The Mid-Atlantic — commonly defined as New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland, sometimes extended to Virginia and Washington, D.C. — was the historical heart of the 'Middle Colonies,' prized for fertile farmland that earned the nickname 'the breadbasket colonies.'

Delaware holds a special distinction: it was the first state to ratify the US Constitution, on December 7, 1787, which is why it's still nicknamed 'The First State' today.

The region is also one of the most densely populated corridors in the country, anchored by the string of cities along the I-95 corridor from Washington, D.C. through Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New York City.

The Chesapeake Bay, the largest estuary in the United States, cuts through Maryland and Virginia and has shaped the region's economy and geography since colonial times, from oyster fisheries to shipping.

This quiz tests capitals and abbreviations across a compact but historically dense stretch of the country where several states are only a short drive apart.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania briefly served as the young nation's capital in the 1790s while Washington, D.C. was still under construction, and Independence Hall there is where both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were signed. New York City, meanwhile, anchors the region today as the country's financial capital and its most populous city by a wide margin.

The region isn't only coastal cities, either — western Pennsylvania and western Maryland extend into the Appalachian Mountains, giving the Mid-Atlantic a surprising amount of geographic range packed into a relatively compact footprint.

New Jersey, despite its reputation as the most densely populated state, still has an official nickname of 'The Garden State,' a nod to the farmland that once dominated much of its landscape before suburban growth reshaped it.