# When in US history did the country share the continent with the most nations? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 17, 2017, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-in-us-history-did-the-country-share-the-continent-with-the-most-nations/780090 "2017-02-17T18:41:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2017, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-in-us-history-did-the-country-share-the-continent-with-the-most-nations/780090/21 "2017-02-17T22:34:50Z")
After the Balfour Declaration of 1926, Canada and Newfoundland were independent of the UK, plus France (St Pierre et Miquelon), Mexico and UK (Bahamas and Bermuda). There’s also Greenland/Denmark. That makes six. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2017, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-in-us-history-did-the-country-share-the-continent-with-the-most-nations/780090/22 "2017-02-17T22:55:59Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > After the Balfour Declaration of 1926, Canada and Newfoundland were independent of the UK, plus France (St Pierre et Miquelon), Mexico and UK (Bahamas and Bermuda). There’s also Greenland/Denmark. That makes six. Depends on whether you count islands or not. By the same count, there would be seven in 1865. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2017, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-in-us-history-did-the-country-share-the-continent-with-the-most-nations/780090/23 "2017-02-17T23:20:01Z")
I’m not following. 😕 I’m not counting islands as islands, but separate countries, or colonies of other countries. Some of those colonies were islands, but I’m not treating different island possessions as different countries: 1. Canada 2. Newfoundland 3. France (e.g. St Pierre et Miquelon) 4. UK (e.g. Bermuda and Bahamas) 5. Mexico 6. Denmark (Greenland) ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-in-us-history-did-the-country-share-the-continent-with-the-most-nations/780090/24 "2017-02-18T01:05:39Z")
If “Kingdom of Hawaii” counts, so does every other island east of Japan, and probably New Zealand, too. And if the Antilles count, there are 21 of them out there now with varying degrees of separate identity or sovereignty. Plus the eight from Mexico to Panama. Today, there would be 38 flags of UN Member nations flying in North America, including islands in the Pacific and the Caribbean and those European nations still claiming territory. Unless you counted every Native American tribe separately as a “nation”, today’s 38 would probably surpass any prior number by a wide margin. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-in-us-history-did-the-country-share-the-continent-with-the-most-nations/780090/25 "2017-02-18T04:03:56Z")
> [@smithsb](#): > > Vikings? Hiding out in Minnesota and Oklahoma. The Vikings are reported to still play in US Bank Stadium. > [@DrDeth](#): > > The California Republic wast real. > [California Republic - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Republic) Sort of. It was so short-lived that virtually no one outside Sonoma even knew it existed until it was past tense. That includes the Mexican government, as far as I can tell. If you’re playing a game, you can always consider it a player, but in terms of realpolitik, it was a non-entity. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-in-us-history-did-the-country-share-the-continent-with-the-most-nations/780090/26 "2017-02-18T04:48:38Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > I’m not following. 😕 > > I’m not counting islands as islands, but separate countries, or colonies of other countries. Some of those colonies were islands, but I’m not treating different island possessions as different countries: > > 1. Canada > > 2. Newfoundland > > 3. France (e.g. St Pierre et Miquelon) > > 4. UK (e.g. Bermuda and Bahamas) > > 5. Mexico > > 6. Denmark (Greenland) What grounds is there for stopping at Bermuda and the Bahamas, and not including the rest of the West Indies? According to many schemes, the West Indies are included in North America. In any case, as I said, in 1865 by your count there would have been at least seven nations. Mexico UK: Canada, Bermuda, Bahamas United States of America Confederate States of America Russia: Alaska France: St. Pierre and Miquelon Denmark: Greenland and the Danish Virgin Islands. If you include the West indies you would also have; Spain Netherlands Colombia For a total of 9 nations in 1865. If you add Central America that adds 5 more (at that time Belize would have been included in the UK, and Panama in Colombia.) ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-in-us-history-did-the-country-share-the-continent-with-the-most-nations/780090/27 "2017-02-18T05:10:50Z")
Currently the nations in North America including the Caribbean are: North America proper (3) USA Canada Mexico Associated Islands (4) Denmark: Greenland France: St. Pierre and Miquelon UK: Bermuda Bahamas Central America (7) Guatemala Belize El Salvador Honduras Nicaragua Costa Rica Panama Caribbean (16, of which 3 have been counted previously, indicated by asterisk) Cuba Haiti Dominican Republic Jamaica US\*: Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands St. Kitts and Nevis Antigua and Barbuda Dominica St. Vincent and the Grenadines St. Lucia Barbados Trinidad and Tobago Colombia: St. Andreas, Providencia UK\*: Anguilla, Montserrat, Turks and Caicos, Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands France\*: Martinique, Guadelupe, St. Barts., St. Martin Netherlands: St. Barts, Netherlands West Indies If I’ve counted correctly, that’s 27 nations in the extended definition of North America at present. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-in-us-history-did-the-country-share-the-continent-with-the-most-nations/780090/28 "2017-02-18T05:41:58Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > In any case, as I said, in 1865 by your count there would have been at least seven nations. > > Mexico > UK: Canada, Bermuda, Bahamas > United States of America > Confederate States of America > Russia: Alaska > France: St. Pierre and Miquelon > Denmark: Greenland and the Danish Virgin Islands. And in 1867, you still have seven. You split Canada as a dominion from the UK possession of Labrador and Newfoundland, but you lose the CSA. 1867: Mexico UK: Labrador and Newfoundland, Bermuda, Bahamas Canada United States of America Russia: Alaska France: St. Pierre and Miquelon Denmark: Greenland and the Danish Virgin Islands. ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 9:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-in-us-history-did-the-country-share-the-continent-with-the-most-nations/780090/29 "2017-02-18T09:40:30Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > France\*: Martinique, Guadelupe, **St. Barts., St. Martin** > Netherlands: **St. Barts** , Netherlands West Indies It’s St Martin, not St Barth, that is shared between France and the Netherlands. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-in-us-history-did-the-country-share-the-continent-with-the-most-nations/780090/30 "2017-02-18T14:57:10Z")
Just wanted to mention that there is a still a town called Swedesboro, NJ around exit 2. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-in-us-history-did-the-country-share-the-continent-with-the-most-nations/780090/31 "2017-02-18T20:50:19Z")
> [@clairobscur](#): > > It’s St Martin, not St Barth, that is shared between France and the Netherlands. :smack: Right. I should have checked. (Of course from the Dutch point of view it’s Sint Maarten that is shared.;)) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-in-us-history-did-the-country-share-the-continent-with-the-most-nations/780090.md?page=1)