Terrain map of United States of America (the lower 48 states; Hawaii and Alaska are not shown). Licensed Stock photo on BigStockPhoto.
Dates of Succession to the Union
From "The First State" (Delaware in 1787), to the last state (Hawaii in 1959), each state has an individual history, topography, and cultural heritage - each is a unique entity as well as part of the nation.
The original motto of the United States was "E Pluribus Unum" (Latin for "one from many"), which refers to the welding of a single federal state from a group of individual political units. "E Pluribus Unum" remains on the seal of the United States.
Below are the dates each state either ratified the constitution (the first 13 states) or were admitted to the Union by Congress (37 states). Together all 50 states makes up the United States of America:
| 1 | Delaware | 07-DEC | 1787 |
| 2 | Pennsylvania | 12-DEC | 1787 |
| 3 | New Jersey | 18-DEC | 1787 |
| 4 | Georgia | 02-JAN | 1788 |
| 5 | Connecticut | 09-JAN | 1788 |
| 6 | Massachusetts | 06-FEB | 1788 |
| 7 | Maryland | 28-APR | 1788 |
| 8 | South Carolina | 23-MAY | 1788 |
| 9 | New Hampshire | 21-JUN | 1788 |
| When New Hampshire ratified the Constitution the document became law meeting the two-thirds requirement of the 13 states. | |||
| 10 | Virginia | 25-JUN | 1788 |
| 11 | New York | 26-JUL | 1788 |
| 12 | North Carolina | 21-NOV | 1789 |
| 13 | Rhode Island | 29-MAY | 1790 |
| 14 | Vermont | 04-MAR | 1791 |
| 15 | Kentucky | 01-JUN | 1792 |
| 16 | Tennessee | 01-JUN | 1796 |
| 17 | Ohio | 1-MAR | 1803 |
| 18 | Louisiana | 30-APR | 1812 |
| 19 | Indiana | 11-DEC | 1816 |
| 20 | Mississippi | 10-DEC | 1817 |
| 21 | Illinois | 03-DEC | 1818 |
| 22 | Alabama | 14-DEC | 1819 |
| 23 | Maine | 15-MAR | 1820 |
| 24 | Missouri | 10-AUG | 1821 |
| 25 | Arkansas | 15-JUN | 1836 |
| 26 | Michigan | 26-JAN | 1837 |
| 27 | Florida | 03-MAR | 1845 |
| 28 | Texas | 29-DEC | 1845 |
| 29 | Iowa | 28-DEC | 1846 |
| 30 | Wisconsin | 29-MAY | 1848 |
| 31 | California | 09-SEP | 1850 |
| 32 | Minnesota | 11-MAY | 1858 |
| 33 | Oregon | 14-FEB | 1859 |
| 34 | Kansas | 29-JAN | 1861 |
| 35 | West Virginia | 20-JUN | 1863 |
| 36 | Nevada | 31-OCT | 1864 |
| 37 | Nebraska | 01-MAR | 1867 |
| 38 | Colorado | 01-AUG | 1876 |
| 39 | North Dakota | 02-NOV | 1889 |
| 40 | South Dakota | 02-NOV | 1889 |
| 41 | Montana | 08-NOV | 1889 |
| 42 | Washington | 11-NOV | 1889 |
| 43 | Idaho | 03-JUL | 1890 |
| 44 | Wyoming | 10-JUL | 1890 |
| 45 | Utah | 04-JAN | 1896 |
| 46 | Oklahoma | 16-NOV | 1907 |
| 47 | New Mexico | 06-JAN | 1912 |
| 48 | Arizona | 14-FEB | 1912 |
| 49 | Alaska | 03-JAN | 1959 |
| 50 | Hawaii | 21-AUG | 1959 |