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Exploring the States through Maps and Visitor’s Guides

Want to explore the country without leaving your house? Almost every state offers a full map in their free visitor’s guide! Using physical maps are a great way to encourage map reading and geography skills, such as cardinal directions, reading symbols and legends, measuring distance. You can also use the visitor’s guide to practice reading comprehension, learning about cities, museums and landmarks, and spark discussion on where you should take your next trip.

 

Below you'll find a full list of free state maps and guides available from state tourism departments, along with somethings you may not know about each state: 

Alabama– NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center is located in Huntsville, Alabama. 

Alaska– Seventeen of the 20 highest peaks in the U.S. are located in Alaska. 

Arizona– Arizona produces enough cotton each year to make two T-shirts for every American (that’s 599 million tees). 

Arkansas– At Arkansas’ Crater of Diamonds State Park, tourists can dig through fields maintained by the park and are allowed to keep any diamonds they discover

California– If it were a country, it would have the eighth-largest economy in the world, beating out Italy, Russia, and India. 

Colorado– Colorado is known as the Centennial State because it was founded in 1876—100 years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

Connecticut–   Connecticut’s Hartford Courant is the country’s oldest continuously published paper.

Delaware– Delaware is the second-smallest state in the country. It stretches just under 100 miles long, and is only 35 miles at its widest point. 

Florida – Florida has the most golf courses of any state—more than 1,250. 

Georgia– Georgia is known as the Peach State, but it’s also the country's top producer of pecans, peanuts, and vidalia onions. 

Hawaii– The only state covered entirely by its own time zone, Hawaii-Aleutian, also doesn’t observe daylight saving. 

Idaho– The official nickname is the Gem State. Some 72 different precious and semi-precious gemstones have been found there. 

Illinois– Presidents Lincoln, Grant, and Obama all lived in Illinois. 

Indiana – There are nearly 100 historic covered bridges in the state of Indiana. 

Iowa– There are more hogs than humans in Iowa. As of 2013, the state’s hog population was 21.2 million animals, whereas the human population was just north of three million. 

Kansas– Nicknames for Kansas include the Sunflower State, the Jayhawk State, the Midway State, and the Wheat State. 

Kentucky– Underground vaults at Fort Knox hold one of the largest stockpiles of gold in the country.  

Louisiana – Louisiana has one of the highest alligator populations in the country, with an estimated two million in the wild and another 300,000 on alligator farms. 

Maine– Maine is the single state whose name is just one syllable, the lone state that borders precisely one other state, and the only state whose official flower, the pinecone, is not a flower. 

Maryland –  An impressive 41 percent of Maryland’s land is covered by forest.  

Massachusetts – Boston is home to America’s oldest public beach, public park, and subway system.

Michigan – No matter where you stand in Michigan, you will never be farther than 85 miles from one of the Great Lakes. 

Minnesota – Minnesota has over 11,000 lakes and is home to the country’s largest mall, the Mall of America.  

Mississippi – Jackson, the capital of Mississippi, is named after General Andrew Jackson in honor of his victory at the Battle of New Orleans in January of 1815. 

Missouri – The 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis introduced the masses to a number of new treats, including the waffle cone, cotton candy, and Dr. Pepper. 

Montana –  Established in 1872, Yellowstone National Park, which extends from the southern part of Montana into northern Wyoming, was the first national park in the United States. 

Nebraska – Nebraska has the only unicameral legislature in the United States, meaning that it has a single-house system. It’s also nonpartisan—there are no party affiliations listed on voting ballots. 

Nevada – With fewer than 10 inches of rain per year, Nevada's the driest state in the U.S. 

New Hampshire – Of all the coastal states, New Hampshire has the shortest shoreline, stretching no more than 18 miles. 

New Jersey – New Jersey played a crucial role in the Revolutionary War. More battles were fought in New Jersey than in any other colony.  

New Mexico – The White Sands National Monument sports over 275 square miles of white gypsum sand.  New York – New York City was the nation’s capital from 1785-1790. North Carolina –  The Wright Brothers tested various prototypes for a flying machine in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, because the remote location provided them with privacy, soft grounds, and steady winds.  

North Dakota – Lewis and Clark spent more time there than in any other state. They spent the winter of 1804-1805 at a North Dakota camp they called Fort Mandan. 

Ohio – The state flag of Ohio is unique in a particular way—it’s the only flag out of all 50 states' that isn’t rectangular. 

Oklahoma –  The nation’s first Tornado Warning was issued in Oklahoma on March 25, 1948.

Oregon – Crater Lake in south-central Oregon is the deepest lake in the United States (and one of the top 10 deepest in the world). Formed by the collapse of a volcano around 7700 years ago, the lake is close to 2000 feet deep.  

Pennsylvania – America’s first gas station was opened in Pittsburgh in 1913. 

Rhode Island – Rhode Island's the smallest state in the U.S. But its population density—an estimated 1,050,292 people—is second only to New Jersey. 

South Carolina – “America’s First Museum” was started by the Charleston Library Society in 1773, 12 years before the nation’s first public museum opened in Philadelphia.

South Dakota – South Dakota’s most famous landmark is Mount Rushmore National Memorial, a larger-than-life sculpture that was carved into the side of a granite mountain in the Black Hills between 1927 and 1941. 

Tennessee – Tennessee boasts the third-most visited house in the country (after the White House and Biltmore Estate): Graceland Mansion, the former home of Elvis Presley. 

Texas – Over the years, Texas has flown the flags of six different nations: Spain, Mexico, France, The Republic of Texas, the Confederate States of America, and the United States.

Utah – The Great Salt Lake is the largest saltwater lake in the Western Hemisphere. 

Vermont – Vermont's the largest producer of maple syrup in the U.S., producing over 500,000 gallons a year. 

Virginia – It doesn’t have any major professional sports teams, making it the largest state without a major league sports franchise.

Washington D.C. – The D.C. Metro is the second busiest subway system in the United States. 

Washington – Washington is the biggest producer of apples, raspberries, and sweet cherries in America. 

West Virginia – West Virginia is home to the New River, which, despite its name, is one of the five oldest rivers in the world. 

Wisconsin – Wisconsin is nicknamed “America’s Dairyland.” As of 2015, the state had a total of 10,290 licensed dairy farms. Together, they produced 13.5 percent of the nation’s milk and 25.4 percent of its cheese. 

Wyoming –Wyoming is the leading producer of coal in the United States, accounting for 40 percent of the nation’s total coal production in 2010. 

National Park Maps – This website has over 1,600 high-res scans of national parks! You can search by state or alphabetically, as well as download many of them. 

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Exploring the States through Maps and Visitor’s Guides

Want to explore the country without leaving your house? Almost every state offers a full map in their free visitor’s guide! Using physical maps are a great way to encourage map reading and geography skills, such as cardinal directions, reading symbols and legends, measuring distance. You can also use the visitor’s guide to practice reading comprehension, learning about cities, museums and landmarks, and spark discussion on where you should take your next trip.

 

Below you'll find a full list of free state maps and guides available from state tourism departments, along with somethings you may not know about each state: 

Alabama– NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center is located in Huntsville, Alabama. 

Alaska– Seventeen of the 20 highest peaks in the U.S. are located in Alaska. 

Arizona– Arizona produces enough cotton each year to make two T-shirts for every American (that’s 599 million tees). 

Arkansas– At Arkansas’ Crater of Diamonds State Park, tourists can dig through fields maintained by the park and are allowed to keep any diamonds they discover

California– If it were a country, it would have the eighth-largest economy in the world, beating out Italy, Russia, and India. 

Colorado– Colorado is known as the Centennial State because it was founded in 1876—100 years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

Connecticut–   Connecticut’s Hartford Courant is the country’s oldest continuously published paper.

Delaware– Delaware is the second-smallest state in the country. It stretches just under 100 miles long, and is only 35 miles at its widest point. 

Florida – Florida has the most golf courses of any state—more than 1,250. 

Georgia– Georgia is known as the Peach State, but it’s also the country's top producer of pecans, peanuts, and vidalia onions. 

Hawaii– The only state covered entirely by its own time zone, Hawaii-Aleutian, also doesn’t observe daylight saving. 

Idaho– The official nickname is the Gem State. Some 72 different precious and semi-precious gemstones have been found there. 

Illinois– Presidents Lincoln, Grant, and Obama all lived in Illinois. 

Indiana – There are nearly 100 historic covered bridges in the state of Indiana. 

Iowa– There are more hogs than humans in Iowa. As of 2013, the state’s hog population was 21.2 million animals, whereas the human population was just north of three million. 

Kansas– Nicknames for Kansas include the Sunflower State, the Jayhawk State, the Midway State, and the Wheat State. 

Kentucky– Underground vaults at Fort Knox hold one of the largest stockpiles of gold in the country.  

Louisiana – Louisiana has one of the highest alligator populations in the country, with an estimated two million in the wild and another 300,000 on alligator farms. 

Maine– Maine is the single state whose name is just one syllable, the lone state that borders precisely one other state, and the only state whose official flower, the pinecone, is not a flower. 

Maryland –  An impressive 41 percent of Maryland’s land is covered by forest.  

Massachusetts – Boston is home to America’s oldest public beach, public park, and subway system.

Michigan – No matter where you stand in Michigan, you will never be farther than 85 miles from one of the Great Lakes. 

Minnesota – Minnesota has over 11,000 lakes and is home to the country’s largest mall, the Mall of America.  

Mississippi – Jackson, the capital of Mississippi, is named after General Andrew Jackson in honor of his victory at the Battle of New Orleans in January of 1815. 

Missouri – The 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis introduced the masses to a number of new treats, including the waffle cone, cotton candy, and Dr. Pepper. 

Montana –  Established in 1872, Yellowstone National Park, which extends from the southern part of Montana into northern Wyoming, was the first national park in the United States. 

Nebraska – Nebraska has the only unicameral legislature in the United States, meaning that it has a single-house system. It’s also nonpartisan—there are no party affiliations listed on voting ballots. 

Nevada – With fewer than 10 inches of rain per year, Nevada's the driest state in the U.S. 

New Hampshire – Of all the coastal states, New Hampshire has the shortest shoreline, stretching no more than 18 miles. 

New Jersey – New Jersey played a crucial role in the Revolutionary War. More battles were fought in New Jersey than in any other colony.  

New Mexico – The White Sands National Monument sports over 275 square miles of white gypsum sand.  New York – New York City was the nation’s capital from 1785-1790. North Carolina –  The Wright Brothers tested various prototypes for a flying machine in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, because the remote location provided them with privacy, soft grounds, and steady winds.  

North Dakota – Lewis and Clark spent more time there than in any other state. They spent the winter of 1804-1805 at a North Dakota camp they called Fort Mandan. 

Ohio – The state flag of Ohio is unique in a particular way—it’s the only flag out of all 50 states' that isn’t rectangular. 

Oklahoma –  The nation’s first Tornado Warning was issued in Oklahoma on March 25, 1948.

Oregon – Crater Lake in south-central Oregon is the deepest lake in the United States (and one of the top 10 deepest in the world). Formed by the collapse of a volcano around 7700 years ago, the lake is close to 2000 feet deep.  

Pennsylvania – America’s first gas station was opened in Pittsburgh in 1913. 

Rhode Island – Rhode Island's the smallest state in the U.S. But its population density—an estimated 1,050,292 people—is second only to New Jersey. 

South Carolina – “America’s First Museum” was started by the Charleston Library Society in 1773, 12 years before the nation’s first public museum opened in Philadelphia.

South Dakota – South Dakota’s most famous landmark is Mount Rushmore National Memorial, a larger-than-life sculpture that was carved into the side of a granite mountain in the Black Hills between 1927 and 1941. 

Tennessee – Tennessee boasts the third-most visited house in the country (after the White House and Biltmore Estate): Graceland Mansion, the former home of Elvis Presley. 

Texas – Over the years, Texas has flown the flags of six different nations: Spain, Mexico, France, The Republic of Texas, the Confederate States of America, and the United States.

Utah – The Great Salt Lake is the largest saltwater lake in the Western Hemisphere. 

Vermont – Vermont's the largest producer of maple syrup in the U.S., producing over 500,000 gallons a year. 

Virginia – It doesn’t have any major professional sports teams, making it the largest state without a major league sports franchise.

Washington D.C. – The D.C. Metro is the second busiest subway system in the United States. 

Washington – Washington is the biggest producer of apples, raspberries, and sweet cherries in America. 

West Virginia – West Virginia is home to the New River, which, despite its name, is one of the five oldest rivers in the world. 

Wisconsin – Wisconsin is nicknamed “America’s Dairyland.” As of 2015, the state had a total of 10,290 licensed dairy farms. Together, they produced 13.5 percent of the nation’s milk and 25.4 percent of its cheese. 

Wyoming –Wyoming is the leading producer of coal in the United States, accounting for 40 percent of the nation’s total coal production in 2010. 

National Park Maps – This website has over 1,600 high-res scans of national parks! You can search by state or alphabetically, as well as download many of them. 

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