Cathy Lynn Tucker, age 11, of Auburn, Alabama, for her question:

When did the U. S. acquire Hawaii?

This 50th state joined the Union on August 21, 1959.  Our 50th state is properly called the Hawaiian Islands.. It does not sound quite correct to say that the United States "acquired" Hawaii. To many people that word sounds a bit grabby and not at all friendly.

And the events that led up to the Hawaiian Islands becoming our 50th State were generally friendly ones. A powerful America could have stormed in with guns and soldiers and grabbed the beautiful islands. Instead, there was a much happier transition. The islands became a U. S. possession, then a U. S. territory and finally, by popular vote of their people, the most recent state in the United States.