| Geographical position : Alabama |
 06 May 2006 |
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Alabama is the 30th largest state in the United States with 52,423 square miles (135,775 km2) of total area. 3.19% of that is water, making Alabama 23rd in the amount of surface water, also giving it the second largest inland waterway system in the United States. About three-fifths of the land area is a gentle plain with a general decline towards the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico. The North... |
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| Geographical position : Alaska |
23 May 2006 |
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Alaska is the largest state in the United States in terms of land area, 570,374 square miles (1,477,261 km²). In fact, it covers more than twice as much land than the next largest state, Texas. If a map of Alaska were superimposed upon a map of the Continental United States, Alaska would overlap Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, New Mexico and Colorado, and if the state's westernmost point was superimposed... |
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| Geographical position : Arizona |
24 May 2006 |
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Arizona is one of the Four Corners states, situated south and east of the Colorado River. It border with New Mexico, Utah, Nevada, California, touches Colorado, and has a 389-mile (626 km) international border with Mexico.
Arizona is the sixth largest state in area, after New Mexico. Aside from the Grand Canyon, a number of other National Forests, Parks, Monuments, and Indian reservations are... |
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| Geographical position : Arkansas |
03 Jul 2006 |
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The capital of Arkansas is Little Rock. Arkansas is the only state in the U.S. where diamonds are found naturally (near Murfreesboro, Arkansas).
The eastern border for most of Arkansas is the Mississippi River except in Clay and Greene counties where the St. Francis River forms the western boundary of the Missouri Bootheel. Arkansas shares its southern border with Louisiana, its northern border... |
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| Geographical position : California |
04 Jul 2006 |
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California borders the Pacific Ocean, Oregon, Nevada, Arizona, and the Mexican state of Baja California. The state has strikingly beautiful natural features, including an expansive central valley, tall mountains, hot deserts, and hundreds of miles of scenic coastline. With an area of 160,000 square miles (411,000 km²) it is the third largest state in the U.S and is larger than Germany in size. Most... |
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| Geographical position : Colorado |
04 Jul 2006 |
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Colorado is one of only three states (the others are Wyoming and Utah) that have only lines of latitude and longitude for borders. It stretches exactly from 37°N to 41°N, and 102°W to 109°W. The Four Corners Monument at its southwestern-most point is at 37°N and 109°W.
East of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains are the Colorado Eastern Plains, the section of the Great Plains within Colorado... |
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| Geographical position : Connecticut |
04 Jul 2006 |
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Generally rectangular in shape, Connecticut extends c.90 mi (145 km) from east to west and c.55 mi (90 km) from north to south. The state is divided into two roughly equal sections, usually called the eastern highland and the western highland, which are separated by the Connecticut Valley lowland. The Connecticut River, which flows through only the northern half of this lowland, veers off to the southeast... |
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| Geographical position : Delaware |
04 Jul 2006 |
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Delaware is the second-smallest state in the United States, Rhode Island being the smallest.
Delaware is bounded to the north by Pennsylvania, to the east by the Delaware River and the Atlantic Ocean and to the west and south by Maryland. Small portions of Delaware are also situated on the far, or eastern, side of the Delaware River Estuary, and these small parcels share land boundaries with New... |
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| Geographical position : Florida |
04 Jul 2006 |
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Florida is situated mostly on a large peninsula between the Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Straits of Florida. It extends to the northwest into a panhandle, extending along the northern Gulf of Mexico. It is bordered on the north by the states of Georgia and Alabama, and on the west, at the end of the panhandle, by Alabama. It is near the countries of the Caribbean, particularly the Bahamas... |
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| Geographical position : Georgia |
04 Jul 2006 |
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Georgia is bordered on the south by Florida; on the east by the Atlantic Ocean and South Carolina; on the west by Alabama; and on the north by Tennessee and North Carolina. The northern part of the state is in the Blue Ridge Mountains, a mountain range in the mountain system of the Appalachians. The central piedmont extends from the foothills to the fall line, where the rivers cascade down in elevation... |
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| Geographical position : Hawaii |
04 Jul 2006 |
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The Hawaiian Islands are of volcanic origin and are edged with coral reefs. Hawaii is the largest and geologically the youngest island of the group, and Oahu, where the capital, Honolulu, is located, is the most populous and economically important. The other principal islands are Kahoolawe, Kauai, Lanai, Maui, Molokai, and Niihau. The Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, consisting of uninhabited islets... |
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| Geographical position : Idaho |
06 Jul 2006 |
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Much of Idaho has an unspoiled beauty, with rugged slopes and towering peaks, a vast expanse of timberland, scenic lakes, wild rivers, cascades, and spectacular gorges. From the northern Panhandle, where Idaho is about 45 mi (72 km) wide, the state broadens south of the Bitterroot Range to 310 mi (499 km) in width. The Snake River flows in a great arc across S Idaho; with its tributaries the river... |
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| Geographical position : Illinois |
06 Jul 2006 |
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The broad level lands that gave Illinois the nickname Prairie State were fashioned by late Cenozoic glaciation, which leveled rugged ridges and filled valleys over the northern and central parts of the state. The fertile prairies are drained by more than 275 rivers, most of which flow to the Mississippi-Ohio system; the Illinois is the largest river in the state.
These rivers provided early explorers... |
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| Geographical position : Indiana |
06 Jul 2006 |
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Indiana is bounded on the north by Lake Michigan and the state of Michigan; on the east by Ohio; on the south by Kentucky, with which it shares the Ohio River as a border; and on the west by Illinois. Indiana is one of the Great Lakes states.
The 475 mile (764 km) long Wabash River bisects the state from northeast to southwest and has given Indiana two theme songs, the state song On the Banks of... |
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| Geographical position : Iowa |
06 Jul 2006 |
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Iowa is bordered by Minnesota on the north; Nebraska and South Dakota on the west; Missouri on the south; and Wisconsin and Illinois on the east.
The Mississippi River forms the eastern boundary of the state. The boundary along the west is formed by the Missouri River south of Sioux City and by the Big Sioux River north of Sioux City. There are several natural lakes in the state, most notably Spirit... |
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| Geographical position : Kansas |
06 Jul 2006 |
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Almost rectangular in shape and mostly part of the Great Plains, Kansas is famous for its seemingly endless fields of ripe golden wheat. The land rises more than 3,000 ft (914 m) from the eastern alluvial prairies of Kansas to its western semiarid high plains, which stretch toward the foothills of the Rocky Mts. The rise is so gradual, however, that it is imperceptible, although the terrains of the... |
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| Geographical position : Kentucky |
06 Jul 2006 |
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From elevations of about 2,000 ft (610 m) on the Cumberland Plateau in the southeast, where Black Mt. (4,145 ft/1,263 m) marks the state's highest point, Kentucky slopes to elevations of less than 800 ft (244 m) along the western rim. The narrow valleys and sharp ridges of the mountain region are noted for forests of giant hardwoods and scented pine and for springtime blooms of laurel, magnolia, rhododendron,... |
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| Geographical position : Louisiana |
07 Jul 2006 |
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The state is bordered to the west by the state of Texas; to the north by Arkansas; to the east by the state of Mississippi; and to the south by the Gulf of Mexico.
The surface of the state may properly be divided into two parts, the uplands, and the alluvial and coast and swamp regions. The alluvial regions, including the low swamps and coast lands, cover an area of about 20,000 square miles (52,000... |
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| Geographical position : Maine |
07 Jul 2006 |
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Located in the extreme northeast corner of the United States, Maine consists largely of a coastal plain of eroded valleys, with more resistant rock forming the generally mountainous west (the Longfellow Mts., an extension of the White Mts. and part of the great Appalachian system), Mt. Desert and other islands in the east, and isolated peaks including Katahdin (5,268 ft/1,606 m), the highest point... |
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| Geographical position : Maryland |
07 Jul 2006 |
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A seaboard state, E Maryland is divided by Chesapeake Bay, which runs almost to the northern border; thus the region of Maryland called the Eastern Shore is separated from the main part of the state and is dominated by the bay. For the most part, the erratic course of the Potomac River separates the main part of Maryland from Virginia (to the south) and the long, narrow western handle from West Virginia... |
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| Geographical position : Massachusetts |
07 Jul 2006 |
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The eastern part of the commonwealth (its official designation), including the Cape Cod peninsula and the islands lying off it to the south—the Elizabeth Islands, Martha's Vineyard, and Nantucket—is a low coastal plain. In this area short, swift rivers such as the Merrimack have long supplied industry with power, and an indented coastline provides many good natural harbors, with Boston a major U.S.... |
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| Geographical position : Michigan |
07 Jul 2006 |
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The Lower Peninsula, shaped like a mitten, is separated from Ontario, Canada, on the east by Lake Erie and Lake Huron, and by the Detroit River and the St. Clair River, which together link these two Great Lakes. It is bordered by Lake Michigan on the west, across which lies Wisconsin. The Upper Peninsula lies northeast of Wisconsin between Lake Michigan and Lake Superior, and is separated from Ontario... |
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| Geographical position : Minnesota |
07 Jul 2006 |
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Except for Alaska, Minnesota is the most northerly of all the states. The climate is humid continental. Winter locks the land in snow, spring is brief, and summers are hot. Prehistoric glaciers left marshes, boulder-strewn hills, and rich, gray drift soil stretching from the northern pine wilderness to the broad southern prairies. In the eastern part of the state are mountains, part of the Canadian... |
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| Geographical position : Mississippi |
07 Jul 2006 |
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Mississippi is bordered on the north by the state of Tennessee; on the east by Alabama, on the south by Louisiana and the Gulf of Mexico; and on the west by Louisiana and Arkansas (across the Mississippi River).
Major rivers include Mississippi River, Big Black River, Pearl River, and Yazoo River. Major lakes include Ross Barnett Reservoir, Arkabutla Lake, Sardis Lake, and Grenada Lake.
The... |
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| Geographical position : Missouri |
10 Jul 2006 |
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Two great rivers, the Mississippi and the Missouri, have had a great influence on the development of Missouri. The Mississippi tied the region to the South, particularly to New Orleans. The Missouri crosses the state from west to east and enters the Mississippi near St. Louis; the portion of its valley between St. Louis and what became Kansas City was the greatest avenue of early-19th-cent. advance... |
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| Geographical position : Montana |
10 Jul 2006 |
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Life in Montana's mountainous western area differs greatly from that on its eastern plains. Across the eastern half of the state stretch broad sections of the Great Plains, drained by the Missouri River, which originates in SW Montana, and by its tributaries, the Milk, the Marias, the Sun, and especially the Yellowstone. Much of Montana's western boundary is marked by the crest of the lofty Bitterroot... |
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| Geographical position : Nebraska |
10 Jul 2006 |
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Nebraska is roughly rectangular, except in the northeast and the east where the border is formed by the irregular course of the Missouri River and in the southwest where the state of Colorado cuts out a squared corner. The land rises more or less gradually from 840 ft (256 m) in the east to 5,300 ft (1,615 m) in the west. The great but shallow Platte River, formed in W Nebraska by the junction of... |
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| Geographical position : Nevada |
10 Jul 2006 |
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Most of Nevada lies within the Great Basin of the Basin and Range region of North America. The rivers in the southeast belong to the Colorado River system, while those of the extreme north drain into the Snake. Like the Humboldt, most Nevada rivers go nowhere, ending instead in desolate alkali sinks—except where they have been diverted for irrigation and reclamation, as by the Humboldt project, the... |
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| Geographical position : New Hampshire |
10 Jul 2006 |
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The continental ice sheet once covered the entire state, scraping the mountains, eroding intervening upland areas, and rerouting water courses into precipitous streams and beautiful lakes. Across the north central part of the state the residual White Mountains of the Appalachian chain form ranges abruptly broken by passes (called notches). Between the Carter-Moriah Range and the Presidential Range... |
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| Geographical position : New Jersey |
10 Jul 2006 |
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New Jersey is surrounded by water except along the 50 mi (80 km) of northern border with New York state. The northern third of the state lies within the Appalachian Highland region, where ridges running northeast and southwest shelter valleys containing pleasant streams and glacial lakes. Beyond the crest of wooded slopes are long-established farms given over to dairying and field crops. The Kittatinny... |
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| Geographical position : New Mexico |
11 Jul 2006 |
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New Mexico is roughly bisected by the Rio Grande and has an approximate mean altitude of 5,700 ft (1,737 m). The topography of the state is marked by broken mesas, wide deserts, heavily forested mountain wildernesses, and high, bare peaks. The mountain ranges, part of the Rocky Mts., rising to their greatest height (more than 13,000 ft/3,962 m) in the Sangre de Cristo Mts., are in broken groups, running... |
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| Geographical position : New York |
11 Jul 2006 |
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New York State's borders touch (clockwise from the northwest) two Great Lakes (Erie and Ontario, which are connected by the Niagara River); one former Great Lake (Lake Champlain); the provinces of Ontario and Quebec in Canada; three New England states (Vermont, Massachusetts, and Connecticut); the Atlantic Ocean, and two Mid-Atlantic states (New Jersey and Pennsylvania). In addition, Rhode Island... |
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| Geographical position : North Carolina |
11 Jul 2006 |
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The eastern end of North Carolina juts out from the East Coast of the United States into the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf Stream, making the state prone to Atlantic hurricanes, which tend to strike the state every three to four years. Running along the entire coast of North Carolina, serving as a buffer against the Atlantic, is a long chain of barrier islands (the Outer Banks), with constantly shifting... |
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| Geographical position : North Dakota |
11 Jul 2006 |
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North Dakota is bordered on the north by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba; on the west by Montana; on the south by South Dakota; and on the east—across the Red River of the North and the Bois de Sioux River—by Minnesota. The Missouri River flows through the western part of the state, forming Lake Sakakawea behind the Garrison Dam.
Farms and ranches stretch across the rolling... |
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| Geographical position : Ohio |
11 Jul 2006 |
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The Great Seal of the State of Ohio features Ohio's coat of arms surrounded by the words, "THE GREAT SEAL OF THE STATE OF OHIO". Ohio's coat of arms features a full sheaf of wheat, symbolizing agriculture and bounty; a cluster of seventeen arrows, symbolizing Ohio's admittance as the seventeenth of the United States of America; a representation of Mount Logan, Ross County, as viewed from the Adena... |
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| Geographical position : Oklahoma |
12 Jul 2006 |
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Oklahoma is one of the six states on the Frontier Strip. It is bounded on the east by Arkansas and Missouri, on the north by Kansas and northwest by Colorado (both at 37°N), on the far west by New Mexico (at 103°W), and on the south and near-west by Texas. The panhandle's southern boundary is at 36.5°N, then turning due south along 100°W to the southern fork of the Red River), completing the round... |
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| Geographical position : Oregon |
12 Jul 2006 |
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Oregon's contrasting physical features are characterized by great forested mountain slopes and treeless basins, rushing rivers and barren playas, lush valleys and extensive wastelands. The major determinant for these unusual climatic differences is the Cascade Range, a rugged mountain chain running north to south c.100 mi (160 km) inland. As the eastward-moving air masses, warmed by the Alaska Current... |
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| Geographical position : Pennsylvania |
12 Jul 2006 |
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Pennsylvania's nickname, the Keystone State, is quite apt, as the state forms a geographic bridge both between the Northeastern states and the Southern states, and between the Atlantic seaboard and the Midwest. It is bordered on the north and northeast by New York, on the east, across the Delaware River by New Jersey, on the south by Delaware, Maryland, and West Virginia, on the west by Ohio, and... |
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| Geographical position : Rhode Island |
13 Jul 2006 |
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Rhode Island is the smallest of the 50 states and except for New Jersey the most densely populated. The dominant physiographic feature of the state is the Narragansett basin, a shallow lowland area of Carboniferous sediments, extending into SE Massachusetts and, in Rhode Island, partly submerged as Narragansett Bay. The bay cuts inland c.30 mi (50 km) to Providence, where it receives the Blackstone... |
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| Geographical position : South Carolina |
13 Jul 2006 |
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South Carolina is roughly triangular in shape. The long, even coast lined with beautiful sand beaches on the “Grand Strand” north of Georgetown becomes generally marshy to the south and is sliced by a network of rivers and creeks, creating a maze of inlets and the famous Sea Islands. The coastal climate is humid subtropical, with long, hot summers and short, mild winters. In this area are found cypress... |
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| Geographical position : South Dakota |
13 Jul 2006 |
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South Dakota is bordered to the north by North Dakota; to the south by Nebraska; to the east by Iowa and Minnesota; and to the west by Wyoming and Montana. It is one of the six states of the Frontier Strip.
The Missouri River runs through the central part of South Dakota. To the east of the river lie low hills and lakes formed by glaciers. Fertile farm country covers the area. To the west of the... |
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| Geographical position : Tennessee |
13 Jul 2006 |
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The state has three sharply defined regions: East Tennessee, Middle Tennessee, and West Tennessee. In East Tennessee the Great Smoky Mts., Cumberland Plateau, and the narrow river valleys and heavily forested foothills generally restrict farming there to the subsistence level; but this region has two of the state's most industrialized cities, Chattanooga (fourth largest) and Knoxville (third largest).... |
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| Geographical position : Texas |
13 Jul 2006 |
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The geography of Texas spans a wide range of features and timelines. Texas is the southernmost part of the Great Plains, which ends in the south against the folded Sierra Madre Oriental of Mexico. It is in the south-central part of the United States of America. It is considered to form part of the U.S. South and also part of the U.S. Southwest.
The Rio Grande, Red River and Sabine River all provide... |
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| Geographical position : Utah |
13 Jul 2006 |
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Utah is one of the Four Corners states, and is bordered by Idaho and Wyoming in the north; by Colorado in the east; at a single point by New Mexico to the southeast (at the Four Corners Monument); by Arizona in the south; and by Nevada in the west. It covers an area of 84,899 square miles (219,887 km²).
One of Utah's defining characteristics is the variety of its terrain. Running down the center... |
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| Geographical position : Vermont |
14 Jul 2006 |
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The forested Green Mts. constitute the dominant physiographic feature of Vermont. They consist of at least four distinct groups, all traversing the state in a generally north-south direction. Largest and most important are the Green Mts. proper, which extend down the center of the state from the Canadian border to the Massachusetts line, rising to Vermont's highest peak, Mt. Mansfield (4,393 ft/1,339... |
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| Geographical position : Virginia |
17 Jul 2006 |
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Virginia is bordered by West Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia (across the Potomac River) to the north; by Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean to the east; by North Carolina and Tennessee to the south; and by Kentucky and West Virginia to the west.
The most northerly of the Southern states, Virginia is roughly triangular in shape. The small section of the state that, along with... |
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| Geographical position : Washington |
17 Jul 2006 |
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Washington is bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west; Oregon to the south (the Columbia River forming most of this border); Idaho to the east and British Columbia, Canada to the north. It is famous for scenery of breathtaking beauty and sharp contrasts. High mountains rise above evergreen forests and sparkling coastal waters. Its coastal location and Puget Sound harbors give it a leading role in... |
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| Geographical position : West Virginia |
18 Jul 2006 |
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Nicknamed the “Mountain State,” West Virginia is very hilly and rugged, with the highest mean altitude (1,500 ft/457 m) of any state E of the Mississippi. Nearly all of the state is on the Allegheny Plateau, with the jagged Virginia–West Virginia line roughly following the eastern escarpment of the plateau (known as the Allegheny Front). Extremely irregular in outline, West Virginia has two narrow... |
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| Geographical position : Wisconsin |
18 Jul 2006 |
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The state is bordered by the Montreal River; Lake Superior and Michigan to the north; by Lake Michigan to the east; by Illinois to the south; and by Iowa and Minnesota to the west. Part of the state's boundaries includes the Mississippi River and St. Croix River in the west, and the Menominee River in the northeast.
With its location between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River, Wisconsin... |
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| Geographical position : Wyoming |
29 Jun 2006 |
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Wyoming is bordered on the north by Montana; on the east by South Dakota and Nebraska; on the south by Colorado; and on the west by Utah and Idaho. Devil's Tower, made famous in the film Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, is located near Moorcroft in Crook County. Wyoming is one of three states entirely bounded by straight lines. It is the eleventh largest state in the United States containing 97,818... |
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