by Ann » Wed Mar 08, 2023 7:53 am
Wow. Note that the eastern half of the United States is bright, whereas the western part of the U.S. is mostly dark. (And please tell me what happened to Canada?)
As a non-American who never studied American history (well, I know of Mayflower 1620, the Declaration of Independence of 1776 and the Civil War of 1861-65 and the shooting of Lincoln in 1865, but not that much else), I immediately though of the Louisiana Purchase (of 1803). That was when the U.S. bought, in one fell swoop, the entire western half of what is now the United States, right?
Eh, no. Because the Louisiana Purchase was the purchase (by the 13 original states?) of what is now sort of the middle third part of the present U.S.
I guess it was Lewis and Clark that helped the U.S. gain control of the far, far, far wild West, right?
Anyway. It looks to me as if the western part of the United States still isn't fully settled.
Ann
Wow. Note that the eastern half of the United States is bright, whereas the western part of the U.S. is mostly dark. (And please tell me what happened to Canada?)
[attachment=0]APOD 8 March 2023 detail.png[/attachment]
As a non-American who never studied American history (well, I know of Mayflower 1620, the Declaration of Independence of 1776 and the Civil War of 1861-65 and the shooting of Lincoln in 1865, but not that much else), I immediately though of the Louisiana Purchase (of 1803). That was when the U.S. bought, in one fell swoop, the entire western half of what is now the United States, right?
[img3="The Louisiana Purchase. Illustration: William Morris"]https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/56/Louisiana_Purchase.jpg/1280px-Louisiana_Purchase.jpg[/img3]
Eh, no. Because the Louisiana Purchase was the purchase (by the 13 original states?) of what is now sort of the middle third part of the present U.S.
I guess it was Lewis and Clark that helped the U.S. gain control of the far, far, far wild West, right?
[float=left][img3="Lois and Clark. Oops, wrong illustration."]https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/df/Lois_%26_Clark-The_New_Adventures_of_Superman_S1.jpg[/img3][/float][float=right][img3="Lewis and Clark, also known as Meriwether and William. Are you sure, Meriwether, that you didn't blunder onto the Rocky Mountains during your long walks through the forests of Middle Earth?"]https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/85/Lewis_and_Clark.jpg[/img3][/float]
[clear][/clear]
Anyway. It looks to me as if the western part of the United States still isn't fully settled.
Ann