Historical regions of the United States

The territory of the United States and its overseas possessions has evolved over time, from the colonial era to the present day. It includes formally organized territories, proposed and failed states, unrecognized breakaway states, international and interstate purchases, cessions, and land grants, and historical military departments and administrative districts. The last section lists informal regions from American vernacular geography known by popular nicknames and linked by geographical, cultural, or economic similarities, some of which are still in use today.

For a more complete list of regions and subdivisions of the United States used in modern times, see List of regions of the United States.

Colonial era (before 1776)

Thirteen Colonies

Main article: Thirteen Colonies

Pre-Revolutionary War regions

Main article: European colonization of the Americas

† - indicates failed legal entities

New England

Mid-Atlantic

Southern

Interior

Far West

Unlike the land to the east, most of the land west of the Mississippi River was under French or Spanish rule until the first years of the 19th century.

Colonies settled but unrecognized

Colonies proposed but unrealized

Independent entities later joined to the Union

Regions purchased from foreign powers

See also: Territorial evolution of the United States and Manifest Destiny

Regions annexed from or ceded by foreign powers

  • Some historic and current U.S. territories
  • The Philippines was a commonwealth of the United States, 1935–1946
  • Worldwide location of current U.S. insular areas:
  • The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico

Ceded or purchased Native American regions

Further information: Aboriginal title in the United States and Category:Aboriginal title in the United States

Interstate, territorial, and federal cessions

The following are state cessions made during the building of the U.S.

Former organized territories

The following is a list of the 31 U.S. territories that have become states, in the order of the date organized (all were considered incorporated):

Internal land grants, cessions, districts, departments, claims and settlements

The following are land grants, cessions, defined districts (official or otherwise) or named settlements made within an area that was already part of a U.S. state or territory that did not involve international treaties or Native American cessions or land purchases.

Alaska

Colorado

Iowa

Nebraska

New York

Ohio

Main article: Ohio Lands

Oklahoma

Indian reserves

Pennsylvania

Tennessee

  • Congressional Reservation
  • Greene's Reserve
  • North Carolina Military Reservation
  • Western Purchase

Federal military districts and departments

See also: Reconstruction Era § Military reconstruction

These entities were sometimes the only governmental authority in the listed areas, although they often co-existed with civil governments in scarcely populated states and territories. Civilian administered "military" tracts, districts, departments, etc., will be listed elsewhere.

Central United States

  • Department of the Northwest (1862–1865) Dakota, Minnesota, Montana, Wisconsin, Iowa, Nebraska[2]
    • District of Minnesota (1862–1865)
    • District of Wisconsin (1862–1865)
    • District of Iowa (1862–1865)
    • District of Dakota (1862–1866)
    • District of Montana (1864–1866)
  • Department of the Missouri (1861–1865) Missouri, Arkansas, Illinois, part of Kentucky, and later Kansas; re-configured in 1865 as part of the Division of the Missouri.
  • Division of the Missouri (1865–1891).
    • Department of Dakota (1866–1911) Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, and parts of Idaho, South Dakota and the Yellowstone portion of Wyoming.
    • Department of the Missouri (1865–1891) Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Indian Territory, and Territory of Oklahoma.
    • Department of the Platte (1866–1898) Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Dakota Territory, Utah Territory, Wyoming (except Yellowstone), and a portion of Idaho.
    • Department of Texas (1871–1880) (originally part of the Department of the Gulf) Texas after 1865.
  • Department of New Mexico (1854–65) New Mexico Territory; previously part of the District of California and the Department of the West.

Pacific area

  • Pacific Division (1848–1853) lands won in the Mexican–American War; became the original Department of the Pacific in 1853.
    • Military Department 10 (1848–1851) California.
    • Military Department 11 (1848–1851) Oregon Territory.
  • Department of the Pacific (1853–1858; and 1861–1865); separated into the Department of California and the Department of Oregon in 1858.

During the American Civil War, the Department of the Pacific had six subordinate military districts:

The Department of California (1858–1861) comprised the southern part of the Department of the Pacific: California, Nevada, and southern part of Oregon Territory; merged into the Department of the Pacific as the District of California.

The Department of Oregon (1858–1861) comprised the northern part of the Department of the Pacific: Washington Territory and Oregon Territory.

The south

  • Department of the Gulf (1862–1865; created by the U.S. for the Civil War) Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, and Texas.
  • Trans-Mississippi (or Trans-Mississippi Department; CSA) (1862–1865). Formerly "Military Dept. 2"; Missouri, Arkansas, Texas, Indian Territory (now Oklahoma), Kansas, and Louisiana west of the Mississippi River.

The west

Retroceded possessions and overseas territories

Functioning but non-sanctioned territories

These "territories" had actual, functioning governments (recognized or not):

These are functioning governments created as a result of the attempted secession of the Confederacy during the American Civil War (1861–1865). Some were enclaves within enemy-held territories:

These were regions disassociated from neighboring areas due to opposing views:

Regional nicknames

Main article: List of regions of the United States

Belts

Belts are loosely defined sub-regions found throughout the United States that are named for a perceived commonality among the included areas, which is often related to the region's economy or climate.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Luisiana". Artifacts.org. Retrieved 2012-09-17.
  2. ^ Heidler, David Stephen; Heidler, Jeanne T.; Coles, David J.; Encyclopedia of the American Civil War: A Political, Social, and Military History; W. W. Norton & Company; New York; 2000; p. 590.
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