Image: Shutterstock
About This Quiz
America is a melting pot with many interesting people and places. Test your knowledge and see if you can remember your old geography lessons by taking this quiz!
Which state was called Seward's Folly in the press when it was purchased for two cents an acre in 1867?
Louisiana
Alaska
Alaska was called Seward's Folly after the Secretary of State signed an agreement to purchase the territory for two cents an acre from Russia in 1867 (a total of about $7.2 million). This was prior to the discovery of gold and oil in the region.
Hawaii
Which state's native monarchy was toppled by agriculture firms and a new republic installed with Dole Fruit Company executive as president?
Hawaii
Hawaii was overtaken by fruit companies in the 1880s. A new republic put Sanford B. Dole as president before the land was annexed by the United States in 1898.
New Mexico
California
Which state was thought to contain the legendary Fountain of Youth, which was searched for by Juan Ponce de Leon in 1513?
North Carolina
Texas
Florida
Florida is the site of the mythical Fountain of Youth.
Advertisement
Which state served as the end of the Trail of Tears, a federal Native American removal program that forced thousands of Cherokees to move from their ancestral lands?
Arizona
North Dakota
Oklahoma
Oklahoma was the ultimate destination for the Trail of Tears.
What state was the site of the famous Scopes Monkey Trial, where John Scopes was convicted of teaching evolution in a public school?
Tennessee
Tennessee was the site of the Scopes Monkey Trial in 1925.
Virginia
Mississippi
Which state was home of the Green Mountain Boys, a group of guerilla soldiers in the Revolutionary War?
Vermont
Vermont was home to the Green Mountain Boys.
North Dakota
West Virginia
Advertisement
Which state boasts the national parks Grand Teton and Yellowstone?
California
Utah
Wyoming
Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks are both located in Wyoming.
What future state did the Mormons settle in 1847 with the aim of establishing Zion, God's kingdom, on Earth?
Colorado
Missouri
Utah
Utah was settled by members of the Mormon faith in 1847.
What state was the first to elect a governor of Chinese-American descent?
Rhode Island
Washington
Washington was the first state to elect a Chinese-American governor, Gary Locke, who was elected in 1996.
South Carolina
Advertisement
Which state is home to NASA's George C. Marshall Flight Center?
Alabama
The George C. Marshall Flight Center calls Alabama home.
Florida
Texas
Which two states feud over the claim to being the birthplace of powered flight?
Connecticut and New York
North Carolina and Ohio
While Connecticut joined the fray in 2013 with a claim of flight predating the Wright Brothers, the long-standing rift is between Ohio (the brothers' birthplace) and North Carolina (where they made their first powered flight).
Connecticut and Iowa
Where was the first English child born in America?
North Carolina
While she was christened Virginia just to confuse us, the first English child was born in Roanoke, North Carolina, in 1587.
Massachusetts
Virginia
Advertisement
What state's flower is the peach blossom?
Delaware
Forget Georgia and South Carolina ... Delaware used to be a huge producer of peaches until a 19th century blight destroyed the industry there.
South Carolina
Georgia
What state's motto is NOT in English?
Montana
Although it's far from the Mexican border, Montana's state motto is Spanish: "Oro y Plata," or "Gold and Silver."
Florida
Texas
Which state's state dance is NOT the square dance?
Virginia
Colorado
Minnesota
Minnesota has failed to make the square dance the state dance despite two proposal, making it the only state without an official way to boogie.
Advertisement
What state features the largest conical burial mound in the United States?
North Dakota
West Virginia
The Grave Creek Mound -- built from 250-150 BC by the native Adena people -- is outside Moundsville, West Virginia.
Nevada
What state consumes the most beer per drinking age adult?
Texas
California
North Dakota
North Dakota is a thirsty state: Each adult drank 43.6 gallons of beer in 2013, according to a study from Beer Marketer's Insight.
What state does NOT claim to have been the birth place of the Reuben sandwich?
New Jersey
While we certainly associate the Reuben with New York -- and many claim it originated from a deli there -- Nebraskans argue their native son invented the sandwich in the 1930s.
New York
Nebraska
Advertisement
In what state was the first chocolate chip cookie invented and sold?
Ohio
Massachusetts
Ruth Wakefield of Whitman, Massachusetts sprinkled some chocolate chips into cookie dough at her Toll House Restaurant in 1938 and snack time has never been the same.
Connecticut
In what state was the first baseball game played?
Massachusetts
New York
New Jersey
While the New York Knickerbockers were the first baseball "team," they travelled to Hoboken in 1845 to play the first game.
In what state is self-service gasoline NOT prohibited?
New Jersey
Oregon
Utah
Don't reach for the gas handle in New Jersey or Oregon; both states have laws prohibiting pumping your own gas.
Advertisement
Although she famously spent her childhood living in far flung places around the United States, where was Laura Ingalls Wilder born?
Wisconsin
Laura Ingalls Wilder's little house was in the big Wisconsin woods.
North Dakota
Minnesota
What state was NOT the site of a Japanese internment camp during World War II?
Wyoming
Arkansas
Nevada
120,000 people of Japanese ancestry were interred in 10 camps throughout the United States for up to four years.
What was the first state to issue same-sex marriage licenses, allowing gay and lesbian couples to marry?
Vermont
Washington
Massachusetts
In 2003, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court rules that gay and lesbians have equal marriage rights.
Advertisement
In what state was slavery still legal after the Emancipation Proclamation?
Maryland
While the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation freed slaves that had seceded from the Union, Maryland -- a border state -- didn't abolish slavery until 1864.
New York
Delaware
What state was formed after it voted to secede from a Confederate state?
North Carolina
West Virginia
In 1863, West Virginia was formally accepted as a Union state after breaking off from Virginia.
Rhode Island
What northern state was originally part of Massachusetts?
Maine
Maine was part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts until it seceded from the commonwealth in 1820.
New Hampshire
Vermont
Advertisement
What state paid $30,000 to New York to break away and form its own state?
New Jersey
Rhode Island
Vermont
New York wanted to keep Vermont to itself, but agreed to let the northerners become independent -- for a (not so small) fee.
What state recognizes Drummer soil as the official state soil?
Illinois
Bet you didn't know that every state has an official soil, and Illinois' is Drummer.
Ohio
New Mexico
Which state has had six presidents living there at the time of their elections?
Illinois
Virginia
Ohio
It's a tricky question: While Virginia claims the most presidents by birthplace, six presidents were calling Ohio home when they were voted into office.
Advertisement
You Got:
/30
Shutterstock