Size is relative
I've been joking for a while that Cook County (Illinois) was practically bigger than the entire state of Rhode Island.
Then, for a lark, I looked them up.
According to the data at Wikipedia, Cook County has 1,635 sq mi (4,235 km²) and a population of 5,285,107.
Meanwhile, the state of Rhode Island has 1,545 sq mi (4,002 km²) and a population of 1,057,832...which makes it only forty-third in a nation of 50 states.
When I checked a List of U.S. states by population...it turns out that Cook County falls right between Wisconsin (#20, with a population of 5.6 million) and Minnesota (#21, with a population of 5.1 million) in size.
Let me say this again: the COUNTY I live in has a larger population than THIRTY of the states in my nation. And is larger in land mass than the ENTIRE STATE of Rhode Island.
::boggles::
Then, for a lark, I looked them up.
According to the data at Wikipedia, Cook County has 1,635 sq mi (4,235 km²) and a population of 5,285,107.
Meanwhile, the state of Rhode Island has 1,545 sq mi (4,002 km²) and a population of 1,057,832...which makes it only forty-third in a nation of 50 states.
When I checked a List of U.S. states by population...it turns out that Cook County falls right between Wisconsin (#20, with a population of 5.6 million) and Minnesota (#21, with a population of 5.1 million) in size.
Let me say this again: the COUNTY I live in has a larger population than THIRTY of the states in my nation. And is larger in land mass than the ENTIRE STATE of Rhode Island.
::boggles::