Fact 1: A Noodle's Journey Home
In 2005, a 6-foot-tall, inflatable noodle escaped from an Illinois restaurant, ending up in a high school's football field roughly half a mile away. The restaurant, as a joke, received a ransom note demanding "dough" for the noodle's release.
Fact 2: Rules of the Flag
The United States flag code stipulates that fabric flags should never be used for advertising purposes. As such, it is technically breaking this code to print the U.S. flag on anything intended to be thrown away after use, including paper plates or napkins.
Fact 3: One of A Kind
The Great Lakes form the largest surface freshwater system in the world, holding about 84% of North America's fresh water. That's more than all the lakes in the other 49 states combined!
Fact 4: Banned from Prison
Despite it often being depicted in movies, the classic game of Monopoly is banned in most U.S. prisons due to the fact it could theoretically be used to plan an escape.
Fact 5: Unlucky Capitols
Las Vegas, despite its fame as the gambling capital of the United States, does not have a lottery. Interestingly, Nevada is one of only six states without a state lottery.
Fact 6: Young Achievers
In 2021, U.S. football player Patrick Mahomes became the youngest player in NFL history to start in two Super Bowls at just 24 years old.
Fact 7: Mysterious Monuments
No one knows the real reasons why Georgia's Guidestones were built. However, they provide guidance in eight modern languages, as well as four ancient ones, on how to rebuild society after an apocalypse.
Fact 8: Caroling Tradition
The first group of carolers on record in the U.S. came from St. Augustine, Florida. The Spanish tradition of posadas, or processions reenacting Joseph and Mary's search for lodging, made its way to the New World.
Fact 9: Multi-Lingual Declaration
The Declaration of Independence has been translated into over 135 languages, ensuring the world knows of America's pride in independence.
Fact 10: Unusual Fears
Humans aren't the only ones with strange fears. The fear of eagles is so widespread amongst turkeys, some farmers use fake eagles as a way of controlling their populations.
Fact 11: Technicolor Forests
Alaska’s forests have trees that turn orange, purple, and even red due to the cold temperatures and short growing seasons.
Fact 12: Highest Elevation States
Alaska has the highest and lowest points in the U.S. The highest is Mount McKinley at 20,320 feet, while the lowest point is the bottom of the Bering Sea, nearly 18,000 feet below sea level.
Fact 13: A Snail Mail Record
The longest recorded delivery time for U.S. mail was 48 years. In 2008, a love letter sent in 1960 from a boy to his high school sweetheart, who had since moved, was finally delivered!
Fact 14: Liberty Bell's Mute Note
The famous Liberty Bell in Philadelphia has not been rung since 1846. On that fateful day, the bell's familiar crack worsened - and it has remained silent ever since.
Fact 15: Most Photographed Barn
Billed as "the most photographed barn in America," the Thomas Murphy barn in Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, attracts thousands of photographers annually.
Fact 16: Blue Jeans Origins
Levi Strauss & Co., an American clothing company, is known worldwide for its Levi's brand of denim jeans. It was founded in 1853 and began when Levi Strauss came from Bavaria to San Francisco.
Fact 17: Meteor Shower Capital
Alabama's Cedar Plains is known as the "meteor shower capital of the world". It’s a prime location for viewing meteor showers because of the low percentage of "light pollution."
Fact 18: World's Smallest Park
Portland, Oregon, proudly boasts that it is home to Mill Ends Park – at just 2ft across, it's the world's smallest park!
Fact 19: A National Park Inside a City
Cuyahoga Valley National Park in Ohio is the only national park that has a city, Akron, and several villages within its boundaries.
Fact 20: Oldest Operating Library
The Library Company of Philadelphia, founded by Benjamin Franklin in 1731, is the oldest continually operating library in America. Interestingly, it stopped being a lending library in the mid-19th century. It is now a research library focusing on American society and culture until 1900.