United States of America

The United States of America is the fourth largest country in the world in both area and population. Only Russia, Canada, and China have larger areas. The land of the United States is as varied as it is vast. It ranges from the warm beaches of Florida and Hawaii to the frozen northlands of Alaska, and from the level Midwestern Prairies to the snow capped Rocky Mountains. This huge and beautiful country is unbelievably rich in natural resources. It has great stretches of some of the most fertile soil on earth, a plentiful water supply and excellent water routes, and large stretches of forests.

Capital: Washington D.C.

Form of Government: Republic

Area: 3,618,465 sq. mi., including 74,389 sq. mi. of inland water but excluding 60,788 sq. mi. of Great Lakes and Lake Saint Clair and 13,942 sq. mi. of coastal water.

Elevation: Highest … Mount McKinley in Alaska Lowest … In Death Valley in California

Physical Features: Longest River … Mississippi Largest Lake within the United States … Michigan Largest Island … island of Hawaii

Flag: Adopted June 14,1777

Motto: In God We Trust, adopted July 30, 1956

National Anthem: “The Star-Spangled Banner,” adopted March 3, 1931

Bird: Bald Eagle, adopted June 20, 1782

Money: Basic Unit – dollar.

Death Valley, California, the country’s driest place, receives less than 2 inches of precipitation yearly. Prospect Creek, Alaska, recorded the lowest U.S. temperature ever, -79.8 F. Waimea Canyon, Hawaii, was formed by water flowing from Mount Waialeale, the mountain, the wettest place in the U.S., receives about 460 inches of precipitation a year.

The ancestry of the United States has one of the world’s most varied populations. The population includes descendants of people from almost every part of the world

The first people to live in what is now the United States were Indians, Eskimos, and Hawaiians. The Indians and Eskimos are descended from peoples who migrated to North America from Asia thousands of years ago. The ancestors of the Hawaiians were Polynesians who sailed to what is now Hawaii from other Pacific islands about 2,000 years ago.

The United States has often been called a melting pot. This term refers to the idea that the country is a place where people from many lands have come together and formed a unified culture.