Thirty-Second State of the Union Admission to Statehood: 11 May 1858
The U.S. acquired eastern Minnesota from Great Britain after the Revolutionary War and 20 years later bought the western part from France in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. Much of the region was explored by U.S. Army lieutenant Zebulon M. Pike before the northern strip of Minnesota bordering Canada was ceded by Britain in 1818.
State Flower: Pink & White Lady's Slipper
State Tree: Norway Pine
State Bird: Great Northern Diver or Loon