World Geography: U.S. States

Virginia

"Old Dominion," Virginia was the site for the earliest English settlements in what became America.

Hawaii

"The Aloha State," Hawaii is the only state covered entirely by its own time zone, Hawaii-Aleutian, also doesn't observe daylight savings time.

Wisconsin

"The Badger State," Wisconsin is the leading producer of cheese in the United States

Massachusetts

"The Bay State," Massachusetts. On March 10, 1876, it was here in Boston that the first telephone call was made when Alexander Graham Bell called his assistant and said, "Mr. Watson, come here, I want you."

Oregon

"The Beaver State," Oregon is home to North America's deepest lake (the deepest point is 1,949 feet).

Utah

"The Beehive State," Utah was founded by Mormon's and today, 60% of the population is Mormon.

Montana

"The Big Sky State," Montana has more cows than people, with about 2.6 million cows and 1 million people.

Kentucky

"The Bluegrass State," Kentucky is home to Fort Knox, where 147.3 million ounces of US gold is secured.

Ohio

"The Buckeye State," Ohio; A fire has been burning in an Ohio coal mine since 1884.

Colorado

"The Centennial State," Colorado means the "color red," in Spanish. It has the highest average elevation of any state in the U.S. and Denver is precisely one mile high

Nebraska

"The Cornhusker State," Nebraska is the Native Otoe word for the Platte River and means "flat water." They produce a large amount of beef.

Wyoming

"The Cowboy State," Wyoming is the least populated state in America.

South Dakota

"The Coyote State," South Dakota is home to Mount Rushmore.

New York

"The Empire State," New York; people from New York City drink almost seven times more coffee than other cities in the United States. New York City has over 2,000 bridges, and if you ate at a different New York City restaurant every day, it would take you 22.7 years to try them all.

Washington

"The Evergreen State," Washington is the only state named after a US President and produces more apples than any other state.

Delaware

"The First State," Delaware was the first state to ratify the constitution. Delaware is the only state without any National Park System units such as national parks, seashores, historic sites, battlefields, memorials, and monuments.

New Jersey

"The Garden State," New Jersey is the most densely populated of all the states. 90% of people live in what is considered an urban area, and more cars are stolen in Newark than in any other city in America.

California

"The Golden State," If California were a country, it would have the eighth-largest economy in the world, beating out Italy, Russia, and India. It is home to the highest and lowest points in the continental United States, and they are within 100 miles of one another. Mount Whitney measures 14,495 feet, and Bad Water in Death Valley is 282 feet below sea level.

Minnesota

"The Gopher State," Minnesota is also called "the land of 10,000 Lakes" (actually, there are only here are 201 Mud Lakes, 154 Long Lakes, and 123 Rice Lakes in Minnesota.

Arizona

"The Grand Canyon State," Arizona is home to Oraibi, the oldest Native American settlement in the United States. The Hopis Indians founded it. At one time camels were used to transport goods across Arizona

New Hampshire

"The Granite State," New Hampshire's license plates—bearing the slogan "Live Free or Die"—are made by prison inmates.

Michigan

"The Great Lakes State," Michigan is separated by the Straits of Mackinac (the body of water connecting the Great Lakes, Michigan, and Huron) but is connected by the Mackinac Bridge.

Vermont

"The Green Mountain State," Vermont means green mountain in French.

Iowa

"The Hawkeye State," Iowa produces the most corn in the nation, and it even converts some of its corn into a fuel called ethanol—in fact, Iowa is the top U.S. producer of this energy source. 92% of Iowa's land is covered with farms!

Alabama

"The Heart of Dixie," Alabama is the only state with all major natural resources needed to make iron and steel. It is also the largest supplier of cast-iron and steel pipe products

Indiana

"The Hoosier state," Indiana. At 8 p.m. on March 31, 1880, Wabash became the first city in the world to be lit by electricity.

New Mexico

"The Land of Enchantment," New Mexico, hosts the world's largest hot-air balloon event.

Alaska

"The Last Frontier," Alaska is the westernmost part of the United States. But you might not guess that Alaska is also the country's easternmost state, too. How could that be? Islands in Alaska's Aleutian chain extend out into the Eastern Hemisphere.

Texas

"The Lonestar State," Texas's name means "friend." If the entire world was as densely populated as New York City, it would fit inside of Texas. Were it a sovereign nation, Texas would have the 10th-largest economy in the world. In 2017, Texas had an approximate economic output of $1.7 trillion, putting it slightly ahead of Canada and slightly behind Brazil.

Mississippi

"The Magnolia State," Mississippi is named after the 2,340-mile river, which means "Great River." It is the poorest state in America.

West Virginia

"The Mount State," West Virginia broke away from Virgina (they had originally been a single state) because the people of West Virginia remained loyal to the Union.

Connecticut

"The Nutmeg State," Connecticut is also known as the Constitution State

Rhode Island

"The Ocean State," Rhode Island is the smallest state in America. It is only 37 miles wide and 48 miles long. It is home to the oldest restaurant in the United States; the White Horse Tavern in Newport. It was established in 1763 and is still operating.

Maryland

"The Old Line State," Maryland is the wealthiest state in the country, as measured by median household income.

South Carolina

"The Palmetto State," South Carolina, is home to The Angel Oak Tree, located near Charleston, is estimated to be one of the oldest living things in

North Dakota

"The Peace Garden State," North Dakota is the least visited state in America.

Georgia

"The Peach State," Georgia is home to one of the biggest archaeological digs in U.S. history which took place in 1933 at Macon's Ocmulgee Indian Mounds, which is now a National Historical Park.

Louisiana

"The Pelican State," Louisiana has the only civil law jurisdiction in the United States, which is based on the Napoleonic Code. A last-second home-team touchdown at Louisiana State University in 1988 sent the fans into such a frenzy that the victory registered as an earthquake on a local seismograph.

Maine

"The Pine Tree State," Maine is the only state with one syllable and the only one to border only one other state, which is New Hampshire. It has its own desert, a 40-acre tract of exposed glacial silt in Freeport. It is also the largest lobster-producing state in America. Finally, it is where the Maine Coon Cat originated

Illinois

"The Prairie State," Illinois, gets its name from the Native American word, "Illiniwek", which means the best people.

Pennsylvania

"The Quaker State," Pennsylvania was founded by William Penn, and is home to many Quakers and Amish.

Arkansas

"The Razorback State," Arkansas is home to the only producing diamond mine in the United States and the only diamond mine in the world where you can be the miner!

Missouri

"The Show Me State," Missouri's St. Louis popularized Dr. Pepper, cotton candy, iced tea, waffle cones, and hot dogs. Dr. Pepper was created in 1885, in Waco, Texas, by a Brooklyn-born pharmacist named Charles Alderton; however, it did not become nationally popular until 1904.

Nevada

"The Silver State," Nevada; silver in Nevada formed strictly on the surface. Over millions of years of desert conditions, silver sulfide minerals weathered out of their volcanic host rocks and slowly turned, under the influence of rainwater, to silver chloride.

Oklahoma

"The Sooner State," Oklahoma has the largest Native American population of any state in the nation. Many of the 250,000 American Indians living in Oklahoma are descended from 67 tribes who inhabited Indian Territory in the 19th century.

Idaho

"The Spud State, Idaho, is responsible for producing around 6 million metric tons of spuds annually. Boise celebrates the New Year by dropping a 16-foot-tall steel-and-foam potato in the state capital. Every year, thousands of "spec-taters" (see what I did, there?) gather to watch.

Kansas

"The Sunflower State," Kansas produces the most wheat of any state in the United States.

Florida

"The Sunshine State," Florida has approximately one hundred million citrus trees growing on more than 569,000 acres of official citrus groves. It is also home to the oldest European settlement in America (Saint Augustine).

North Carolina

"The Tar Heel State," North Carolina is home to Kittyhawk, where the Wright brothers first flew on December 17, 1903. it is also home to the Biltmore Estate, in Asheville, is the largest privately-owned home in the country, with more than four acres of floor space and 250 rooms.

Tennesse

"The Volunteer State," Tennesse is called so because during the War of 1812 the governor called for 3,500 men to volunteer; almost 28,000 Tennesseans volunteered to serve.