Starting in 1629 and continuing through every month for (almost) 400 years, see how the contiguous United States formed colony by colony, then state by state, expanding with massive territories and redefining within counties.
This Territorial History of the USA animation was created by Earth Direct in 2013 from The Newberry Library‘s Atlas of Historical County Boundaries data. Follow the years and months in the top right, including two big events: The Declaration of Independence in 1776 and the Louisiana Purchase in 1803.
Related reading: Thirteen colonies, Organized incorporated territories of the United States, and U.S. states by date of statehood.
Next, watch how zip codes helped organize America.via Laughing Squid.
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