The United States Of Amazing
While it's a fact that Alaska is the largest state by area and Idaho produces the most potatoes—those facts aren't very amazing. But these facts are!
Alabama Has Snails
If someone asked you where the most diverse snail species in the world was, how many guesses would you need to make before you said Alabama? Well, now you'll only need one. There are 210 species of freshwater snails in Alabama.
Whelan NV, CC BY 2.5, Wikimedia Commons
The Alaska Coastline
It might not surprise anyone to find out that Alaska has the longest coastline of any state in the country. However, not only is it longer than any other state—at 6,640 miles, it's greater than all of the other states combined. Now that's amazing.
Arizona Telescopes
Home to Kitt Peak National Observatory (among others), Arizona has more telescopes than any other place in the world.
Slovinský, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Arkansas Diamonds
Arkansas' Crater Diamonds State Park is not only home to the only operational diamond mine in the country—but tourists can actually visit said mine and do some gem hunting themselves (you can keep whatever you find too).
Doug Wertman, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
California's Highs And Lows
California is home to Mount Whitney—which, at 14,494 feet, is the highest point in the contiguous United States. But wait, there's more... Elsewhere in the state—and just 85 miles away from Mount Whitney—lies Badwater Basin in Death Valley. Which, at 282 feet below sea level, is the lowest point in the contiguous states.
Cullen328, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
The Shape Of Colorado
Colorado is a rectangle, right? Well, not exactly. You see, while that was the plan (Congress intended for the state to be a perfect rectangle), things didn't quite go as planned when the surveyors ended up just a little off course, creating a slight kink in the western border that ruined the perfect rectangle plan.
Hogs555, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Connecticut's Publishing Firsts
The first US phonebook was published in Connecticut in 1878. American Cookery, the first American cookbook, was published in Connecticut in 1796. Also, the American newspaper that has been in continuous publication the longest is The Hartford Courant (called The Connecticut Courant when it was first published in 1764).
Amelia Simmons, Hudson & Goodwin, Wikimedia Commons
Delaware's Fortune 500s
Due to their favorable corporate laws, over three-fifths of all Fortune 500 companies are legally incorporated in Delaware.
McGhiever, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Florida's Unlikely Friends
Okay, well, we don't know how friendly they are...but the Florida Everglades are the only place in the world where both alligators and crocodiles coexist in the same environment.
Daniel Kraft, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Big Georgia
Georgia may not be the largest state in the country—but if we're talking east of the Mississippi river, there is no state larger in land area than Georgia.
Ryan Hagerty, Wikimedia Commons
What Time Is It In Hawaii?
Hawaii has something no other state has: its own time zone. It is the only one of the 50 states covered entirely by its own time zone. Hawaii also doesn't do the whole daylight savings time thing.
MEBurkhart, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Maaaaaiiiiiinnnnnn Street
Island Park, Idaho is home to the longest main street in America. This thing is 33 miles long.
78.26, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Normal Illinois
Lenny Bronner of The Washington Post published a survey that determined Illinois to be the state that most closely resembled the US average across a wide range of socioeconomic factors. That makes it the "most normal" state in the country.
Adam Jones, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Miles In Indiana
The Hoosier state has more miles of interstate per square mile than any other US state.
Golfing In Iowa
Iowans love to golf. Or, at least they appear to love golf courses—as the state has more golf courses per capita than any other state in the Union.
Jim Roberts, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Windy City Kansas
Chicago might be known as the "Windy City", but the windiest city in America actually resides in Kansas. Dodge City, Kansas is considered the windiest city in the country—with average winds of 14 mph.
Gerald B. Keane, Wikimedia Commons
Crater Town Kentucky
About 300 years ago, a meteor caused a three-mile-wide crater in Kentucky. So, they built a town in it. Middlesboro is the only town built completely inside a meteor crater.
K smith8907, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Civil Louisiana Law
While the 49 other states all use a common law system, Louisiana (due to their French heritage) uses a civil law system.
Billy Hathorn, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Maine: The Far East
It might have "west" in its name—but West Quoddy Head, Maine is the easternmost point in the country. So, if you think about it, Maine is actually the closest American state to Africa.
Michael Trindade Deramo, Wikimedia Commons
Maryland Umbrellas
In 1928, the first umbrella factory in the country was established in Baltimore, Maryland.
Massachusetts' Progressive Firsts
Massachusetts was the first state to legally recognize same-sex marriage and the only state to institute a "right to shelter" law—guaranteeing emergency housing to homeless families with children and pregnant women.
Michigan's Recycling Refund
As Seinfeld fans know (thanks to Kramer and Newman money making scheme), Michigan's 10 cents per bottle or can is the highest recycling refund in the country.
French Minnesota
If there was going to be one state whose slogan was in French, you'd think it was Louisiana, right? Well, it's not. The only state with a French slogan is actually Minnesota: L'Étoile du Nord"—which translates to "The Star of the North" (hockey fans of the old Minnesota North Stars probably knew this already).
Mississippi Got Milk
In 1984, the Mississippi State Legislature passed an act designating milk as the official state drink. It's also the birthplace of blues music.
Say Cheese, Missouri
Commonly referred to as the "Cheese Caves"—Springfield, Missouri is home to converted limestone mines where the US government keeps about 1.4 billion pounds of cheese, at a perfectly maintained 36 degrees Fahrenheit.
Liné1, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Triple Montana
There are a few things Montana has that no other state does. One of those things is a triple divide—allowing waters to flow to Hudson Bay, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Pacific Ocean.
Sooter, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Uni-Nebraska
You might've assumed that every state legislature is set up in a bicameral system which, like the federal government with the House and the Senate, has two chambers. Well, you're almost right. 49 states do. But then there's Nebraska with their unicameral—single legislative chamber—system.
Dry Nevada
You might've assumed that Nevada was the driest state in the Union, but did you know that they only average about 10 inches of rain a year?
John Fowler, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
New Hampshire Independence
In 1776, the colony of New Hampshire declared its independence from Britain—establishing an independent government and state constitution. They were the first British colony to do so. This was six months before they signed the United States Declaration of Independence.
New Jersey: Horses And Divorces
New Jersey has more horses per square mile than any other state, and the lowest divorce rate in America as well. Not sure if one has anything to do with the other.
The New Mexico Question
New Mexico is the only state with an official state question: Red or Green?—referring to the type of chili sauce you want on your food.
Nurban, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
George Washington In New York
Federal Hall in New York City was the site of the swearing in of the first president of the United States of America, George Washington. New York City was also the first United States capital—from 1785 to 1790.
Ajay Suresh, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Virginia Dare In North Carolina
Who is Virginia Dare, you ask? Well, she was the first English child born in America. She was born in 1587 on Roanoke Island.
DrStew82, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
North Dakota 39th Or 40th?
Although North Dakota gets credited as the 39th state admitted into the Union—that might not actually be the case. You see, both North and South Dakota were admitted at the same time. However, President Benjamin Harrison shuffled the statehood papers around before he signed them, so that no one would know which actually became a state first. Thus, they are ranked in alphabetical order.
Ohio Retroactive Statehood
Ohio was the 17th state, right? Well, yes and no. You see, while president Thomas Jefferson did sign an act of Congress that approved Ohio's boundaries and constitution in 1803—Congress never actually passed a formal resolution admitting Ohio as the 17th state.
Now, that formal resolution wasn't an actual requirement, but when this was discovered in 1953, President Eisenhower signed and backdated Ohio's statehood admittance. So, all good.
Tattooing In Oklahoma
From 1963 until 2006—when the law was changed—tattooing was illegal in the state of Oklahoma. It was the last state in America to legalize it.
Oregon Ghost Towns
There are ghost towns across the country, but no state has more of them than Oregon.
Tedder, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
How Do You Spell Pennsylvania
Is it one "n" or two? Well, while we all know Pennsylvania with two "n"s—it's actually spelled "Pensylvania" with one "n" on the Liberty Bell. Even the constitution isn't sure about the "n" situation—spelling it as Pensylvania with one "n" in one section and Pennsylvania with two "n"s in another section.
Rhode Island's Official Name
Until 2020, the state's official name was the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. In 2020, the "and Providence Plantations" was dropped from the name after voters approved an amendment to the state constitution.
Wirestock Creators, Adobe Stock
South Carolina Was The First One Out
One of the 13 original colonies, in 1788, South Carolina became the eighth state to ratify the constitution. Then, 72 years later, in 1860, South Carolina became the first state to vote in favor of secession from the Union.
South Dakota ZZZZZZZZZ
One study found that South Dakota was the least sleep deprived state in the nation. Any thoughts as to why that is?
Tennessee Loves Replicas
Did you know that in Nashville, there is an exact-size replica of the Parthenon? But that's not all. Head over to Paris, Tennessee and you'll find a replica of the Eiffel Tower.
White.alister.t, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Texas Power
Not wanting to have anything to do with the federal government overseeing their energy and electricity—Texas is the only state with its own power grid.
Utah's National Forests
There are many national forests across the country, but Utah is the only state in the nation in which every single county contains at least some part of a national forest.
An Errant Knight, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Vermont's Small Capital
Montpelier is the state capital of Vermont—and with just 8,000 residents, it is the smallest state capital in the country. In case you were wondering—the state of Vermont is the second-least populated state (only behind Wyoming).
Virginia Internet
Home to a plethora of data centers, the Dulles Technology Corridor (as it is known) is responsible for the handling of up around 70% of the world's Internet traffic.
Ifly6, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Washington Is The Number One Producer Of...
Washington State is the country's number one producer of a whole bunch of agricultural items, including: apples, hops, blueberries, pears, spearmint oil, and sweet cherries.
West Virginia's Formation
West Virginia is one of only two states to be admitted into the Union during the Civil War, the other being Nevada—but unlike Nevada, West Virginia was formed via secession from what was then just Virginia. When Virginia voted to secede from the Union during the Civil War, a group of western delegates from the state opposed the idea—thus, leading to the creation of a brand new state: West Virginia.
Wisconsin Takes Dairy Seriously
Wisconsin, America's Dairyland, comes by that nickname honestly—as a top dairy producer in the country. In fact, they take such pride in their butter and such that, from 1895 to 1967, it was illegal to produce and sell margarine in the state. And while that ban has since been relinquished, it is still illegal to serve margarine in place of butter in the state of Wisconsin (unless the customer requests it).
Four Wyoming Escalators
There's nothing special about the escalators in Wyoming—what's amazing is the fact that there are only four of them (two sets of one up and one down each) in the entire state.
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