Order the US States Trivia Quiz

New Jersey ratified the US Constitution on December 18, 1787. It was originally founded as the Crown Colony of New Jersey. It was the 3rd state to ratify the Constitution, after Delaware and Pennsylvania.

Maryland ratified the US Constitution on April 28, 1788. It was founded as the Proprietary Province of Maryland. It was the 7th state to ratify the Constitution.

About 68 square miles of Maryland, along with 32 square miles of Virginia, were ceded to the US government to form the District of Columbia. These formed a 10 x 10 mile diamond that straddled the Potomac River. The Virginia portion was returned to Virginia in 1846.

Virginia ratified the US Constitution on June 25, 1788. It was originally founded as the Crown Colony and Dominion of Virginia. It was the 10th state to ratify the Constitution.

About 32 square miles of Virginia, along with 68 square miles of Maryland, were ceded to the US government to form the District of Columbia. These formed a 10 x 10 mile diamond that straddled the Potomac River. The Virginia portion was returned to Virginia in 1846.

Vermont was admitted to the Union on March 4, 1791. It was the Vermont Republic from 1777-1791, claiming independence from Quebec, New York, and New Hampshire. It is the 14th state of the US.

It was the first state admitted to the Union rather than a ratifier of the US Constitution. (The 13 stripes on the US flag represent the first 13 states that ratified the Constitution.)

Ohio was admitted to the Union on March 1, 1803. It was formed from part of the Northwest Territory of the US, which included what is now the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and the northeast portion of Minnesota. It is the 17th state of the Union.

Ohio was the first state admitted in the 19th century.

Illinois was admitted to the Union on December 3, 1818. It was formed from part of the Illinois Territory, which itself was part of the Northwest Territory of the US. (The Illinois Territory later became Wisconsin and portions of Minnesota and part of the upper peninsula of Michigan.) It is the 21st state of the US.

Missouri was admitted to the Union on August 10, 1821. It was formed from part of the Missouri Territory. This was formed from the Louisiana Purchase, after the lower portion of this was made into the state of Louisiana; the remainder was made into the Missouri Territory. It is the 24th state of the US.

Missouri was admitted as part of the Missouri compromise, a controversial law that admitted Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state. It also banned slavery in the rest of the lands of the Louisiana Purchase north of the 36° 30' N parallel latitude.

Texas was admitted on December 29, 1845. It was previously the Republic of Texas, an independent country that separated from Mexico. It was admitted *before* the end of the Mexican-American War. Mexico still considered it part of their territory, because it refused to recognize the Treaties of Velasco.

It is the 28th state of the US.

Texas was the largest state admitted from its admission until Alaska was admitted in 1959.

California was admitted on September 9, 1850. It gained a huge influx of settlers during the Gold Rush of 1849. It was part of Unorganized territory from the Mexican Cession after the Mexican-American War. California is the 31st state of the US.

West Virginia was admitted on June 20, 1863, in the middle of the American Civil War. The counties of the northwest of Virginia wanted to stay loyal to the Union, so they formed West Virginia with the promise to outlaw slavery in their territory.

West Virginia is the 35th state of the US.

Colorado was admitted on August 1, 1876. It was formerly the Colorado Territory. Is is the 38th state of the US.

Admitted closest to USA 100th anniversary, so it's called the Centennial State.

South Dakota was admitted on November 2, 1889. It was formed from the Dakota Territory. It is considered the 40th state, even though it was admitted simultaneously with North Dakota, which is the 39th.

The Dakota territory was split with an east/west line, forming North and South Dakota. It was considered to split it with north/south line. But that would make West Dakota very sparsely populated. It was made into two states so that there would be 4 new senators instead of two in the US Senate, where Republicans assumed that the new senators would be Republican, which they were.

Washington was admitted on November 11, 1889. It was formerly Washington Territory. It is the 42nd state of the US.

It was admitted as a part of four states that were admitted in the span of just 9 days: North and South Dakota on November 2 and Montana on November 8.

Utah was admitted on January 4, 1896. It was formerly the Utah Territory. It is the 45th state of the US.

It originally petitioned to become a state with the name Deseret in 1849. A provisional government operated under that name until 1850. Deseret was originally planned to encompass not only current Utah, but parts of Wyoming, Idaho, Oregon, California, Arizona, New Mexico, and much of Nevada.

Utah was the last state admitted in the 19th century.

Hawaii was admitted on August 21, 1959. It was formed from the Territory (formerly Kingdom) of Hawaii. It is the 50th and last state admitted to the US.

The time from Hawaii's admission to today is the longest the US has gone without admitting another state. It is also the only state to not be part of North America, but rather a chain of islands formed over a hot spot in the center of the Pacific oceanic tectonic plate.