Next up on our Tour de force are the great states of Virginia and Louisiana. Buckle up your seatbelts, it’s gonna be one heck of a ride.
First up is Virginia. Did you know that…
- Eight United States Presidents were born in Virginia: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, William Harrison, John Tyler, Zachary Taylor, and Woodrow Wilson.
- The present state capital in Richmond was also the capital of the Confederacy.
- Over 2,200 of the 4,000 battles of the civil war were fought in Virginia
- In Virginia more people work for the United States government than any other industry. About 1/4 of Virginia’s workers.
- The tomb of the Unknown Soldier is in Arlington National Cemetery.
- Wild Ponies have roamed freely on Assateague Island for centuries.
- Patrick Henry made his “Give me Liberty or Give me Death” speech in St. John’s Church in Richmond.
- Bristol is legally two cities but they share the same main street. One in Virginia and one in Tennessee each with its own government and city services.
- Virginia’s largest private employer is also the world’s largest ship building yard
- The Pentagon has nearly 68,000 miles of internal telephone lines.
Finishing up today’s listing is Louisiana. Here we go!
- Louisiana is the only state in the union that does not have counties. Its political subdivisions are called parishes.
- Louisiana is the only state with a large population of Cajuns, descendants of the Acadians who were driven out of Canada in the 1700s because they wouldn’t pledge allegiance to the King of England.
- Louisiana is the only state that still refers to the Napoleonic Code in its state law
- In Louisiana, biting someone with your natural teeth is considered a simple assault, but biting someone with your false teeth is considered an aggravated assault.
- The first American army to have African American officers was the confederate Louisiana Native Guards. The Corps d’Afrique at Port Hudson was sworn into service on September 27, 1862.
- The town of Jean Lafitte was once a hideaway for pirates.
- Because Covington is in a region referred to as the Ozone Belt, it has long been known for its clean air and water.
- The first Tarzan movie was filmed in Louisiana in 1917.
- St. Louis Cemetery in New Orleans houses the grave of Voodoo priestess Marie Laveau and brings pilgrims every year.
- Not only known in the area for good cajun cooking, the historic Napoleon House diner in New Orleans was, according to legend, first built as a place for Napoleon Bonaparte to flee to after his exile.