The most comprehensive and most up-to-date one-volume reference work available on U.S. states. This volume is designed to serve the needs of those seeking basic information on individual states and the District of Columbia. Each chapter opens with a profile listing of key facts on population, geography, history and other points of interest. This section is followed by a brief state history, state timeline, and notes for further study. This new third edition contains many new features: New sortable comparative ranking tables allow users to sort and rank states by hundreds of different criteria, all free online with your print purchase Each state chapter is now supplemented with informative Rankings. Here, users can find out which states are the happiest, have the best and worst living standards, are the most entrepreneurial, are the best or worst to raise a family, have the best and worst job growth and so much more. An amazing collection of interesting and useful state data. The chapters are arranged alphabetically and contain lists of all the counties in the state, including their population and geographic area. Each chapter also has a list of cities and towns with at least 10,000 residents. Each state chapter includes the state flag, the state seal, 5-6 photos of places of significant interest, and maps that depict the state's geography, its counties, and its cities. The bulk of each state chapter is made up of 40 statistical tables, arranged under these subject headings: Demographics; Vital Statistics; Economy; Land Use; Government and Finance; Politics; Health and Medical Care; Housing; Education; Transportation and Travel; Crime and Law Enforcement. These tables emphasise data on the subject likely to be of greatest to readers, and draw primarily on the latest federal government statistics, most notably, the results of the U.S. Census 2010 that are, in many cases, compared with data from as long as 40 years ago. Following the state chapters is a section that shows how each state ranks nationally in important statistical categories and figures showing each state's share of national totals. This title ends with an Annotated Bibliography, which covers publications on the states collectively, a Guide to Web Resources, and a General Index.