Although there are only six smaller states Massachusetts has the 10th-largest population, so only New Jersey and Rhode Island have higher population densities. Massachusetts is about the size of Haiti with about as many people as Jordan.
Before becoming the sixth state in February 1788, it was known as the Province of Massachusetts Bay.
2. MN
Answer: Maine
Mount Katahdin, which means 'The Greatest Mountain' in the language of the
native Penobscot Indians, rises 5,270 feet above sea level in central Maine and is the state's highest point.
Maine was originally part of the Massachusetts colony, and joined the Union as a state in 1820 following the Missouri Compromise, becoming the 23rd state. It was the last of the six New England states to join the Union.
3. LBM
Answer: Alabama
The state of Alabama has numerous nicknames including "The Yellowhammer State", "The Cotton State", and "The Heart of Dixie". The official state bird is the Northern flicker, which is another name for the species of woodpecker that is also called a yellowhammer in its native Europe.
Founded in 1702, the oldest city in Alabama is Mobile. Although not the largest city in Alabama, Mobile is the largest municipality on the Gulf of Mexico between New Orleans LA and Saint Petersburg FL.
4. W
Answer: Iowa
Iowa is a very average kind of state -- it is located close the middle of the continental US, it is the 26th state in terms of area (about the size of Nepal), it ranks 30th in terms of population and it was the 29th state to join the Union.
Although Iowa is hundreds of miles from the nearest ocean, it still has an official state fish -- the channel catfish, the most common catfish species found in North America, is the official state fish of Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska and Tennessee, as well as Iowa.
The design of the Iowa state flag is based on the French tricolor, and its capital city, Des Moines, has a name which translates from French as "from the monks".
5. RGN
Answer: Oregon
The beaver is the mascot of sports teams representing Oregon State University, and the state is nicknamed "The Beaver State". (The University of Oregon mascot, though, is the Oregon duck.)
The ninth-largest state, Oregon is slightly bigger than the United Kingdom but with a population lower than New Zealand.
Oregon is one of only three states (LA and MD are the other two) to have an official state crustacean: in Oregon it is the Dungeness crab.
6. NBRSK
Answer: Nebraska
Father Edward J. Flanagan founded the village of Boys Town in the suburbs of Omaha, Nebraska in 1917. The 1938 biopic "Boys Town" starred starred Spencer Tracy as Flanagan (for which he won the Best Actor Oscar) and a young Mickey Rooney.
The highest point in Nebraska is the promisingly-named Panorama Point, in the extreme southwest of the state, where the borders of Nebraska, Wyoming and Colorado meet.
7. DH
Answer: Idaho
Although widely known as the 'Potato State', Idaho's official nickname is "The Gem State". Star garnet can be found in only two places in the world, Idaho and India, and almost every type of gemstone has been found somewhere in Idaho.
Admitted to the Union as the 43rd state in 1890, Idaho is the 14th-largest state, making it larger that the whole of New England although its population is barely half that of even just Connecticut.
8. LSK
Answer: Alaska
"North to the Future" sounds like it might be the sequel to some Michael J Fox movie, but it is in fact the official motto of the state nicknamed "The Last Frontier", Alaska.
It is the largest state by far -- Texas is the only other state that would not fit at least four times into Alaska. If Alaska were a country, it would be the 18th-largest in the world, slightly smaller than Libya but larger than Iran.
Alaska is one of only six states that has an official state firearm, the Pre-1964 Winchester Model 70 (for some reason).
9. RKNSS
Answer: Arkansas
The Ozarks is a plateau that stretches across southern Missouri and north/central Arkansas and is the most mountainous region between the Rockies and the Appalachians.
The state legislature in Arkansas passed a resolution in 1881 that made the silent final 's' the official pronunciation of the state name, rather than pronouncing it as one does Kansas with the 'Ar' on the front. In 2007, they passed a further resolution declaring Arkansas's as the official possessive form of the state name. Methinks they have too much time on their hands!
To prove the point, Arkansas has an official state insect (the European honey bee), a state butterfly (Diana Fritillary Butterfly), an official state dance (Square Dance), a state mineral (Quartz) and an official state gemstone (Diamond).
10. HW
Answer: Hawaii
Both the westernmost and the southernmost of the U.S. states, Hawaii became the 50th state when it joined the Union in 1959. The only state that once had its own monarch, Hawaii is also the only state to have retained the Union Jack on its official flag.
Hawaii is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands and only Alaska, California and Florida have longer coastlines.
This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor spanishliz before going online.
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