Last of the States

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Yes, we have finally finished taking a look at all of the fifty states. Here are the last three. California is the third largest state in the U.S. right after Alaska and Texas. It was the place of the gold rush in 1849. It became the 31st state to enter the Union. The state got its name from Queen Califia, a Black Amazon warrior queen. She was first mentioned in the novel “The Adventures of Esplandian” by Garci Rodriguez de Montalvo. It was said that Califia ruled an “island nation” where the only metal was gold. The state’s nickname is the “Golden State”. It is home to Hollywood, the center of America’s movie and television industry. The capital is Sacramento and the state flower the golden poppy. Alaska became the 49th state to join the Union. It was purchased from Russia for $7 million in 1867. It is the largest state and the largest peninsula in the Western Hemisphere. Mt. McKinley in the Alaska Range is North America’s highest peak at 20,320 ft. Its name was taken from the Aleut word “alaxsxaq”. This refers to an object to which the sea is directed being the Alaska peninsula and mainland. The state nickname is the “Last Frontier”. The capital is Juneau and the state flower the pale-blue forget-me-not. Hawaii is known as the “Aloha State”. In Hawaiian “aloha” means “hello”. The state is a group of volcanic islands in the central Pacific Ocean. It became the 50th state to enter the Union. The state name is supposedly derived from a native Hawaiian word for homeland, hawaiki or owhyhee. The capital is Honolulu which is often referred to as the “Crossroads of the Pacific”. The state flower is the hibiscus.