2463 UNITED STATES (Michigan) - The lighthouses in Michigan

2463-1

2463-2

Posted on 16.04.2016, 06.01.2018
Michigan is the only state to consist of two peninsulas, separated from the Straits of Mackinac, a 8km channel that joins Lake Huron to Lake Michigan. The state has the longest freshwater coastline of any political subdivision in the world (almost 5,000 km), being bounded by four of the five Great Lakes, plus  Lake Saint Clair. It has also more lighthouses than any other state (about 150). The first lighthouses in Michigan were built between 1818 and 1822, to project light at night and to serve as a landmark during the day to safely guide the ships traveling the Great Lakes.

2702-2704, 3232 UNITED STATES (New York) - Manhattan

2702 Manhattan (1)

Posted on 21.08.2016, 02.01.2018
Manhattan is the most densely populated borough of New York City, its economic and administrative center, and the city's historical birthplace. It consists mostly of Manhattan Island, bounded by the East, Hudson, and Harlem Rivers, and also includes several small adjacent islands and Marble Hill, a small neighborhood on the U.S. mainland. It is often described as the cultural and financial capital of the world and hosts the United Nations Headquarters.

2703 Manhattan (2)

Anchored by Wall Street in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan, New York City has been called both the most economically powerful city and the leading financial center of the world. Historically documented to have been purchased by Dutch colonists from Native Americans in 1626, for 60 guilders (1050 USD today). Manhattan real estate has since become among the most expensive in the world, with the value of Manhattan Island, including real estate, estimated to exceed 3 trillion USD in 2013.

2704 Manhattan (3)

Many districts and landmarks in Manhattan have become well known, as New York City received a record of nearly 60 million tourists in 2015, and Manhattan hosts three of the world's 10 most-visited tourist attractions in 2013: Times Square, Central Park, and Grand Central Terminal. The borough hosts many world-renowned bridges and skyscrapers such as the Empire State Building. The City of New York was founded at the southern tip of Manhattan, and the borough houses New York City Hall, the seat of the City's Government. 

3232 Bird's-Eye View of Manhattan / 1891 

The skyscraper, which has shaped Manhattan's distinctive skyline, has been closely associated with New York City's identity since the end of the 19th century. From 1890 to 1973, the world's tallest building was in Manhattan, with nine different buildings holding the title. The former Twin Towers of the World Trade Center were located in Lower Manhattan. At 417 and 415m, the 110-story buildings were the world's tallest from 1972, until they were surpassed by the construction of the Willis Tower in 1974. One World Trade Center is currently the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere.

1611, 3037 UNITED STATES (Colorado) - Colorado map

Posted on 27.05.2015, 05.05.2017
Bordered by Wyoming, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Utah, and Arizona at the Four Corners, Colorado is noted for its vivid landscape of mountains, forests, high plains, mesas, canyons, plateaus, rivers, and desert lands. It encompass most of the Southern Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains, being the only U.S. state that lies entirely above 1000m elevation. It owes its name to the Colorado River, whereon the Spanish travelers named so for the ruddy (Spanish: colorado) silt the river carried from the mountains.

0148, 3033, 3034 UNITED STATES - The map and the flag of the country

3033 The map of the United States

Posted on 16.03.2012, 02.05.2017

The United States of America (USA) is a constitutional federal republic composed of 50 states, a federal district, five major self-governing territories, and various possessions. 48 of the states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. Exceptions are Alaska (located in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada and Bering Strait) and Hawaii  (an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean). At 9.8 million km² and with over 324 million people, USA is the world's third- or fourth-largest country by total area, third-largest by land area, and the third-most populous.
 

3034 The map of the United States and the location
of the Native American tribes

The capital is Washington, D.C., founded in 1791 in the capital district, so no state or territory has any political or economic advantage relative to the others, and named in honor of George Washington, considered the "father of the country," who served as the first President of the United States. The largest city is New York City, which traces its origin to its 1624 founding in Lower Manhattan as a trading post by colonists of the Dutch Republic and was named New Amsterdam in 1626. It is an important center for international diplomacy and has been described as the cultural and financial capital of the world.

 The first inhabitants of North America migrated from Siberia by way of the Bering land bridge and arrived at least 15,000 years ago. Some, such as the pre-Columbian Mississippian culture, developed advanced agriculture, grand architecture, and state-level societies. After the Spanish conquistadors made the first contacts, the native population declined for various reasons, primarily from diseases. European colonization began in the 16th century. The United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast.

2006, 2994 UNITED STATES (Missouri) - Missouri map

2006 Missouri map

Posted on 03.11.2015, 22.03.2017
Located in the Midwestern United States and bounded by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska, Missouri is nicknamed the "Show Me State", due to the skepticism of its inhabitants. The two largest rivers are the  Mississippi (which defines the eastern boundary of the state) and the Missouri (which flows from west to east through the state) essentially connecting the two largest metros of Kansas City (the largest city of the state) and St. Louis. The state's capital is Jefferson City.

2994 Missouri: 1. The Gateway Arch and the St. Louis skyline;
2. Country Club Plaza in Kansas City; 3. Ozark Mountains.

Missouri's geography is highly varied. Its northern part lies in dissected till plains and the southern portion lies in the Ozark Mountains, with the Missouri River dividing the regions. The state lies at the intersection of the three greatest rivers of North America, with the confluence of the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers near St. Louis, and the confluence of the Ohio River with the Mississippi north of the Bootheel. Located in the interior US, it generally has a humid continental climate with cold snowy winters and hot, humid, and wet summers, often experiencing extremes in temperatures.

1019, 1135, 2944 UNITED STATES (New York) - New York map and flag

1019 New York map (1)

Posted on 02.03.2014, 09.07.2014, 10.02.2017
Bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south and by Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont to the east, New York State has a maritime border with Rhode Island, as well as an international border with Canada. It is a center for finance and culture, and also the largest gateway for immigration to the United States. Over 100 million Americans can trace their ancestry to the immigrants who first arrived in America through Castle Clinton and Ellis Island. New York City, with a population of over 8.3 million in 2012, is the most populous city in the U.S.A., making up over 40% of the population of the state.

1135 New York map (2)

Both the state and city were named for the 17th century Duke of York, future King James II of England. Its capital city is Albany, officially chartered as a city in 1686 and located on the west bank of the Hudson River, about 16km south of its confluence with the Mohawk River. New York was inhabited by various tribes of Algonquian and Iroquoian at the time when Dutch settlers moved into the region in the early 17th century. In 1609, the region was first claimed by Henry Hudson for the Dutch, and Fort Nassau was built near the site of the present-day capital of Albany in 1614.

2944 New York flag

 

The Dutch soon also settled New Amsterdam and parts of the Hudson River Valley, establishing the colony of New Netherland. The English captured the colony during the Second Anglo-Dutch War and governed it as the Province of New York, of which borders were similar to those of the present-day state. About one third of all the battles of the Revolutionary War took place in New York, which became the 11th state to ratify the U.S. Constitution. In contrast with New York City's urban atmosphere, the vast majority of the state's geographic area is dominated by farms, forests, rivers, mountains, and lakes.

1474, 1592, 2907 UNITED STATES (Tennessee / North Carolina) - Great Smoky Mountains National Park (UNESCO WHS)

1474 Map of Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Posted on 01.03.2015, 18.05.2015, 18.12.2016
Great Smoky Mountains National Park straddles the ridgeline of the Great Smoky Mountains, part of the Blue Ridge Mountains, a division of the Appalachian Mountains. The border between Tennessee and North Carolina runs through the centerline of the park. Before the arrival of European, the region was part of the homeland of the Cherokees. President Andrew Jackson signed the Indian Removal Act, beginning the forced removal of all Indian tribes east of the Mississippi River. Many of the Cherokee left, but some hid out in the area that is now the park. Some of their descendants now live in the Qualla Boundary.

1592 Great Smoky Mountains National Park

The park is a major refuge of temperate zone flora and fauna that survived the Pleistocene glaciations. The park includes the largest remnant of the diverse Arcto-Tertiary geoflora era left in the world, and provides an indication of the appearance of late Pleistocene flora. It is large enough to allow the continuing biological evolution of this system, and its biological diversity exceeds that of other temperate-zone protected areas. The park is of exceptional beauty with virgin forest including the largest block of virgin red spruce remaining on earth.

2907 John Oliver Cabin in Great Smoky Mountains National Park

It is home to more than 3,500 plant species, including almost as many trees (130 natural species) as in all of Europe. Many endangered animal species are also found there, including what is probably the greatest variety of salamanders in the world. The park contains evidence of four pre-Columbian Indian cultures: Mississippian, Woodland, Archaic and palaeo-Indian. The early Woodland culture period is of special archaeological importance because it shows the first evidence of organized horticulture in North America. More than 150 archaeological sites have been identified within the park.

1341, 2814 UNITED STATES (Alaska) - Alaska map

2814 Alaska map

Posted on 23.11.2014, 12.11.2016
When a massive, snow-covered terrain, known as Alaska, was purchased from Russia for $7.2 million dollars in 1867, no one imagined the great contributions this icy land would make to America. Indeed, many Americans thought the land to be barren and desolate... completely worthless. However, Alaska has since proven to be bountiful in breathtaking scenery, abundant wildlife, and rich natural resources. In fact, located at Prudhoe Bay, Alaska is what is believed to be North America's largest oil reserve.

1341 The celebration of 25 years
of Alaska's statehood

In addition, Alaska's fishing waters - rich in salmon, halibut and king crab - provide some of the most plentiful harvests anywhere in America. Indeed, this frigid land proved to be such a great asset to America, that on January 3, 1959, Alaska entered the Union as the 49th state - the first new state in forty-seven years. Interestingly, Alaska is known as America's Last Frontier, because much of the land has yet to be explored or settled. It is also the largest state in the United States by area, the 3rd least populous and the least densely populated of the 50 United States.

2728 UNITED STATES (Massachusetts) - Cape Cod map

Cape Cod extends into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of mainland Massachusetts, from which is separated by the Cape Cod Canal. It stretches from Provincetown in the northeast to Woods Hole in the southwest, and comprises Barnstable County. The Cape Cod Canal cuts 28.2 km roughly across the base of the peninsula, though the western boundary of the cape extends to include small portions of the towns of Bourne and Sandwich which lie on the mainland side of the canal. Two highway bridges (the Sagamore Bridge and the Bourne Bridge), and the Cape Cod Canal Railroad Bridge cross the canal.

2686 UNITED STATES - The route of the Oregon Trail

The Oregon Trail is a 2,170-mile (3,490 km) historic east-west, large-wheeled wagon route and emigrant trail that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon. The eastern part of the Oregon Trail spanned part of the future state of Kansas, and nearly all of what are now the states of Nebraska and Wyoming. The western half of the trail spanned most of the future states of Idaho and Oregon. As the trail developed it became marked by many cutoffs and shortcuts from Missouri to Oregon. The basic route follows river valleys as grass and water were absolutely necessary.

2678 UNITED STATES (Puerto Rico) - Puerto Rico map and flag

Puerto Rico, an archipelago that includes the main island of Puerto Rico and a number of smaller islands, is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean Sea. The capital and most populous city is San Juan, the second oldest European-established capital city in the Americas, after Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic), founded by Spanish colonists in 1521. Its official languages are Spanish, which is predominant, and English. The island's population is approximately 3.5 million.

2661 UNITED STATES (New York) - The map of Westchester County

Situated in the Hudson Valley, Westchester County was established in 1683, being named after the city of Chester, England. The county seat is the city of White Plains, located at 40km north of Midtown Manhattan. The county shares its southern boundary with New York City and its northern border with Putnam County. It is bordered on the west side by the Hudson River and on the east side by the Long Island Sound and Fairfield County, Connecticut.

2569 UNITED STATES (U.S. Virgin Islands) / UNITED KINGDOM (Overseas Territory) - The map of the Virgin Islands

 

 

The Virgin Islands are the western island group of the Leeward Islands, which are the northern part of the Lesser Antilles, and form the border between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. Politically, the eastern islands form the British Virgin Islands and the western ones form the United States Virgin Islands.
The first is an Overseas Territory of the United Kingdom comprising approximately 60 islands and cays including Tortola, Virgin Gorda, Jost Van Dyke, and Anegada. The last is one of five inhabited insular areas of the United States, and comprises the islands St. Croix, St. Thomas and St. John.