Eight American State Questions That Catch Almost Everyone
Capitals that are not the biggest city, borders that follow rivers that moved, and the state that is further east than you think. Eight questions.
American state geography is full of traps, and most of them come from the same two sources.
The first is that a lot of the country was surveyed and divided before it was settled, so many borders are lines of latitude and longitude rather than features anybody can see. That produces the distinctive straight-edged rectangles of the west, and it also produces disputes when the original survey was slightly off.
The second is rivers. A boundary that follows a river is following something that moves, and there is a whole body of law about what happens when it does.
Eight questions below. Two of them have a trick in the wording.
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Eight questions. A couple of them have a trick in the wording, which is flagged in the explanation.
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1 Which state contains the northernmost, westernmost and easternmost points of the United States?
Alaska holds all three. Its Aleutian Islands cross the 180th meridian, which puts part of the state in the Eastern Hemisphere and therefore makes Alaska the easternmost point as well as the westernmost.
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B. Alaska — Alaska holds all three. Its Aleutian Islands cross the 180th meridian, which puts part of the state in the Eastern Hemisphere and therefore makes Alaska the easternmost point as well as the westernmost.
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2 Which state capital has the smallest population?
Montpelier, Vermont is the least populous state capital, with a population in the region of eight thousand. Several other capitals are also far smaller than their state's largest city.
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B. Montpelier, Vermont — Montpelier, Vermont is the least populous state capital, with a population in the region of eight thousand. Several other capitals are also far smaller than their state's largest city.
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3 What is the highest number of other states that a single state borders?
Tennessee and Missouri each border eight other states, which is the record.
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C. Eight — Tennessee and Missouri each border eight other states, which is the record.
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4 Which of these states does NOT border a Great Lake?
Iowa does not touch any of the Great Lakes. Indiana borders Lake Michigan, Pennsylvania borders Lake Erie, and Minnesota borders Lake Superior.
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C. Iowa — Iowa does not touch any of the Great Lakes. Indiana borders Lake Michigan, Pennsylvania borders Lake Erie, and Minnesota borders Lake Superior.
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5 Which state was an independent republic for nearly a decade before joining the union?
The Republic of Texas existed from 1836 until annexation in 1845. Vermont and Hawaii also had periods of separate status, but Texas is the classic answer with nearly ten years as a recognised republic.
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B. Texas — The Republic of Texas existed from 1836 until annexation in 1845. Vermont and Hawaii also had periods of separate status, but Texas is the classic answer with nearly ten years as a recognised republic.
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6 Why do so many western state borders run in perfectly straight lines?
Territories in the west were surveyed and divided using the geographic coordinate system before dense settlement, so boundaries were drawn as meridians and parallels rather than following natural features.
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A. They follow lines of latitude and longitude drawn before settlement — Territories in the west were surveyed and divided using the geographic coordinate system before dense settlement, so boundaries were drawn as meridians and parallels rather than following natural features.
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7 Which state is closest to Africa?
Maine. The distance is measured from the easternmost point of the state to the westernmost point of Africa, and Maine's far eastern position wins comfortably over Florida's southern one.
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B. Maine — Maine. The distance is measured from the easternmost point of the state to the westernmost point of Africa, and Maine's far eastern position wins comfortably over Florida's southern one.
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8 A border between two states shifted without anyone redrawing it. What happened?
Many state borders follow rivers, and rivers move. Where a river shifts gradually the boundary generally moves with it; where it jumps course suddenly in a flood, the old boundary usually stays put, which is how parcels of land end up on the wrong side.
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A. A river changed course — Many state borders follow rivers, and rivers move. Where a river shifts gradually the boundary generally moves with it; where it jumps course suddenly in a flood, the old boundary usually stays put, which is how parcels of land end up on the wrong side.
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Where this came from
- State boundaries and geographic data — United States Geological Survey
- State and territory profiles — Library of Congress
- United States geography reference — Encyclopaedia Britannica
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