Facts about each US state

The various state nicknames and so on are well documented on the web. They are usually listed by state, so I thought that I would compare them to each other.

State nicknames and mottos
State flowers, trees, grass and fruit
State birds, animals, insects and reptiles
State fish, amphibians, marine animals and shells
State fossils, gemstones, minerals, rocks and soil
State drink, fruit, vegetable and others (muffins, etc.)
Other State emblems
Facts (serious or frivolous) about each US state

State	State nickname	State motto (translation)	Language of motto
Alabama	Yellowhammer State	Audemus jura nostra defendere (We Dare Maintain Our Rights)	Latin
Alaska	Great Land	North To The Future
Arizona	Grand Canyon State	Ditat Deus (God Enriches)	Latin
Arkansas	Natural State	Regnat Populus (The People Rule)	Latin
California	Golden State	Eureka (I have found it!)	Greek
Colorado	Centennial State	Nil sine numine (Nothing without Providence)	Latin
Connecticut	Constitution State	Qui transtulit sustinet (He who transplanted sustains)	Latin
Delaware	First State	Liberty and Independence
Florida	Sunshine State	In God We Trust
Georgia	Peach State	Wisdom, Justice, and Moderation
Hawaii	Aloha State	Ua mau ke ea o ka aina i ka pono (The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness)	Hawaiian
Idaho	Gem State	Esto perpetua (Let it be perpetual)	Latin
Illinois	Land of Lincoln	State sovereignty, national union
Indiana	Crossroads of America	The Crossroads of America
Iowa	Hawkeye State	Our Liberties We Prize and Our Rights We Will Maintain
Kansas	Sunflower State	Ad Astra Per Aspera (To the Stars Through Difficulties)	Latin
Kentucky	Bluegrass State	United We Stand, Divided We Fall
Louisiana	Pelican State	Union, justice, and confidence
Maine	Pine Tree State	Dirigo (I lead)	Latin
Maryland	Free State	Fatti maschii parole femine (strong deeds, gentle words )	Italian
Massachusetts	Bay State	Ense petit placidam sub libertate quietem (By the sword we seek peace, but peace only under liberty)	Latin
Michigan	Wolverine State	Si Quaeris Peninsulam Amoenam Circumspice (If you seek a pleasant peninsula, look about you.)	Latin
Minnesota	North Star State	L'Etoile du nord (Star of the north)	French
Mississippi	Show Me State	Salus Populi Suprema Lex Esto (Let the Welfare of the People be the Supreme Law)	Latin
Missouri	Magnolia State	Virtute et armis (By valor and arms)	Latin
Montana	Treasure State	Oro y Plata (gold and silver)	Spanish
Nebraska	Cornhusker State	Equality before the law
Nevada	Sagebrush State	All for our country
New Hampshire	Granite State	Live Free or Die
New Jersey	Garden State	Liberty and Prosperity
New Mexico	Land of Enchantment	Crescit eundo (It grows as it goes)	Latin
New York	Empire State	Excelsior (higher)	Latin
North Carolina	Tarheel State	Esse quam videri (To be, rather than to seem)	Latin
North Dakota	Peace Garden State	Liberty and Union Now and Forever, One and Inseparable
Ohio	Buckeye State	With God all things are possible
Oklahoma	Sooner State	Labor Omnia Vincit (Labor Conquers All Things)	Latin
Oregon	Beaver State	She Flies With Her Own Wings
Pennsylvania	Keystone State	Virtue, Liberty, and Independence
Rhode Island	Little Rhody	Hope
South Carolina	Palmetto State	Dum spiro spero (while I breathe, I hope) Animis opibusque parati (Ready in soul and resource)	Latin
South Dakota	Mount Rushmore State	Under God the people rule
Tennessee	Volunteer State	Agriculture and Commerce
Texas	Lone Star State	Friendship
Utah	Beehive State	Industry
Vermont	Green Mountain State	Freedom and unity
Virginia	Old Dominion	Sic Semper Tyrannis (Thus Always to Tyrants)	Latin
Washington	Evergreen State	Alki (bye and bye)	Chinook
West Virginia	Mountain State	Montani semper liberi (Mountaineers are always free)	Latin
Wisconsin	Badger State	Forward
Wyoming	Equality State	Equal Rights

Explanations of state nicknames

State flowers, trees, grass and fruit

The states do not always use the neat categories below. Some states introduce sub-categories, such as wild flower. I have ignored these and clustered them together where necessary. I have also removed Latin names. If you want an accurate description, then I suggest that you access the relevant state government website. This is purely to compare the different states.

State	flower	tree	grass/grain/crop
Alabama	Camellia	Longleaf Pine
Alaska	Forget-me-not	Sitka Spruce
Arizona	Saguaro Blossom	Palo Verde
Arkansas	Apple Blossom	Pine
California	California Poppy	California Redwood	Purple Needlegrass
Colorado	Rocky Mountain Columbine	Colorado Spruce	Blue grama
Connecticut	Mountain Laurel	The Charter Oak
Delaware	Peach Blossom	American Holly
Florida	Orange blossom	Sabal Palm
Georgia	Cherokee rose & Azalea	Southern live oak	peanut (crop)
Hawaii	Yellow Hibiscus	Kukui
Idaho	Syringa	Western White Pine
Illinois	Purple violet	White oak	Big Bluestem
Indiana	Peony	Tulip / Yellow Poplar
Iowa	Wild Prairie Rose	Oak
Kansas	Common Sunflower	Eastern Cottonwood
Kentucky	Goldenrod	Tulip Tree
Louisiana	Magnolia & Louisiana Iris	Baldcypress
Maine	White pine cone and tassel	White Pine
Maryland	Black-Eyed Susan	White Oak
Massachusetts	Mayflower	American Elm
Michigan	Apple Blossom & Dwarf Lake Iris	White Pine
Minnesota	Pink and White Lady Slipper	Red (Norway) Pine	Wild Rice
Mississippi	Magnolia	Magnolia
Missouri	Hawthorn	Flowering Dogwood
Montana	Bitterroot	Ponderosa Pine	Bluebunch Wheatgrass
Nebraska	Goldenrod	Cottonwood	Little Bluestem
Nevada	Sagebrush	Single-leaf Pinon & Bristlecone Pine	Indian Rye Grass
New Hampshire	Purple Lilac & Pink Lady's Slipper	White Birch
New Jersey	Purple Violet	Red Oak
New Mexico	Yucca Flower	Nut Pine or Pinon Tree	Blue Grama Grass
New York	Rose	Sugar Maple
North Carolina	Dogwood	Pine
North Dakota	Wild Prairie Rose	American Elm	Western Wheatgrass
Ohio	Scarlet Carnation & Large White Trilium	Ohio Buckeye
Oklahoma	Mistletoe & Indian Blanket	Redbud	Indian Grass
Oregon	Oregon Grape	Douglas Fir
Pennsylvania	Mountain Laurel	Eastern Hemlock
Rhode Island	Violet	Red Maple
South Carolina	Carolina Jessamine	Cabbage Palmetto	Indian Grass
South Dakota	Pasque Flower	Black Hills Spruce	Western wheat grass
Tennessee	Iris & Passion Flower	Tulip Poplar
Texas	Bluebonnet	Pecan	Sideoats gramma Cotton (fibre & fabric)
Utah	Sego Lily	Blue Spruce	Indian ricegrass
Vermont	Red Clover	Sugar Maple
Virginia	American Dogwood	Flowering Dogwood
Washington	Coast Rhododendron	Western Hemlock	Bluebunch Wheatgrass
West Virginia	Big Laurel	Sugar Maple
Wisconsin	Wood Violet	Sugar Maple	Corn
Wyoming	Indian Paintbrush	Cottonwood

An interesting collection which certainly gives an idea of the different states. I like the grasses!

State birds, animals, insects and reptiles

The states do not always use the neat categories below. Some states introduce sub-categories, such as domestic animal, mammal or game bird. I have ignored these and clustered them together where necessary. If you want an accurate description, then I suggest that you access the relevant state government website. This is purely to compare the different states.

State	bird	animal, etc.	insect	reptile
Alabama	Yellowhammer	Black Bear & Racking Horse		Red-bellied turtle
Alaska	Willow Ptarmigan	Moose	Skimmer Dragonfly
Arizona	Cactus Wren	Ringtail Cat	Two-Tailed Swallowtail	Ridgenose Rattlesnake
Arkansas	Mockingbird	White-tailed Deer	Honeybee
California	California Quail	California grizzly bear	California dogface butterfly	Desert Tortoise
Colorado	Lark Bunting	Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep	Colorado Hairstreak Butterfly
Connecticut	American Robin	Sperm Whale	European Mantis
Delaware	Blue Hen chicken	Pogo possum	Ladybug & Tiger Swallowtail
Florida	Mockingbird	Florida Panther	Zebra Longwing Butterfly	American Alligator
Georgia	Brown Thrasher & Bobwhite quail		Honeybee & Tiger swallowtail	Gopher tortoise
Hawaii	Nene	Humpback Whale
Idaho	Mountain bluebird & Peregrine falcon		Monarch butterfly
Illinois	Cardinal	White-tailed Deer	Monarch Butterfly	Painted Turtle
Indiana	Cardinal
Iowa	Eastern Goldfinch
Kansas	Western Meadowlark	American Buffalo	Honeybee	Ornate Box Turtle
Kentucky	Cardinal	Gray Squirrel	Viceroy Butterfly
Louisiana	Brown Pelican	Black Bear	Honeybee	Alligator
Maine	Chickadee	Moose	Honeybee
Maryland	Baltimore Oriole		Baltimore Checkerspot Butterfly	Diamondback Terrapin
Massachusetts	Black-capped Chickadee & Wild Turkey		Ladybug
Michigan	Robin			Painted Turtle
Minnesota	Common Loon		Monarch
Mississippi	Mockingbird & Waterfowl Wood Duck	White-tailed Deer & fox	Honeybee & Spicebush Swallowtail
Missouri	Bluebird	Missouri Mule	Honeybee
Montana	Western Meadowlark	Grizzly Bear	Mourning Cloak
Nebraska	Western Meadowlark	White-tailed Deer	Honeybee
Nevada	Mountain Bluebird	Desert Bighorn Sheep		Desert Tortoise
New Hampshire	Purple Finch	White-tail Deer	Ladybug & Karner Blue
New Jersey	Eastern Goldfinch	Horse	Honeybee
New Mexico	Chaparral Bird (Roadrunner)	Black Bear	Tarantula Hawk Wasp
New York	Bluebird	Beaver	Ladybug
North Carolina	Cardinal	Grey Squirrel	Honeybee	Eastern Box Turtle
North Dakota	Western Meadowlark
Ohio	Cardinal	White-tailed Deer	Ladybug	Black Racer Snake
Oklahoma	Scissor-tailed Flycatcher & Wild Turkey	Bison & Racoon & White-tail deer	Honeybee	Collared Lizard
Oregon	Western Meadowlark	Beaver	Oregon Swallowtail
Pennsylvania	Ruffed Grouse	Whitetail Deer	Firefly
Rhode Island	Rhode Island Red
South Carolina	Carolina Wren & Wild Turkey	Whitetail Deer	Carolina Mantid & Carolina Wolf Spider	Loggerhead Sea Turtle
South Dakota	Ring-necked Pheasant	Coyote	Honeybee
Tennessee	Mockingbird & Bobwhite Quail	Racoon	Firefly & Ladybug & Honeybee & Zebra Swallowtail Butterfly	Eastern Box Turtle
Texas	Mockingbird	Armadillo & Longhorn & Mexican Free-tailed Bat	Monarch Butterfly	Texas Horned Lizard
Utah	California Gull	Rocky Mountain elk	Honeybee
Vermont	Hermit Thrush	Morgan Horse	Monarch Butterfly/Honeybee
Virginia	Cardinal		Tiger Swallowtail
Washington	Willow Goldfinch		Green Darner Dragonfly
West Virginia	Cardinal	Black Bear	Monarch Butterfly
Wisconsin	Robin	Badger & Dairy Cow & White-tailed Deer	Honeybee
Wyoming	Western Meadowlark	Bison		Horned Toad

These are essentially land-based animals, although Connecticut and Hawaii have firmly specified whales as their state animal (and why not!) There are some turtles among the reptiles as well. By the way, don't be rude to Wyoming, their 'Horned Toad' is in fact a lizard (and I must admit it does look like a toad).

There are 7 Cardinals and 5 Mockingbirds among the birds. Under animals we have 10 white-tailed deer. I am particularly unimpressed with the originality of state insects. There are 16 states with Honeybee as insect, 6 Ladybugs, 6 Monarch (as insect or butterfly) and 7 Swallowtails (of different types, admittedly). There are other insects, you know! New Mexico has a Tarantula Hawk Wasp and South Carolina has a Carolina Mantid as state insect and a Carolina Wolf Spider as a state spider (quite rightly, as it isn't an insect of course). I must make a special commendation for Delaware, who have a State Macroinvertebrate (a Stonefly). It's not included above, as no-one else has thought of that category!

State fish, amphibians, marine animals and shells

The states do not always use the neat categories below. Some states introduce sub-categories, such as salt or freshwater fish. I have ignored these and clustered them together where necessary. If you want an accurate description, then I suggest that you access the relevant state government website. This is purely to compare the different states.

State	fish	amphibian	marine animal	shell etc.
Alabama
Alaska	King Salmon		Bowhead Whale
Arizona	Apache Trout
Arkansas
California	Golden Trout & Garibaldi		Gray Whale
Colorado	Greenback cutthroat trout
Connecticut				Eastern Oyster
Delaware	Weakfish		Horseshoe Crab
Florida	Sailfish & Florida Largemouth Bass		West Indian Manatee & Dolphin	Horse Conch
Georgia	Largemouth bass		Right whale	Knobbed whelk
Hawaii	Rectangular Triggerfish
Idaho	Cutthroat trout
Illinois	Bluegill	Eastern Tiger Salamander
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas	Channel Catfish	Barred Tiger Salamander
Kentucky	Kentucky Spotted Bass
Louisiana	White Perch	Green Tree Frog		Crawfish
Maine	Landlocked Salmon
Maryland	Rockfish			Blue Crab
Massachusetts	Cod		Right Whale	New England Neptune
Michigan	Brook Trout
Minnesota	Walleye Pike
Mississippi	Largemouth or Black Bass		Bottlenose Dolphin	Oyster Shell
Missouri		American Bullfrog
Montana	Blackspotted Cutthroat Trout
Nebraska	Channel Catfish
Nevada	Lahontan Cutthroat Trout
New Hampshire	Brook Trout & Striped Bass	Spotted Newt
New Jersey	Brook Trout			Knobbed whelk
New Mexico	Rio Grande Cuttthroat Trout
New York	BrookTrout			Bay Scallop
North Carolina	Channel Bass			Scotch Bonnet
North Dakota	Northern Pike
Ohio
Oklahoma	White Bass	Bull Frog
Oregon	Chinook Salmon			Oregon Hairy Triton
Pennsylvania	Brook Trout
Rhode Island	Striped Bass			Quahaug
South Carolina	Striped Bass	Spotted Salamander		Lettered Olive
South Dakota	Walleye
Tennessee	Channel Catfish & Largemouth Bass	Tennessee Cave Salamander
Texas	Guadelupe Bass			Lightning Whelk
Utah	Bonneville Cutthroat Trout
Vermont	Brook Trout & Walleye Pike	Northern Leopard Frog
Virginia	Brook Trout			Oyster Shell
Washington	Steelhead Trout
West Virginia	Brook Trout
Wisconsin	Muskellunge
Wyoming	Cutthroat Trout

These are essentially water-based categories, and since many states are land-locked, you wouldn't expect them to figure. I've put amphibians here as they tend to need water. There seems to be a strong interest in fishes. Obviously fishing is a popular US sport.

State fossils, gemstones, minerals, rocks and soil

The states do not always use the neat categories below. Some states introduce sub-categories, such as dinosaur. I have ignored these and clustered them together where necessary. There is also a little confusion as to whether a 'stone' is a gemstone or a rock.If you want an accurate description, then I suggest that you access the relevant state government website. This is purely to compare the different states.

State	fossil	gemstone	mineral	rock	soil
Alabama
Alaska	Woolly Mammoth	Jade
Arizona	Petrified wood	Turquoise	Fire Agate		Arizona Casa-Grande
Arkansas		Diamond	Quartz Crystal	Bauxite	Stuttgart Soil Series
California	Saber-toothed cat	Benitoite	Gold	Serpentine	San Joaquin soil
Colorado	Stegosaurus	Aquamarine	Rhodochrosite	Yule Marble
Connecticut	Eubrontes giganteus	Garnet
Delaware	Belemnite		Sillimanite		Greenwich Loam
Florida
Georgia	shark tooth	quartz	Staurolite
Hawaii		Black Coral
Idaho	Hagerman Horse	Idaho star garnet
Illinois	Tully Monster		Fluorite		Drummer Silty Clay Loam
Indiana				Limestone
Iowa				Geode
Kansas					Harney silt loam
Kentucky	Brachiopod	Freshwater Pearl	Coal	Kentucky Agate	Crider Soil Series,
Louisiana	Petrified Palmwood	Agate
Maine	Pertica quadrifaria,	Tourmaline			Chesuncook Soil Series
Maryland	Ecphora gardnerae gardnerae & Astrodon johnstoni
Massachusetts	Dinosaur Tracks,	Rhodonite		Roxbury Puddingstone
Michigan	Mastodon	Isle Royal Greenstone		Petoskey Stone	Kalkaska soil series
Minnesota		Lake Superior Agate
Mississippi	Prehistoric Whale			Petrified Wood
Missouri	Crinoid		Galena
Montana	Duck-billed Dinosaur	Yogo Sapphire & Agate
Nebraska	Mammoth	Blue Chalcedony (Blue Agate)		Prairie Agate	Holdrege series
Nevada	Ichthyosaur	Virgin Valley Black Fire Opal & Nevada Turquoise	Silver	Sandstone
New Hampshire		Smoky Quartz	Beryl	Granite
New Jersey	Dinosaur Hadrosaurus foulkii
New Mexico	Coelophysis Dinosaur	Turquoise
New York	Sea Scorpion	Garnet
North Carolina		Emerald		Granite
North Dakota	Teredo Petrified Wood
Ohio	Isotelus	Ohio Flint
Oklahoma	Saurophaganax Maximus			Rose Rock	Port Silt Loam
Oregon		Sunstone		Thunderegg
Pennsylvania	Trilobite
Rhode Island			Bowenite	Cumberlandite
South Carolina		Amethyst		Blue Granite
South Dakota	Triceratops	Fairborn Agate	Rose Quartz		Houdek soil
Tennessee		Tennessee Pearl	Agate	Limestone
Texas	Dinosaur Brachiosaur sauropod, Pleurocoelus	Texas Blue Topaz		Petrified Palmwood
Utah	Allosaurus	Topaz	Copper,	Coal
Vermont	White Whale	Grossular garnet	Talc	Granite	Tunbridge Soil Series
Virginia	Chesapecten jeffersonius
Washington	Columbian Mammoth	Petrified Wood
West Virginia		Lithostrotionella			Monongahela Silt Loam
Wisconsin	Trilobite		Galena	Red Granite	Antigo Silt Loam
Wyoming	Knightia / Dinosaur Triceratops	Jade

This is a splendid collection! There is a wide variety, and good local knowledge, with particular interest in fossils. Even rocks and soil are considered.

State drink, fruit, vegetable and others (muffins, etc.)

The states do not always use the neat categories below. Some states say beverage rather than drink (Alabama unashamably says State Spirit!). I have ignored these and clustered them together where necessary. If you want an accurate description, then I suggest that you access the relevant state government website. This is purely to compare the different states.

State	drink	fruit/berry	vegetable	other
Alabama	Conecuh Ridge Alabama Fine Whiskey	blackberry
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas	Milk	South Arkansas Vine Ripe Pink Tomato	South Arkansas Vine Ripe Pink Tomato
California	Wine
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware	Milk
Florida	Orange juice	orange		pie: Key lime pie
Georgia		peach	Vidalia Sweet Onion	prepared food: Grits
Hawaii				muffin: Coconut muffin
Idaho		Huckleberry		food: potato
Illinois				snack food: Popcorn
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky	Milk	Blackberry
Louisiana	Milk	Strawberry	Sweet potato	jellies: Mayhaw jelly & Louisiana sugar cane jelly State meat pie: Natchitoches Meat Pie
Maine	Moxie	Wild Blueberry
Maryland	Milk			food: Blue crabs
Massachusetts	Cranberry Juice	Cranberry		muffin: Corn muffin bean: Baked navy bean dessert: Boston cream pie cookie: Chocolate chip cookie donut: Boston crème donut
Michigan		Honeycrisp apple		muffin: Blueberry muffin mushroom: Morel
Minnesota	Milk
Mississippi	Milk
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska	Milk & Kool-Aid
Nevada
New Hampshire		Pumpkin
New Jersey		Highbush Blueberry
New Mexico				cookie: Bizcochito
New York		Apple		muffin: Apple muffin
North Carolina	Milk	strawberry & blueberry & Scuppernong grape	Sweet potato
North Dakota	Milk
Ohio	Tomato Juice
Oklahoma	Milk			Meal: Fried okra, squash, cornbread, barbecue pork, biscuits, sausage and gravy, grits, corn, strawberries, chicken fried steak, pecan pie, and black-eyed peas
Oregon	Milk	Pear	mushroom: Pacific Golden Chanterelle nut: Hazelnut
Pennsylvania	Milk			cookie: Chocolate chip cookie
Rhode Island	Coffee Milk	Rhode Island greening (Apple)
South Carolina	Milk (beverage) & South Carolina Grown Tea	Peach
South Dakota	Milk			bread: Native American fry bread dessert: Kucken
Tennessee
Texas		Texas Red Grapefruit	pepper: Jalapeño native pepper: Chiltepin	bread:Pan de campo dish: Chili nut: Pecan pastries: Sopaipilla and Strudel snack: Tortilla chips and salsa
Utah		Cherry	Spanish sweet onion	historic vegetable: Sugar beet snack food: Jell-O
Vermont	Milk	Apple		pie: Apple pie
Virginia	Milk
Washington		Apple		muffin: Blueberry muffin
West Virginia		Golden Delicious apple
Wisconsin	Milk
Wyoming

All those US milk drinkers in America - we never realised! Hardly anyone drinks a soft drink, and only Alabama and California drink any alcohol at all. And as for the last column - oh dear, oh dear! Cookies and muffins and snacks as your state foods! And not that many entries in the vegetable column. I do like Oklahoma's state meal, though. If you think of it as a choice of food, it gives a wonderful sense of local foods.
As noted below, Arkansas does have their tomato as both a fruit and a vegetable.

Other State emblems

I have ignored several categories of emblems. Some cats have state cats, dogs or horses, but not enough, so it would make a rather a sparse table. I have ignored state tartans, or registered state stars.
I have also ignored dances. No less than 21 states have Square Dancing as their dance or folk dance. If you can't think of any other type of dance, why not have a particular type of square dance? There are some waltzes. California dances the West Coast Swing and South Carolina dances the Carolina Shag. Hula is Hawaii's state dance (of course), but the best of all is Wisconsin, with the Polka.
Finally, I like the New Mexico state question "Red or Green?" It refers to the color of pepper you are offered in local restaurants.

Facts (serious or frivolous) about each US state

Alabama - The Civil Rights Movement started in Alabama.

Alaska - Gold was discovered in Alaska in 1872 which led to a gold rush.

Arizona - The Grand Canyon is a great chasm carved by the Colorado River.

Arkansas - The South Arkansas Vine Ripe Pink Tomato is both the state fruit and the state vegetable of Arkansas. The state legislature has decided that the tomato is botanically a fruit and used as a vegetable.

California - Death Valley is mostly in California, although partof it is in Nevada.

Colorado - The Colorado mountains, part of the Rockies, are popular with climbers and skiers.

Connecticut - Mark Twain lived some time in Connecticut, and his house is now a museum.

Delaware - Delaware was the first state to ratify the Constitution of the United States.

Florida - Everglades are wetlands with alligators.

Georgia - The Atlanta Campaign was part of the American Civil War.

Hawaii - Hawaii is famous for its active active volcanoes.

Idaho - Ernest Hemingway died in Idaho.

Illinois - Abraham Lincoln was self-taught. He became a leading lawyer in Illinois which led to his political career.

Indiana - Johnny Appleseed is buried in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He planted many apple orchards.

Iowa - American Gothic is a painting of an Iowa farmer and his daughter.

Kansas - The Wizard of Oz starts with a tornado in Kansas.

Kentucky - The Hatfield-McCoy Feud took place between the McCoys of Kentucky and the Hatfields of West Virginia.

Louisiana - New Orleans' famous festival is the Mardi Gras.

Maine - A favourite meal from Maine and the rest of New England is Clam Chowder.

Maryland - The Star-Spangled Banner, America's national Anthem, was written about the bombardment of Fort McHenry in Baltimore, Maryland, by British ships in 1812.

Massachusetts - Plymouth Colony founded by the Pilgrims who arrived on the Mayflower, 1620.

Michigan - Isle Royale is an island in Lake Mitchigan with wolves and moose. The moose arrived in about 1900, and the wolves crossed an ice bridge to the island in about 1950.

Minnesota - Bob Dylan was born in Minnesota and went to university there.

Mississippi - This state is named after the Mississippi River although this river borders several states.

Missouri - The Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri, is 630 feet high, the highest USA monument.

Montana - There are seven Reservations in Montana.

Nebraska - Buffalo Bill's Wild West was founded in 1883 in Omaha, Nebraska by William F. Cody.

Nevada - Las Vegas - the city of bright lights surrounded by desert.

New Hampshire - Dixville Notch, New Hampshire is known for being one of the first places to declare the results in Presidential elections. It has a small number of electors, and polls are closed when they have all voted, then are counted.

New Jersey - Several battles against the British took place in New Jersey during the American Revolutionary War (which the British call the American War of Independence).

New Mexico - The first atomic bomb test took place in New Mexico in 1945.

New York - New York City is known for its skyscrapers. The Chrysler Building is particulary impressive.

North Carolina - In 1903, Wilbur and Orville Wright built and flew the first powered airplane from Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.

North Dakota - Fort Abraham Lincoln is in North Dakota. General Custer and the Seventh Cavalry rode out from here in 1876 on their ill-fated expedition against the Sioux at the Little Big Horn. This is known as Custer's Last Stand.

Ohio - There have been eight presidents from Ohio, earning Ohio the nickname, "The Mother of Presidents". The most famous was Ulysses S. Grant, a Union general in the Civil War.

Oklahoma - The State Meal in Oklahoma is fried okra, squash, cornbread, barbecue pork, biscuits, sausage and gravy, grits, corn, strawberries, chicken fried steak, pecan pie, and black-eyed peas.

Oregon - The Oregan Trail was a route which pioneers travelled in wagons to settle new parts of the United States of America. It ended in Oregan.

Pennsylvania - The Liberty Bell was rung on July 8, 1776 summoning citizens to hear the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence.

Rhode Island - Rode Island Red are a breed of chicken. It was originally developed in Massachusetts and Rhode Island in the 1880's and 1890's.

South Carolina - South Carolina was the first state to secede from the Union before the Civil War.

South Dakota - Mount Rushmore has the faces of four American presidents carved into it.

Tennessee - Davy Crockett was born in Tennessee and became Congressman there.

Texas - The Battle of the Alamo led to Texas joining the USA.

Utah - The Great Salt Lake has no outlet. Tributary rivers are constantly bringing in small amounts of salt dissolved in their fresh water flow. Once in the Great Salt Lake much of the water evaporates leaving the salt behind.

Vermont - The colours of Vermont Fall foliage are famous.

Virginia - Mount Vernon in Virginia was George Washington's home.

Washington - Mount St. Helens erupted in 1980.

West Virginia - The Mound Builders created earthen burial mounds and other earthworks. They lived over two thousand years ago. Grave Creek Mound is in West Virginia.

Wisconsin - Wisconsin is the dairy state. It leads the nation in cheese production.

Wyoming - Old Faithful is a regular geyser in Yellowstone Park, Wyoming.

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