States by Order of Entry Into the Union (2024)

Updated January 6, 2022 | Infoplease Staff

The first (and last) U.S. states

The original 13 colonies were a group of British territories in North America. Among the Thirteen colonies, Virginia was the first to be settled by English people. Depending on how we define "states" in this instance, the first state to create its own constitution was Connecticut. The first state to be settled by Europeans at all would be Florida; St. Augustine, Florida is the oldest continuous European settlement in the U.S.

However, the states of today are legally distinct from the colonies. The first state in the sense of "one of the current 50 states of America" would be the first one to enter into the Union by adopting the U.S. Constitution.

Replacing the Articles of Confederation

Many people mistakenly believe that the United States Constitution was created after the Revolution. But, the country was first governed under the Articles of Confederation, drafted in 1781 (the same year as Yorktown). The Articles proved insufficient to meet the challenges the country faced. Legislators met to discuss revisions to the Articles, but the representatives decided that it would be better to replace them entirely with a new document. That document became the Constitution, the details of which were hammered out at the Constitutional Convention.

To adopt the Constitution as the new law of the land, it had to be ratified by 2/3 of the states in the Confederation (as per its own Article VII). Ratification required that each state elect representatives to a ratification convention within the state

The American states assumed their present forms in 1788, when the ninth and final necessary state ratified the United States Constitution. The date each state joined the Union is shown in the table below (usually coinciding with a territory being granted statehood). Five states were added during the 20th century. Alaska and Hawaii were the last states to join the Union -- both in 1959.

Joining the Union

Article 4, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution lays out how a new state can join the Union:

New States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union; but no new States shall be formed or erected within the Jurisdiction of any other State; nor any State be formed by the Junction of two or more States, or parts of States, without the Consent of the Legislatures of the States concerned as well as of the Congress.

State	Entered Union	Year Settled
Delaware	Dec. 7, 1787	1638
Pennsylvania	Dec. 12, 1787	1682
New Jersey	Dec. 18, 1787	1660
Georgia	Jan. 2, 1788	1733
Connecticut	Jan. 9, 1788	1634
Massachusetts	Feb. 6, 1788	1620
Maryland	Apr. 28, 1788	1634
South Carolina	May 23, 1788	1670
New Hampshire	June 21, 1788	1623
Virginia	June 25, 1788	1607
New York	July 26, 1788	1614
North Carolina	Nov. 21, 1789	1660
Rhode Island	May 29, 1790	1636
Vermont	Mar. 4, 1791	1724
Kentucky	June 1, 1792	1774
Tennessee	June 1, 1796	1769
Ohio	Mar. 1, 1803	1788
Louisiana	Apr. 30, 1812	1699
Indiana	Dec. 11, 1816	1733
Mississippi	Dec. 10, 1817	1699
Illinois	Dec. 3, 1818	1720
Alabama	Dec. 14, 1819	1702
Maine	Mar. 15, 1820	1624
Missouri	Aug. 10, 1821	1735
Arkansas	June 15, 1836	1686
Michigan	Jan. 26, 1837	1668
Florida	Mar. 3, 1845	1565
Texas	Dec. 29, 1845	1682
Iowa	Dec. 28, 1846	1788
Wisconsin	May 29, 1848	1766
California	Sept. 9, 1850	1769
Minnesota	May 11, 1858	1805
Oregon	Feb. 14, 1859	1811
Kansas	Jan. 29, 1861	1727
West Virginia	June 20, 1863	1727
Nevada	Oct. 31, 1864	1849
Nebraska	Mar. 1, 1867	1823
Colorado	Aug. 1, 1876	1858
North Dakota	Nov. 2, 1889	1812
South Dakota	Nov. 2, 1889	1859
Montana	Nov. 8, 1889	1809
Washington	Nov. 11, 1889	1811
Idaho	July 3, 1890	1842
Wyoming	July 10, 1890	1834
Utah	Jan. 4, 1896	1847
Oklahoma	Nov. 16, 1907	1889
New Mexico	Jan. 6, 1912	1610
Arizona	Feb. 14, 1912	1776
Alaska	Jan. 3, 1959	1784
Hawaii	Aug. 21, 1959	1820

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FAQs

States by Order of Entry Into the Union? ›

New States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union; but no new State shall be formed or erected within the Jurisdiction of any other State; nor any State be formed by the Junction of two or more States, or Parts of States, without the Consent of the Legislatures of the States concerned as well as of the ...

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In what order did states join the Union? ›

List of U.S. states and their order to statehood/all 50 states

State		Date (admitted or ratified)
30	Wisconsin	May 29, 1848 (admitted)
31	California	September 9, 1850 (admitted)
32	Minnesota	May 11, 1858 (admitted)
33	Oregon	February 14, 1859 (admitted)

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What were the first 5 states that joined the Union following the original 13 states? ›

The first five states to join the Union following the original 13 states were:

Vermont: Vermont joined the Union on March 4, 1791.
Kentucky: Kentucky joined the Union on June 1, 1792.
Tennessee: Tennessee joined the Union on June 1, 1796.
Ohio: Ohio joined the Union on March 1, 1803.

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Feb 27, 2020

What did a state have to do in order to be admitted into the Union? ›

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What are the 50 states in number order? ›

The United States in Order of Statehood

Order	State	First Settlements (Focus on English)
31	California	1776-SF (Sp); 1781-LA (Sp); 1826-US Migration
32	Minnesota	1650-1680-French Exploration; 1784-US Gains Control
33	Oregon	1805-Lewis & Clark Explore; 1811-Astoria (US)
34	Kansas	1804-Lewis & Clark Explore; 1827-Ft. Leavenworth (US)

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In what order did states rejoin the Union? ›

In the summer of 1868, seven former Confederate states--Alabama (July 13, 1868), Arkansas (June 22, 1868), Florida (June 25, 1868), Georgia* (July 21, 1868), Louisiana (July 9, 1868), North Carolina (July 4, 1868), and South Carolina (July 9, 1868) are readmitted to the Union.

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What is the order of states to secede from Union? ›

The eleven states of the CSA, in order of their dates of secession (listed in parentheses), were: South Carolina (December 20, 1860), Mississippi (January 9, 1861), Florida (January 10, 1861), Alabama (January 11, 1861), Georgia (January 19, 1861), Louisiana (January 26, 1861), Texas (February 1, 1861), Virginia (April ...

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What is the oldest state in the United States? ›

Delaware

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When did all 50 states unite? ›

List of U.S. states

State		Date (admitted or ratified)
47	New Mexico	January 6, 1912 (admitted)
48	Arizona	February 14, 1912 (admitted)
49	Alaska	January 3, 1959 (admitted)
50	Hawaii	August 21, 1959 (admitted)

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Which is the newest US state? ›

In January 1959, Alaska became the 49th state admitted to the union. Over half a year later, Hawaii joined as the 50th state.

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Why isn't Puerto Rico a state? ›

The report concluded that Puerto Rico "remains an unincorporated territory and does not have the status of 'free association' with the United States as that status is defined under United States law or international practice", and that the establishment of local self-government with the consent of the people can be ...

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Which state was the last to be admitted to the Union? ›

There are fifty (50) states and Washington D.C.The last two states to join the Union were Alaska (49th) and Hawaii (50th). Both joined in 1959. Washington D.C. is a federal district under the authority of Congress.

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What state was admitted as the 3rd state? ›

3. New Jersey(1787) – The Garden State. The third colony to ratify the Constitution, there must have been gardens at one time in this seaside state.

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What state is the 51st state? ›

The rest of Washington, made up of the parts of the city where people actually live, would then become the 51st state, called "Douglass Commonwealth." This would allow the new state to keep its DC abbreviation and also pay homage to Frederick Douglass, the social reformer and abolitionist.

What is the youngest state? ›

Utah has long been known as the youngest state, but declining fertility rates and an aging adult population means the state is getting older.

Are there 50 states or 52? ›

But how many states are in the U.S.A.? Since 1959, 50 states have been part of the United States, not 52 as some might think.

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What are the 49th and 50th states to be admitted to the Union in that order? ›

Alaska is admitted as the 49th state of the Union. Hawaii is admitted as the 50th state of the Union. The 50 star flag becomes the official flag of the United States.

What was the first state to join the Union after 13 colonies? ›

1. Delaware(1787) – The First State. Delaware was the first colony to ratify the U.S. Constitution, and by doing so, became the first state.

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What order were the states ratified in? ›

States and Dates of Ratification

Delaware: December 7, 1787.
Pennsylvania: December 12, 1787.
New Jersey: December 18, 1787.
Georgia: January 2, 1788.
Connecticut: January 9, 1788.
Massachusetts: February 6, 1788.
Maryland: April 28, 1788.
South Carolina: May 23, 1788.

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States by Order of Entry Into the Union (2024)

The first (and last) U.S. states

Replacing the Articles of Confederation

Joining the Union

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States by Order of Entry Into the Union? ›

Why isn't Puerto Rico a state? ›