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How the States Got Their Shapes - Season 1

Series: How the States Got Their Shapes
4.6
(179)
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Episodes
10
Rating
TV14
Year
2011
Language
English
Publisher
History

About

In How The States Got Their Shapes, Brian Unger hits the road to uncover the history hidden in our map. From the crooked borders in the east, to the organized boxes in the west, the shapes of the states are more than simple geography.

Related Subjects

Episodes

1. A River Runs Through It

42m

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How has water has literally shaped the States? There's surprising history hidden in the blue, squiggly lines on the map. Did the founding fathers make a mistake along the Georgia Tennessee border?

2. The Great Plains, Trains, & Automobiles

43m

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The history of transportation is hidden in the lines of the map. From canals to trains and cars, how did getting around help draw the American map? Could Chicago have been in Wisconsin? Why are states out West or so big and boxy?

3. Forces of Nature

42m

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How have massive geological events helped create the American map? Long before the Founding Fathers drew the map, Mother Nature shaped some states.

4. State of Rebellion

42m

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How did the most rebellious states took shape? How did they earn their outsized features and outspoken reputations. For instance, why does Montana looks like it took a bite out of Idaho? Why wasn't Texas broken up into five states?

5. Living On The Edge

41m

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What secrets are hiding in our map? What's behind the "blank spots" like Area 51? What possessed the citizens of Key West to throw down their margaritas and secede from Florida?

6. Use It or Lose It

41m

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If you thought our borders were set in stone, you'd be wrong. Who stole a corner of Washington, DC? Is Ohio actually a state? And why isn't St. Louis our nation's capital? One thing's for sure -- our map could look very different.

7. Church and States

42m

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Ever since the Pilgrims boarded the Mayflower, what we believe and how we believe has shaped the American map. Could Utah have been bigger than Texas?

8. A Boom With a View

41m

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Did money make our map? Through boom and through bust, the sweet smell of profit has drawn and redrawn our states. How did Green Bay help carve our border with Canada?

9. Culture Clash

44m

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Will rivalries within our states break them into pieces? Cultures compete against each other all over the map. In extreme cases, they can divide states in two.

10. Mouthing Off

43m

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We all live in the same country, so why do we sound do different? It's a matter of where you are on the map. Why didn't the southern accent exist until after the Civil War? How did California athletes end up coining so many new words?

Extended Details

  • Closed CaptionsEnglish

Artists