How Many States Are there in America

How Many States Are there in America

When you take a close look at the American flag, you will come to know how many states are there in America. It has 50 stars, each representing each US state. Some people think that there are 52 states, because they have a belief that Puerto Rico and District of Columbia are also states. But this is not true, and there are 50 states in total. Some also take Washington DC to be a state, but it is not a state, but a federal district. Out of the 50 states, 48 are located on the mainland, while 2 are disconnected which are Hawaii and Alaska. The largest state is Alaska while the smallest one is the Rhode Island. Delaware was the first state that joined the union, while Hawaii was the last one. Read this oneHOWTO article to know how many states there are in America and what their capitals are.

Northeast region

The northeast region of the country has been divided into two further divisions, namely New England and Mid-Atlantic. Let's take a look at the states in these areas:

New England

  • Vermont (Montpellier)
  • Rhode Island (Providence)
  • New Hampshire (Concord)
  • Massachusetts (Boston)
  • Maine (Augusta)
  • Connecticut (Hartford)

Mid-Atlantic region

  • Pennsylvania (Harrisburg)
  • New York (Albany)
  • New Jersey (Trenton)

Fun facts

  • If you love going to a drive-in movie theater, you will be glad to know that the first of its kind was built in New Jersey in 1933.
  • Also known as the Garden State, New Jersey is also the state which is known to have highest number of horses per square mile, and the lowest number of divorces in a year.
  • New York was the state where George Washington, the first President of the US, took his office oath in 1789.
  • Although Rhode Island is the smallest state in the US, it has the longest official name, which is State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations.

Midwest region

The Midwest region is also categorized into two divisions, which are East North Central and West North Central.

East North Central region

  • Wisconsin (Madison)
  • Ohio (Columbus)
  • Michigan (Lansing)
  • Indiana (Indianapolis)
  • Illinois ( Springfield)

West North Central Region

  • South Dakota (Pierre)
  • North Dakota (Bismark)
  • Nebraska (Lincoln)
  • Missouri (Jefferson City)
  • Minnesota (Saint Paul)
  • Kansas (Topeka)
  • Iowa (Des Moines)

Fun facts

  • Illinois is home to the talent building of the country, known as the Sears Tower in Chicago.
  • Literally, Minnesota is the land of over 11,000 lakes in its vicinity. If you love bird watching, then Nebraska is the must-visit US state for you.
  • Around 80% of the population sandhill cranes in the world come to the state’s Platte River. This is a must watch spectacle for bird watchers.

South region

The South region of the country is divided into three divisions namely South Atlantic, East South Central and West South Central. Let's take a look at the states that belong to each region in the South:

West South Central division

  • Texas (Austin)
  • Oklahoma (Oklahoma City)
  • Louisiana (Baton Rouge)
  • Arkansas (Little Rock)

East South Central division

  • Tennessee (Nashville)
  • Mississippi (Jackson)
  • Kentucky (Frankfort)
  • Alabama (Montgomery)

South Atlantic division

  • West Virginia (Charleston)
  • Virginia (Richmond)
  • South Carolina (Columbia)
  • North Carolina (Raleigh)
  • Maryland (Annapolis)
  • Georgia (Atlanta)
  • Florida (Tallahassee)
  • Delaware (Dover)

Fun facts

  • Arkansas has the only diamond mine active till date in America.
  • Texas is the house of NASA, the headquarters for US space projects located in Houston.
  • According to reports, Maryland is the richest state in the US in terms of its average household income.
  • South Carolina is home to the Angel Oak Tree, which is the oldest living thing in the nation.

West region

The West region has been divided into the Mountain area and the Pacific division. Take a look at the West region states of the United States:

Mountain division

  • Wyoming (Cheyenne)
  • Utah (Salt lake City)
  • New Mexico (Santa Fe)
  • Nevada (Carson City)
  • Montana (Helena)
  • Idaho (Boise)
  • Colorado (Denver)
  • Arizona (Phoenix)

Pacific division

  • Washington (Olympia)
  • Oregon (Salem)
  • Hawaii (Honolulu)
  • California (Sacramento)
  • Alaska (Juneau)

Fun facts

  • Hawaii is a group of islands located in the Pacific Ocean.
  • Alaska has the longest coastline of 6,640 miles in the US, bordered by Canada in the east and Russia in the west.
  • California is the most populous, while Wyoming is the least populous state of the country.
  • Between 1952 and 1992, hundreds of nuclear weapon tests were conducted on an area of land in Nevada, near Las Vegas.

Insular areas

Insular areas are not states per se but are still within the US territory. Thus, they are not considered states. They are the following:

  • Puerto Rico (San Juan)
  • Samoa (Pago Pago)
  • U.S Virgin Islands (Charlotte Amalie)
  • Guam (Hagatna)

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