Massachusetts Atlas

Online Atlas > Massachusetts > Museums • Photographs

Massachusetts facts and history plus travel and tourism information.

Capital: Boston
Abbreviations: MA (postal), Mass.
Area: 9,241 square miles
State Bird: Chickadee
State Tree: American Elm
State Flower: Mayflower
State Motto: Ense Petit Placidam sub Libertate Quietem - By the sword we seek peace, but peace only under liberty
Nicknames: The Old Colony State, The Bay State

During the 1600s, Pilgrims founded Plymouth, Boston, and the Massachusetts Bay Colony along New England's coast. This same land would be included in Massachusetts, the sixth state, about 150 years later, on February 6, 1788.

Today, Boston is the state's capital and the largest city in New England. Well-known for baseball's Boston Red Sox and Harvard University, Boston is also home to over a hundred other colleges and universities and a major transportation center, Logan International Airport. In addition, New York City and Boston are linked by rail, allowing easy access to New England's charming historical districts and coastline.

In western Massachusetts, visitors are drawn to the rolling Berkshire Hills, with their historic towns and beautiful Autumn colors. To the east, stretching out into the Atlantic, the Cape Cod peninsula beckons vacationers with its picturesque villages and ocean beaches. The islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket have their own charms as well, attracting sailors, seafood lovers, and vacationers with their quaint marinas and nautical landscapes.

Massachusetts Map

More Massachusetts Information

Massachusetts Government - official Massachusetts state website.
Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism
National Parks of Massachusetts
Massachusetts QuickFacts - from the US Census Bureau.
50States.com - Massachusetts

Massachusetts Resources