The States — Season 1, Episode 9: Michigan, Tennessee, Maine, Missouri, South Dakota

Episode synopsis

Michigan's logging industry helped build fortunes, but over-harvesting also threatened the environment. Davy Crocket, the coonskin-capped congressman from Tennessee, became more legend than reality thanks to 19th century political campaigns. Originally disdained as a food fit only for servants, lobsters are now a delicacy fueling Maine's fishing industries. Riverboat traffic and trailheads to Santa Fe and Oregon made Missouri the "Gateway to the West." The discovery of gold in the Black Hills in 1874 created a rush of prospectors who displaced Indians from sacred land that they'd been promised for eternity.

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
• E8Virginia, Ohio, Idaho, Alabama, North Dakota
• E10Georgia, Colorado, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Maryland/DC