American Geography

• The original thirteen colonies were the first territories established by European settlers
• 1. Virginia
  2. Massachusetts
  3. New Hampshire
  4. Maryland
  5. Connecticut
  6. Rhode Island
  7. Delaware
  8. North Carolina
  9. South Carolina
  10. New York
  11. New Jersey
  12. Pennsylvania 
  13. Georgia
• These colonies were established primarily along the eastern seaboard of North America during the 17th and early 18th centuries
• Five major self-governing territories of the United States:

  • Puerto Rico
  • Guam
  • U.S. Virgin Islands
  • American Samoa 
  • Northern Mariana Islands
• Top three largest states: Alaska, Texas, California.

  Smallest state: Rhode Island. 
• Borders of the United States: 

  The neighboring countries of the USA are Canada to the north and Mexico to the south, while the Atlantic Ocean lies to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west.
• 1. The United States purchased the Louisiana Territory from France in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803.
• 1. The United States purchased Florida from Spain.
• 1. Through treaties with Britain in the 1840s, the United States acquired the Oregon Country. 
• 1. The United States acquired several states from Mexico through various means, including the Mexican-American War (1846-1848) and subsequent treaties. Some of the states acquired from Mexico include: California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico
• 1. The United States purchased Alaska from Russia. 
• The Great Lakes are a group of five interconnected freshwater lakes located in North America, straddling the border between the United States and Canada.
• The lakes are:

  1. Lake Superior
  2. Lake Michigan
  3. Lake Huron
  4. Lake Erie
  5. Lake Ontario
• The Trail of Tears: the route from Georgia to Oklahoma.