From day one the United States has included both states and territories, with the territories treated differently. In 1940, when the Philippines was a U.S. possession, 19 million U.S. nationals ...

There are also commonwealths elsewhere in the United States and around the world. Maybe you first came across the term on a US history test or while watching a documentary.

As the United States expanded West after their independence, new land had to be organized. As a result, the US Federal government chose to first group and lable these lands into 'Unorganized ...