How the States Got Their Shapes

The Great Plains, Trains and Automobiles (1x2)

Air date: May 10, 2011

The history of transportation is hidden in the lines of the map. From canals to trains and cars, how did getting around help draw the American map? Could Chicago have been in Wisconsin? Why are states out West or so big and boxy? And why did we almost had a state called Forgottonia?