4 FACT BOOK Two well-known U S symbols are the national flag and the Statue of Liberty INTRODUCTION The United States of America occupies the middle section of the continent of North America The country stretches across North America from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west The United States is a federal republic consisting of 50 states and the District of Columbia Alaska and Hawaii are the only noncontiguous or nontouching states in the nation They are also the states most recently admitted to the Union both joining in 1959 In 1776 Great Britain’s 13 American colonies declared independence During the following two centuries the original 13 states were joined by 37 new states Today the United States is the third most populous country in the world trailing only China and India In terms of land area it is the fourth largest ountry in the world The population of the United States is very diverse It includes Native Americans and people from many nations and ethnic backgrounds who have come together and formed a common identity While U S citizens share many cultural similarities their varied ethnic backgrounds make for different traditions customs and languages Each year about 4 million visitors explore the wonders of the Grand Canyon
INTRODUCTION 5 The United States of America Washington Olympia Salem Oregon Boise Idaho Helena Montana Wyoming Cheyenne North Dakota Bismarck South Dakota Pierre Minnesota St Paul Nebraska Lincoln Iowa Des Moines Nevada Carson City Sacramento California Pacific Ocean Salt Lake City Utah Denver Colorado Arizona Phoenix Santa Fe New Mexico Wisconsin Madison Michigan Lansing IllinoisIndiana Springfield Indianapolis Ohio Columbus Albany Maine Augusta New Hampshire Massachusetts Providence Rhode Island Montpelier Vermont Concord Boston Hartford Connecticut Trenton New Jersey Dover Delaware Washington D C New York Pennsylvania Harrisburg West Virginia Annapolis Topeka Kansas Oklahoma Oklahoma City Texas Austin Jefferson City Missouri Arkansas Little Rock Louisiana Baton Rouge Frankfort Kentucky Nashville Tennessee Charleston Maryland Richmond Virginia Raleigh North Carolina Alabama Jackson Mississippi Montgomery Atlanta Georgia Columbia South Carolina Atlantic Ocean Tallahassee Florida Alaska Arctic Ocean Beaufort Sea Alaska Pacific Ocean Canada Hawaii Kauai Niihau Gulf of Alaska Juneau Oahu Honolulu Molokai I I A N Lanai Maui H A W A Pacific Ocean I S L A N Kohoolawe D S Hawaii
GEOGRAPHY The United States is located between Canada and Mexico on the continent of North America Alaska occupies the extreme northwestern part of North America and Hawaii is a group of islands located in the middle of the Pacific Ocean The United States is bordered by Canada for 5,526 miles and by Mexico for 2,067 miles Excluding Alaska and Hawaii the United States is often divided into seven major regions Each region shares similarities in geography climate and economy The regions are New England the Middle Atlantic region the South the Midwest the Rocky Mountains the Southwest and the Pacific Coast region The Midwest has fertile soil that is well suited for agriculture 6 FACT BOOK Rocky Mountains Ten Largest States by Area State Size sq miles 1 587,875 266,873 2 158,647 3 4 147,046 121,598 5 114,006 6 7 110,567 104,100 8 97,819 9 10 97,052 Source Britannica World Data 2004 Alaska Texas California Montana New Mexico Arizona Nevada Colorado Wyoming Oregon Ten Smallest States by Area State Size sq miles 1 1,213 2,026 2 5,006 3 4 6,459 7,790 5 8,262 6 7 9,283 9,615 8 10,455 9 10 West Virginia 24,232 Area figures include land area and inland water Rhode Island Delaware Connecticut Hawaii New Jersey Massachusetts New Hampshire Vermont Maryland Source Britannica World Data 2004
Time Zone Map of the United States GEOGRAPHY 7 Eastern ME MA RI CT VT NH NY NJ DE MD Atlantic Ocean WA OR Pacific NV CA MT ID Mountain WY UT AZ CO NM Mountain Pacific Ocean ND SD NE MN Central WI IL IA KS OK Central TX MO AR LA MI IN TN KY PA OH WV VA NC Eastern SC GA FL MS AL Alaska Florida Louisiana Top Ten States with the Longest Shorelines State 1 2 3 4 Maine California 5 North Carolina 6 Texas 7 8 Virginia 9 Michigan 10 Maryland Miles of Shoreline 33,904 8,426 7,721 3,478 3,427 3,375 3,359 3,315 3,224 3,190 Source National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration The craggy and mountainous terrain of the Hawaiian Islands makes for spectacular waterfalls such as the Rainbow Falls in Hilo
