The States — Season 1, Episode 8: Virginia, Ohio, Idaho, Alabama, North Dakota

Episode synopsis

Virginia was not only the home of the first permanent British colony; it was the birthplace of eight presidents of the United States. "The Gravity Grand Prix" has been an annual event in Akron, Ohio, since the 1930s and today draws 500 young entrants from around the nation. The discovery of gold, then lead, copper, zinc and silver, has made Idaho one of the richest mineral producing states in the nation. Poor hill farmers in Winston County rarely owned slaves and when Alabama seceded from the Union in 1861, Winston County tried to secede from Alabama. Teddy Roosevelt, America's first conservation president, learned valuable lessons about preserving nature while on his North Dakota ranch.

About The States

The States is a 2007 American documentary television series about the history of each state in the United States of America, narrated by Edward Herrmann. The show documents each of the 50 states in the union. The show begins with an introduction to the five states to be documented within the episode. Each state's segment begins with the narrator giving a clue as to what that state might be, and then revealing the answer. There is then a billboard that pops up showing the state nickname, motto, population, population ranking within the union, date the state entered the union, and state flag. During interviews with historians or notable people from a state, the state's quarter is shown. Since the series was produced in 2007, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona, Alaska, and Hawaii are shown with their flags. Those quarters were released in 2008 The show then highlights the history of the state itself, including notable events that have happened there, and highlights other noteworthy things in that state. In 2010 a sister presentation and then series, How the States Got Their Shapes was aired.

More episodes from Season 1

• E1California, North Carolina, Kansas, New Hampshire, West Virginia
• E2Texas, Massachusetts, Arkansas, Iowa, Delaware
• E3New York, Louisiana, Oregon, New Mexico, Vermont
• E4New Jersey, Arizona, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Alaska
• E5Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Hawaii, South Carolina, Montana
• E6Florida, Indiana, Washington, Utah, Rhode Island
• E7Illinois, Connecticut, Nevada, Mississippi, Wyoming
• E9Michigan, Tennessee, Maine, Missouri, South Dakota
• E10Georgia, Colorado, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Maryland/DC