massachusetts were the Pilgrims. They arrived in Plymouth on the Mayflower in 1620 after separating from the Anglican church and fleeing Englandcreating the Mayflower c...

New York’s Native American History Semi-nomadic Indigenous people have been living in the area now known as New York for at least 13,000 yearssettling in the space around Lake Champlainthe Hudson River Valley and Oneida Lake. The Haudenosaunee Nativ...

New Mexico became a U.S. state in 1912. It was the site of the first nuclear bomb test and drew attention for alleged alien activity near Roswell.

Interesting Facts Nevada’s Berlin-Icthyosaur State Park contains the largest known Shonisaurus popularis ichthyosaur fossils. These extinct marine reptileswhich ranged in size from 2 feet to over 50 feet longswam in the ocean that covered central Ne...

Kentucky became the first U.S. state west of the Appalachian Mountains in 1792. It is home to the legendary Kentucky Derby horse race and bluegrass music.

Kamehameha IVreigned as the fourth monarch of Hawaii under the title Ke Aliʻi o ko Hawaiʻi Pae ʻAina of the Kingdom of Hawaii from 1855 to 1863.

Illinois became a territory of the United States and achieved statehood in 1818. During ProhibitionChicago became synonymous with bootleg liquor and gangsters like Al Capone.

The largest state east of the MississippiGeorgia is also the youngest of the original 13 coloniesfounded in 1732.

California became the 31st state in 1850. It leads the U.S. in agricultural productionit is known for its tech industryand it is home to famous cultural institutions and national parksincluding HollywoodDisneylandYosemite National ParkAlcatrazAngel Island and the Golden Gate Bridge.

Arizona’s Native American History Indigenous hunter-gatherers arrived in the area now known as Arizona more than 12,000 years ago. Todaythe state has 22 federally-recognized Native American tribes, including the Navajo NationHopi TribeTohono O’odh...

Interesting Facts Wisconsin earned the nickname “Badger State,” not because of its proliferation of badgersbut because its earliest white inhabitants were itinerant lead miners who burrowed into the hills for shelter rather than waste time and resourc...

Alaska is the largest state admitted to the Union; It was acquired by the United States in 1867 and received statehood in 1959.

Alabama became the 22nd state to join the Union in 1819 and was at the center of the American Civil Rights Movement during the mid-20th century.