USA: The United States of America
Explore the United States of America; Declaring independence in 1776, the new nation of the United States of America began an experiment in self-rule, based on a 1787 constitution, that continues today. This country offers its people freedom and liberty to pursue happiness, commerce, creativity, and innovation and to share this brilliance with the world.
Welcome
This web helps you explore the United States of America; here, you'll find organized and annotated links to Web sites about the USA's current conditions, facts, activities, events, places, sports, civic life, media, education, commerce, and reference works. You can view and link to this information in a variety of ways, and your suggestions are welcome. Use the links at the top of this page to navigate and access this information
- Edited by: You can contact the editor of this information with your ideas and corrections; there are different formats for this information and more pages like it covering other areas of the country
- John December: Editor of this information since 2003
- Suggestion?: please send a correction of any information you find here or your suggestion to johndecember@gmail.com via email with the subject line places-usa
- Going elsewhere?: Access other pages like this; explore: New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Milwaukee, Las Vegas, Miami, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Boston, Seattle, San Francisco, Washington DC, Madison WI, New York State's Capital District, and Michigan's Upper Peninsula
- Formats: You can view and link to this information in a variety of ways; find the level of detail that is right for your needs; pages are available for each section; you can link to and use the page that fits your needs
- Mobile users:
use the index format.
- USA index: Outline of sections; shows the section names with a link on the section name to a file showing the entries and annotations for that section; put your cursor over the section name to see a popup describing it; this format is useful to quickly select and load only the section that you'd like to see; this is a good format to show someone new to this information so as not to overwhelm them with too many links on a page
- USA blue: Table; shows all entries with short labels in a table format; put your cursor over labels or section headings to see a popup description; links on section names take you to a file showing the entries and annotations for that section
- USA mini: Compressed table; shows all entries and section names with short labels and no linebreaks; no inline graphic boxes (weather, gas stickers); put your cursor over labels or section names to see a popup description; links on section names take you to a file showing all the entries and annotations for that section; useful if you are familiar with the information and want all the links in a smaller amount of space
- USA all: Everything in one big file; shows all entries and all annotations in one HTML file; useful if you want to see everything at once or search for a text string in this information; to search, use your Web browser's Find feature; in Microsoft Internet Explorer, do this by selecting from the titlebar menu "Edit," then "Find on this page"; or you can just hit Control/F keys; links on section names go to a file showing entries and annotations for that section
- Mobile users:
use the index format.
- Updates: List of recently-added entries or entries that have a new Uniform Resource Locator or description
- Updates
Updates: Parking (Places Sites), Link cleaning and maintenance, Marinas (Places Sites), IQS Directory (Commerce Notable), Urban Spoon (Places Dining)
- Updates
Current
See live conditions and views of the USA
- Weather: Radar graphic; shows current radar for the USA
- WX Service: National Weather Service; shows current conditions and forecasts all over the United States; a service of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, US Dept of Commerce
- WUnderground: Weather Underground; weather mapping, sensor network, maps, radar, sever weather, news, blogs, mobile app
- Windy: animated airflow maps; shows wind, radar, satellite, rain, thunder, temperature, clouds, and other weather data on animated maps
- Radar: weather radars from National Weather Service; a service of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, US Dept of Commerce
- Satellite: US Infrared Satellite
- Temp: Surface Temperature; shows a map of the US with current surface temperature readings
- Chill: Wind Chill Map
- Heat: Heat Index Map
- Plymouth: Plymouth State Weather Center; gives real-time weather data; surface, satellite, radar, upper air, forecast, tropical, data archive, research; web portal established in 1994
- AIRNow: Air Quality Index (AQI) reports; daily AQI forecasts as well as real-time AQI conditions for over 300 cities across the US, and provides links to more detailed State and local air quality Web sites
- Buoy Data: Sea buoy data; conditions from buoys, stations, and ships; provided by National Data Buoy Center, National Weather Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, US Dept of Commerce
- Snow: National Snow Analyses; gives national maps of snow depth, snowpack temperature, and melt; provided by National Weather Service
- Snow maps: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
- Cams: Live views of the USA; helpful for finding out about what different places look like, current weather, and road conditions
- Earthcam: Webcam Network; directory of Web cams throughout the world; well-organized links connect you to major city cams, weather, news, education, science
- WebCamBigLook: Webcam directory; lists cams by state or category
- News: News and reports about what's going on in the USA
- Google USA: Google news USA section; aggregates news stories from thousands of sources according to a computer algorithm; you'll find links to the current "hot" news stories and topics
- Headlines: News Headlines sites
- Health Emergencies: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
- Sports: Google sports USA section; aggregates news stories from thousands of sources according to a computer algorithm; you'll find links to the current "hot" news stories and topics
- Gas Buddy: Find gas prices in your area; clickable map allows you to locate your area; portal to more than 170 gas price information Web sites operated by the non-profit GasBuddy Organization; each site is a forum for consumers to post local recent low and high gasoline prices
- Fuel Gauge AAA: American Automobile Association Daily Fuel Gauge Report; retail gasoline survey available
- Quakes: Maps of Recent Earthquake Activity in the USA; clickable map allows you to zero in on specific areas; provided by Earthquake Hazards Program, US Geological Survey, a bureau of the US Department of the Interior
- Traffic: Live view of automobile traffic
- Traffic.com: Traffic maps for select cities
- MarineTraffic: real-time information to the public about ships and ports; covers coast-lines of many countries around the world; project hosted by the Department of Product and Systems Design Engineering, University of the Aegean, Greece; collection is based on the Automatic Identification System (AIS)
- Road Closures: National Traffic and Road Closure Information; clickable map takes you to road closure and other highway information in your area; provided by Federal Highway Administration, United States Department of Transportation
- Airport Delays: Flight Delay Information - Air Traffic Control System Command Center; US Department of Transportation Federal Aviation Administration
- Flights: Flight Aware; live flight tracking
Facts
Look up information about the USA such as maps, facts, and census information
- Maps: Online mapping services; most of these allow you to zoom in and out and list specific features
- History: American Panorama: An Atlas of United States History; using interactive mapping techniques, shows the geography of American history
- Google Local: Local yellow pages map; input a category (e.g., grocery, bank, etc.) and a city and state and see a map of those locations on the map; zoomable, pannable; clickable balloon explanations of points; useful to locate things that you would find in yellow pages
- Google Earth: Graphical interface to earth; download software to explore satellite imagery, where available, of Earth's surface with roads, buildings, and surface features; overlays of landmarks and roads
- USGS Topoview: topographic maps of the USA
- OpenStreetMap: user-contributed maps
- Boundary: Map Boundaries of the United States; map boundary data for use with Google Maps and other mapping applications. Data includes state, county, county subdivision, city, school district, zip code, and core-based statistical area (CBSA) polygons
- Live: Live Search; see 2D or 3D landscape images; see the landscape from bird's eye view where available
- MapQuest: Mapping service; you can get a map based on a street address, find nearby attractions and business
- National Map: US Geological Survey; an online, interactive map service integrating data from a variety of sources
- Nautical Charts: nautical charts for United States waters; Office of Coast Survey, National Ocean Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
- Landform: Color Landform Atlas of the United States; shows colorful maps depicting elevation in a 3-D appearance, organized by state; also includes links to historical and other maps
- Historical Rumsey: David Rumsey Historical Map Collection; over 10,000 maps online; focus on rare 18th and 19th century North and South America maps; historic maps of the world, Europe, Asia and Africa also
- Historical: Mapping History Project; shows historical maps (for example Territorial Expansion of the United States: 1783-1853); University of Oregon
- LOC: US Library of Congress Map Collections; a wide range of maps on the themes of history, culture, transportation, military battles, conservation, and the environment; searchable and browsable
- Online UA: Collection at the University of Alabama; contemporary and historical maps of the United States prepared by the Cartographic Research Laboratory, College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Alabama; shows maps of all states but Alabama in detail; "Alabama Maps" collection
- Online UT: Map collection University of Texas; shows historical maps, national parks, major metropolitan areas, county maps, state maps; Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection, University of Texas at Austin
- OnTheWorld: Printable maps of world regions; world maps, countries, cities
- TerraFly: Flyover maps; enter an address, and you can fly over the landscape; a public service of Florida International University sponsored by the National Science Foundation, NASA, the United States Geological Survey, and IBM
- Terraserver: Satellite and aerial photos; enter an address, and see imagery available; some free images, some require subscription
- TopoZone: Topgraphic maps; enter a place name and see an online topographic map of the area
- Zip: Zip codes; Zip Code Boundary Maps for all US States and Possessions
- Census: Information from the United States Bureau of the Census
- Bureau: US Census Bureau; shows latest and past census information, economic census, economic indicators; official census bureau for the US; part of US Department of Commerce
- Population: tabular population counts with maps; shows states, cities, metro regions
- FactFinder: Lookup tables and information; the Census Bureau's attempt to provide a user-friendly interface to quick facts; you can find a wide variety of census information based on searches; somewhat complex and hard to use and understand the organization of this information, reflecting the very vast amount and complexity of data available; provided by US Census Bureau
- Cities SOCDS: State of the Cities Data Systems; data for individual metropolitan areas, central cities, and suburbs showing employment, business patterns, crime, building permits, urban public finance; provided by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development
- Info: Look up basic facts about the USA from online reference works
- Almanac: US Infoplease Almanac; statistics on the United States, the 50 states, cities, military affairs, postal information, and a partial list of US societies and organizations; provided by Infoplease.com
- USA Facts: issues and data presented and visualized; data organized and presented on issues such as healthcare, immigration, trade and tariffs, jobs, unemployment, government finances, the economy, and people and society
- Data USA: data and visualizations from official sources; provides data on US cities, places, industries, jobs, and univerisites; draws on official sources such as, in part: Bureau of Economic Analysis, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Census Bureau, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), Dartmouth Atlas of Healthcare, Department of Education, Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), Kaiser Family Foundation, MIT Election Lab, and USAspending.gov; a project of Deloitte, Datawheel, and Cesar Hidalgo, Professor at the MIT Media Lab and Director of Collective Learning
- Books: USA books; a collection of books related to the United States, including history, culture, and travel
- Data: Federal datasets; public access to machine readable datasets generated by the Executive Branch of the Federal Government
- Encyclopedia: US encyclopedia article; gives a general overview of the US, including geography, climate, people, culture, history, and related articles and bibliography; provided by Infoplease.com
Living
Find out about things to do and places to see in the USA
Activities
Americans take part in many pursuits, hobbies, clubs, and organizations
- Directories: There are hundreds of thousands of organizations, associations, societies, and nonprofits in the US covering many interests; these directories help you locate an organization; you can also search for organizations by using yellow pages
- Associations: Associations online gateway; search for association Web sites; provided by the American Society of Association Executives
- Neighborhood Link: neighborhood and nonprofit groups; find neighborhood associations, clubs, or non-profit organizations in an area; searchable by zip code, state, or city
- Nonprofits Melissa: Nonprofit organization lookup; Enter ZIP Code or organization name and get information about organization--address, assets, income; provided by Melissa Data Corporation, a provider of mailing, data, and information services
- Nonprofits GuideStar: Directory of Charities and Nonprofit Organizations; from GuideStar; U.S. charities and other nonprofit organizations; database of IRS-recognized organizations
- Social Nets: Social Nets Index; A reference page showing key social networking sites; as online communication has become more prevalent and membership in traditional, geographic-based clubs and organizations has fallen, people look to online social networks to find like-minded friends and associates
- Interests: Interest areas or groups, hobbies, or clubs
- Agriculture: Agriculture portal; includes news, discussion, and information for the agriculture industry, farms; created by the editors of Successful Farming magazine
- Amateur Radio: Amateur Radio; directory of topics and information related to amateur "ham" radio
- Business: Business sites directory; a directory of business information sources in a variety of areas
- Churches: Christian Church Directory of the US
- Engineering: National Society of Professional Engineers; engineering society that represents individual engineering professionals and licensed engineers (PEs) across all disciplines; site includes information about organization and engineering, including "A Sightseer's Guide to Engineering" presenting engineering accomplishments in the United States
- Faith St: Find a Church Near You
- Geneology: Cyndi's List; a categorized and cross-referenced index to genealogical resources on the Internet
- Legal FindLaw: Legal information directory; information about legal resources in each US state
- Outdoor: Outdoor directory; covers hiking, camping, cycling, and paddling, information on parks, reviews of gear, news, techniques
- PC Users: Association of Personal Computer User Groups; helps member computer user groups by fostering communications as an informal network among user group organizations and computer companies; site includes a locator service to find a computer user group in your area
- Food 2nd Harvest: Network of food banks; provide emergency food assistance to hungry Americans each year
- Habitat: Habitat for Humanity International; an ecumenical Christian housing ministry with the aim to eliminate poverty housing and homelessness from the world
- History Memory: American Memory from the Library of Congress; a gateway to primary source materials relating to the history and culture of the United States; from the US Library of Congress
- History: Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History; promotes the study and love of American history
- Mosques: IslamicFinder; information about mosques, Islamic organizations, Islamic centers, and Muslim owned businesses all over the world
- Red Cross: American National Red Cross; supports people in disasters, health, and safety
- Science: American Association for the Advancement of Science; general scientific society, publisher of the journal Science
- Religion: Religion Gateway; academic information on religion and religious studies; includes listing of major religions in the US
- Social Nets: Online Social Networks; Creating social groups is one of the original practices on the Internet.
- Theatre: American Association of Community Theatre (AACT); national organization of community theatre; includes directory of member companies
- Volunteering-Christian: ChristianVolunteering.org; matches volunteers to volunteer opportunities
- Volunteermatch: Volunteer matching service; helps interested volunteers get involved with community service organizations throughout the United States; enter ZIP code to find local volunteer opportunities matching individual interests and schedules
- Large: These are United States associations and organizations; large membership or notable mission
- ACLU: American Civil Liberties Union; works to defend the rights and liberties for every person by the Constitution and laws; works against bigotry, discrimination, injustice and the abuse of religious freedom
- Alcoholics Anonymous: A fellowship of men and women to stay sober and help others; not allied with any sect, denomination, politics, organization or institution
- AARP: American Association of Retired Persons
- Amer Legion: American Legion; veterans, community-service organization organized by American Legion Posts worldwide
- Amer Automobile Assn: American Automobile Association; a federation of affiliated automobile clubs; each club is independent, chartered and incorporated in its own state, and controlled by its own board of directors
- Boy Scouts: National Council of the Boy Scouts of America; supports local councils that provide youth programs, including Cub Scouting, Boy Scouting, and Venturing
- Boys & Girls Clubs: Boys and Girls Clubs of America; aims to promote and enhance the development of boys and girls by instilling a sense of competence, usefulness, belonging and influence
- Farm Bureau: Farmers and ranchers organization
- 4 H Clubs: Head, Heart, Hands and Health; a non-formal educational program for youth
- Nat Geographic: National Geographic Society; Scientific and educational organization, publisher of National Geographic and other magazines, television, film, and guides
- Girl Scouts: Girl Scouts of the USA; dedicated to help girls build character and skills for success in the real world
- Little League: Little League Baseball; dedicated to youth baseball; a federal incorporation providing for incorporation of Little League Baseball in all 50 states
- Muscular Dystrophy Assn: Muscular Dystrophy Association; a voluntary health agency including scientists and citizens aimed at conquering neuromuscular diseases
- National Wildlife Fed: National Wildlife Federation; a member-supported conservation group, uniting individuals, organizations, businesses and government to protect wildlife, wild places, and the environment
- YMCA: Young Men's Christian Association; community service organization to meet health and social needs of men, women, and children
- YWCA: Young Women's Christian Association; aims to empower women and girls and eliminate racism; provider of shelter services for women and their families
Events
The USA is famous for its fairs, festivals, concerts, performing arts, entertainment, and diverse events year-round
- Listings: Connect to online calendars and databases; show what's going on and where
- Broadway.com: online theater ticketing; phone sales through 1.800.BROADWAY; every Broadway show, most off-Broadway shows and shows in London's West End
- LiveNation: concert destination for fans; artist touring information, event details, music content and ticket purchasing
- Music Pollstar: Pollstar, the Concert Hotwire; search for concerts by artist, city, or venue and get dates, times, places, performers; Pollstar provides music business professionals with the worldwide concert tour schedules, ticket sales results, music industry contact directories, trade news and data services
- Mojam: Concert dates; find concert information by genre, venue, etc
- Moviefone: Movie show times; search for movies by zip code
- Bigscreen: Cinema showtimes
- JamBase: Find Live Music; search by band, location, genre, festival, etc.
- Playbill: Theatre guide; find theatre performances, news, feature articles; Broadway, off-Broadway, regional
- Ticketmaster: Buy tickets online; search by artists, dates, genres, venues, etc.
- Tickets: Buy tickets online; search by artists, teams, venues, etc.
- Time Out: Major cities; city guides to major world cities covering restaurants, clubs, bars, hotels, sights, and shows
- TV Guide: Television schedules and news
- Upcoming: Collaborative event calendar; shows upcoming events of all kinds: concerts, lectures, trade shows, community events, etc. as submitted by registered users
- Periodic: the USA has many annual or one-day special events, ongoing summer concert series, and recurring trade shows
- FestivalFinder: Festival database; details on more music festivals in North America; search by genre, date, location, performers or festival name
- Festivals: Find world festivals and events
- Conferences: Conference directory; focuses on conferences, conventions, trade shows, exhibits, workshops, events and business meetings
- Events in America: database of professional events and trade shows in the US
- Tradeshows: search for venues or vendors
- Blues Festivals: Blues Festival Guide; listings of blues festivals, news, articles, announcements
- Film Festivals: Portal site for festivals and film news; showcases film festivals around the world and fostering new film and filmmaking talent; provided by FilmFestivals Entertainment Group
Places
The USA has many neighborhoods, entertainment venues, museums, and other places with Web sites
- Sites: Places and regions
- Appalachia: Center for Virtual Appalachia; depicts and describes the Appalachian region, an area of the Eastern United States centered around the Appalachian Mountain chain, and links to government, official, commercial, educational, and private Web sites about the region; provided by the Institute for Regional Analysis and Public Policy at Morehead State University, Morehead, Kentucky
- Buildings Emporis: Database on architectural and building data; maintained by Emporis, a multinational real estate research company; its goal is to index all buildings and structures in order to be able to compare cities and regions
- Buildings Phorio: worldwide data exchange about buildings; built by a community of editors
- Byways: America's Byways; roads recognized by the US Secretary of Transportation for archaeological, cultural, historic, natural, recreational, and scenic qualities; consist of All-American Roads and the National Scenic Byways; All-American Roads are considered the finest byways; National Scenic Byways possess outstanding qualities that exemplify the regional characteristics of the US; sponsored by the Federal Highway Administration, US Department of Transportation; managed by the National Scenic Byways Online project at Utah State University and Multimedia Data Services Corporation
- Car Free: Possible in some areas; some US cities have good walkability and transit systems; in some places, you could easily live without a car; in others, a car is required
- Deserts: DesertUSA; provides a tool for learning about the beauty, life and culture of the North American deserts; a monthly Internet-based magazine published by Digital West Media, Inc., a San Diego-based multimedia company
- Embassies: Embassies of other countries located in the USA
- Farmers Markets: Directory of farmers markets; find a list of farmers markets by state and general resources; provided by the Agricultural marketing Service, US Department of Agriculture
- Forests: US Department of Agriculture Forest Service; site connects to US forests and grasslands; the Forest Service manages public lands in national forests and grasslands
- Great Lakes: Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway System; information about the seaway system that connects Lake Superior, Michigan, Huron, Ontario, and Erie with the St. Lawrence River and the Atlantic Ocean; detailed information on each Great Lake and connecting waterways
- Historic: National Register of Historic Places; the official list of cultural resources worthy of preservation in the US, part of the National Park Service
- HMDB: Historical Marker Database; find markers of historic importance by location or categories; covers USA as well as international locations
- Libraries: search for area libraries; gives link to official Web site and information link; includes academic, public, and special libraries
- Marinas Dir: Directory of marinas; covers United States and abroad; lists services for boaters and marina owners for selected marinas
- Names, Geographic: Geographic Names Information System; contains information about physical and cultural geographic features in the United States and its territories. The Federally recognized name of each feature described in the data base is identified, and references are made to a feature's location by State, county, and geographic coordinates; the US government's official repository of domestic geographic names information; developed by the US Geological Survey in cooperation with the US Board on Geographic Names
- Neighborhoods: Neighborhood Link; find neighborhood organizations by zip code or by state/city
- Net Cafes: links to help you use Net cafes and public access points to the Internet; includes links to directories and supporting information
- Parking: USA Parking; information about automobile parking and services
- People: Pedestrian-oriented places; enabled by transit, which are pleasant and healthy locations to live, work, shop, and play
- Prairies: Prairies Forever; dedicated to promoting the ecological and cultural significance of the American prairie through education, outreach, and public engagement
- Recreation: Recreation.gov portal; directory of government-owned or affiliated recreation sites for auto touring, biking, boating, camping, climbing, historic/cultural sites, educational programs, fishing, fish hatcheries, hiking, horseback riding, hunting, lodging, off-Highway vehicle access, picnic areas, recreational vehicles, museum/visitors centers, water sports, wilderness areas, wildlife viewing, and winter sports; provided by the US Department of the Interior
- Rivers: Online community of river activists and friends; dedicated to protecting and restoring rivers nationwide
- Roads & Highways: Coverage of roads and highways; aims to provide a pictorial journey along many of the highway corridors across the United States; includes links to highway guides, special interest topics
- Skyscrapers: World's database on skyscrapers; database of tall buildings and related companies, photographs, and news articles
- Theme Parks: Theme Park City; locate theme parks, amusement parks, waterparks, and zoos
- Wildlife Refuges: National Wildlife Refuge System; a network of land and water for conservation of fish, wildlife, and plan resources and habitats in the US; US Fish and Wildlife Service
- Zoos & Aquariums: Directory of zoos and aquariums; provided by the American Zoo and Aquarium Association which aims to the advance zoos and aquariums in the areas of conservation, education, science, and recreation
- Museums: Displays of objects and activities related to art, history, culture, or science
- Museum Stuff: Guide to museums; and other cultural information on the Web
- Prestigious Art: Art Museum Network; Network of the world's largest and most prestigious art museums collaborating to provide information about their collections, exhibitions, and news
- Gallery Guide: Art galleries in the US
- Dining: Find a place to eat in the USA; you can also search for restaurant listings by using yellow pages
- ActiveDiner: Restaurant guide to larger US cities; user reviews
- CityVoter: includes restaurant reviews; uses social media to activate contests where businesses compete to be named the best
- Open List: opinions; on places to eat and stay
- Fast Food: Guide to fast food restaurants; lists fast food restaurants and also provides a forum for related issues and news; created and maintained by Rob Borucki who has a background in operations management
- Foodio54: restaurants based on your tastes
- Gourmet: List of restaurant directories; a useful list that shows major nationwide guides to dining and restaurants; from GourmetSpot.com
- GrubHub: Food delivery directory; covers selected cities including Chicago, New York, and Boston
- MenuPages: Restaurant listings; user comments; covers major cities including NYC, San Francisco, LA, Boston, and Chicago
- MenuPix: Restaurant menus; covering major Metro Areas (Boston, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco, Washington, DC) as well as other areas including Alexandria VA, Amherst MA, Arlington VA, Bethesda MD, Hoboken NJ, Lowell MA, and Wilmington NC
- OpenTable: Online reservations; covers major cities
- Postmates: restaurant delivery in many major cities
- Restaurants: User-rated restaurants; covers most cities
- Roadfood: Regional, unique dining; "colorful places enjoyed by locals (and savvy travelers) for their character as well as their menu"
- Urbanspoon: Restaurants; info on local restaurants sorted by price, neighborhood, cuisine, and gluten-free statsu; the latest reviews from local newspapers; bloggers; covers many US cities
- Yelp: reviews; discussion on local food, bars, and night life, as well as other shopping and social networking
- Housing: Find a place to stay or live in the USA; you can also search by using yellow pages
- Bed & Breakfast: Bed and breakfast inns worldwide directory; includes bed and breakfasts, B&B homestays, country inns, urban bed and breakfasts, guest houses, lodges, cabins, historic hotels, small resorts, guest ranches, farmhouse accommodations, and working farm and ranch vacations; searches by location, amenities, online bookings, recipes, special packages, or last-minute availability
- Open List: opinions; on places to eat and stay
- Airport Hotels: Directory of lodging near airports; organized by city; provides lodging information, availability and rates, and online reservations
- Camping: Woodall's; camping and RV directory and information
- Hotels: Hotels Market; compare a variety of search engines for hotel reservations and save
- HotelMotelNow: Lodging search; puts hotel's location on a maps
- Historic Hotels: Historic Hotels of America; historic hotels that are located in a building that is at least 50 years old and listed in, or eligible for, the National Register of Historic Places or recognized locally as having historic significance; established by the National Trust for Historic Preservation
- Hostels: Hostelz directory; shows US and worldwide
- HI USA: Hostelling International
- Realtor.com: Official site of the National Association of REALTORS; find a home for sale, apartments, home finance, moving
- RV Parks: Woodall's; camping and RV directory and information
- Shared: National Shared Housing Resource Center; a clearinghouse of information for people looking to find a shared housing organization in their community or to help get a program started
- Move: Real Estate portal; new homes, apartments, senior housing, moving, home loans, mortgages
- Renthop: find apartments; selected USA cities
- HUD.gov: US Department of Housing and Urban Development; works to ensure housing for Americans
Sports
The USA is home to major-league, professional, college, community, and amateur sports
- Portals: These sites lead you to information and links about all kinds of sports--pro, college, and amateur
- Fantasy Sports: Fantasy sports section; pick your own players and compete
- Pro: Professional sports in the USA
- NFL Football: National Football League
- NHL Hockey: National Hockey League
- NBA Basketball: National Basketball Association
- WNBA Basketball: Women's National Basketball Association
- MLB Baseball: Major League Baseball
- MLS Soccer: Major League Soccer
- NASCAR Racing: National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing
- PGA Golf: Professional Golfer's Association
- WWE Wrestling: World Wrestling Entertainment; entertainment from wrestling matches pitting characters and personalities
- College: College sports
- College NCAA: National Collegiate Athletic Association; a voluntary association of colleges and universities, athletic conferences and sports organizations devoted to the sound administration of intercollegiate athletics
- Big Ten: Big Ten Athletic Conference; association of 11 universities which have programs in research, graduate, professional and undergraduate teaching and public service; Schools are: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, and Wisconsin
- Community: Amateur and community sports
- Amateur AAU: Amateur Athletic Union; volunteer sports organization dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs
Civic
The USA's civic life
Government
The USA's government and representatives at all levels
- Voting: Representatives, elections, campaigns, and voting information
- USA Voting: Voting and Elections; section from USA.gov official Web site; find out about state or local elections, registering to vote, and voting
- LWV: League of Women Voters; works to improve public policies through citizen education and advocacy
- FEC: Federal Election Commission; administers and enforces the Federal Election Campaign Act, the statute that governs the financing of federal elections
- Federal: The United States government is a federal republic set up by a Constitution adopted in 1787 by a Constitutional Convention; The federal government consists of three branches--executive, legislative, and judicial--which operate according to a system of checks and balances against each other and checks on their power set forth in the Constitution to protect the individual
- Executive: The White House; portal to US Executive branch including the Presidential Cabinet, Vice President, and Executive Office of the President; the President also serves as Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces; the President is elected by votes of an electoral college
- Senate: US Senate; part of the bicameral US Congress; citizens from each US state elect two senators to represent their interests for a six-year term
- House: US House of Representatives; part of the bicameral US Congress; citizens from each US congressional district elect a person to represent their interests in the House for a two-year term
- Supreme Ct: The Supreme Court of the United States; consists of a Chief Justice and eight associate justices appointed by the President
- Federal Cts: Portal to US Courts; includes US Supreme Court, US Courts of Appeals, US Disctrict Courts, and US Bankruptcy Courts; federal judges are appointed by the President for life
- USA.gov: The US government's official web portal; attempts to provide a directory and search service to all federal government information as well as state government information; provided by the Federal Citizen Information Center, Office of Citizen Services and Communications, US General Services Administration
- Congress: Legislative portal; gives access to US Congressional legislative information; includes search by bill number or keyword
- Local: City, county, and state government
- States Territories: State and Territorial Government Web sites; a list of the 50 states and commonwealths of the USA and the territories of the USA with links to their official state government Web sites
- Directory State & Local: Links Directory; a directory of links to state and local government; links pages for each state include direct links to major units of state government and links to county, city, town, and village Web sites
- City County ICMA: International City/County Management Association; professional and educational organization for chief appointed managers, administrators, and assistants in cities, towns, counties, and regional entities throughout the world
- Counties NACO: National Association of Counties; acts as a liaison with other levels of government, works to improve public understanding of counties, serves as a national advocate for counties and provides them with resources to help them find innovative methods to meet challenges
- American Indian NCAI: National Congress of American Indians; tribal government organization; serves as a forum for consensus-based policy development among its membership of tribal governments from every region of the US
- Cities NLC: National League of Cities; national organization representing municipal governments throughout the United States; aims to strengthen and promote cities as centers of opportunity, leadership, and governance
- Towns & Townships NATaT: National Association of Towns and Townships; educates lawmakers and public policy officials about how small town governments operate and by advocating policies on their behalf in Washington, DC
- State CSG: Council of State Governments; maintains offices throughout the country that staff regional associations of legislative and executive elected officials
Services
Support for human needs and infrastructure
- Emergency: Emergency services in the USA
- Fire & EMS: Firehouse.com's Fire and EMS Information Network; portal for firefighting information; includes directory of US fire departments with links to Web sites where available
- Human: Health and human services
- 211: Phone number for health and human services; available as three-digit call 2-1-1 in many communities; food banks, clothing, shelters, rent assistance, utility assistance, medical information lines, crisis intervention services, support groups, counseling, drug and alcohol intervention, rehabilitation, health insurance programs, Medicaid and Medicare, maternal health, children's health insurance programs, unemployment benefits, financial assistance, job training, transportation assistance, education programs, home health care, adult day care, congregate meals, Meals on Wheels, respite care, transportation, homemaker services, childcare, Success by 6, after school programs, Head Start, family resource centers, summer camps and recreation programs, mentoring, tutoring, protective services; volunteer opportunities and donations
- Find-a-Doctor: easy-to-use interface to locate physicians; find by name or specialty and by location; simply type into the form and find results
- Doctor Finder: American Medical Association Doctor Finder; provides basic professional information on virtually every licensed physician in the United States and its possessions, including more than 690,000 doctors of medicine (MD) and doctors of osteopathy or osteopathic medicine (DO); fairly difficult to use
- Hospitals: Hospital Search; search form to locate US hospitals; provided by The American Hospital Directory
- Dentist Finder: American Dental Association Find a Dentist
- Eldercare Locator: Eldercare Locator; helps older adults and their caregivers find local services for seniors; provided by the US Administration on Aging, US Department of Health and Human Services
- Substance Abuse: Locate substance abuse treatment facilities
- Rehabinfo: locate treatment for substance abuse or mental health issues
- Psychological: American Psychological Association HelpCenter; guide to psychological issues and a directory to find a psychologist
- HHS.gov: US Department of Health and Human Services; principal agency for protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services, especially for those who are least able to help themselves
- Vaccines.gov: accurate and up-to-date information about vaccination services in your area; provided by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and VaccineFinder from Boston Children’s Hospital.
- Facilities: Services to build and keep area infrastructure working
- Energy.gov: US Department of Energy; works safe the use of nuclear energy and weapons, increase US energy production, ensure safe disposal of radioactive waste, research and development for new energy
- Water: American Water Resources Association; directory of water-related resource information
- Resources: National Resources Inventory; a statistical survey of land use and natural resource conditions and trends on US non-Federal lands, which include privately owned land, tribal and trust land, and lands controlled by State and local governments; conducted by the Natural Resources Conservation Service of the US Department of Agriculture in cooperation with Iowa State University's Center for Survey Statistics and Methodology
- Environment: Envirofacts; given a zip code or location, view environmental information about the area; provided by the US Environmental Protection Agency
- Transport: the USA offers a variety of transit options
- Walking: Walkable Communities; organization helping communities become more friendly to human beings walking. Presents walkability as a key for overall urban health--economic, environmental, and cultural--so that decision makers can see walkability not as a cost but as a catalyst for vibrant cities
- Bicycle/Ped: Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center; information site for pedestrian and bicycle health, safety, engineering, advocacy, education, enforcement, access, and mobility information
- Bikes: People for Bikes
- Car Free: Car-free lifestyle; some US cities have good walkability and transit systems; in some places, you could easily live without a car
- Public Transit: information from American Public Transportation Association; serves to strengthen and expand public transportation; includes Transit Systems directory where you can connect to Web sites of local transit options
- Car Sharing: Avoid owning a car; be car-free as much as possible, but keep the idea that you can rent or borrow a car only when you need it--for a big project or trip to far-out areas, for example
- Airports AirNav: AirNav; database of information on US airports, from a pilot's perspective; provided by AirNav.com
- Airports GlobalAir: database of airports; aviation information; from GlobalAir
- Google Transit: Get a map and transit schedule for selected systems; uses google maps to show origin and destination and transit options for selected transit systems in the USA and world
- Seaports: Seaports of the Americas; subscription-only
- Railroads: Association of American Railroads; organization of major freight railroads in the United States, Canada and Mexico, as well as Amtrak
- Trucking: American Trucking Association; information portal for the trucking industry
- DOT.gov: US Department of Transportation; works to ensure a fast, safe, efficient, accessible and convenient transportation system that meets US vital national interests and enhances the quality of life of the American people
- State Transportation: Sites of US State Transportation
- AllTransit: transit connectivity, access, and frequency data
Directories
Access information about the USA's media and education
Media
Access information about and in many cases read (or listen to) the USA's media outlets
- Surf: Surf Links; an annotated index of Web sites for browsing Web content; includes links to current information on weather and conditions, media (newspapers, magazines, audio, video, and Internet), and information sources (searching, subjects, reference, reading, places, and maps)
- ABYZ: News Links; United States Newspapers and News Media Guide
- FCC Query: FCC Audio Division; use this form to lookup AM, FM, or Tv broadcast station information
- TV Stations: USA television stations and news; a list of USA TV markets with links to individual station Web sites; information on the TV station industry in the USA
- HD Radio: HD Digital Radio; over-the-air digital broadcast from existing terrestrial radio stations; allows FM stations to have CD-quality sound and AM stations to have FM-quality sound; requires special HD radio receiver equipment
- Local: USA local media; magazines, radio and TV stations in the United States by state or major city; edited by the MondoTimes.com
- Media Owners: Web guide to what the major media companies own; titled "Who Owns What" and provided by the Columbia Journalism Review; maintained by Aaron Moore, Ph.D., a Publishing/Media writer and a professor of Sports Media at Ithaca College
- Patch: community news; coverage for smaller communities which don't necessarily get coverage from major media outlets
- Radio Locator: Database of radio stations; lists information about radio stations, including links to individual Web sites
- Radio St World: Internet broadcast directory; lists radio stations by location; also gives television station information
- Zap2it: Find TV listings; search by zip code; get info on shows on cable, satellite, and local broadcast
- Web Sites Alexa: Directory of Web sites; Gives overview and Internet traffic information for Web sites; Alexa is an Amazon.com company
- Net Audio: Index of Net audio resources; includes streaming audio directories, international broadcasters, radio networks, and information on streaming audio technology, publications, and organizations related to Internet broadcasting and streaming media
- Net Video: Net video sources; content sites showing streaming and on-demand video
- Streema: radio and tv stations on the web
Education
The USA's educational opportunities
- Higher: The USA has many colleges and universities
- Colleges Peterson's: Education portal; includes directory of higher education institutions; Peterson's publishes acclaimed books, Web sites, online products, and admissions services
- Accredited: Accredited Schools Online; Search fully-accredited, not-for-profit colleges; filter by school type, tuition, size, duration (2 year, 4 year), and competition level; access details on student populations, test scores, acceptance rates, and campus safety; map by city and state
- Online Colleges: accredited, not-for-profit online education; directory of colleges and programs offered at private and public not-for-profit colleges and universities in the United States
- Comm Coll Rev: Community College Review; profiles of community colleges; browse colleges in each state
- DC Secretariat: Washington Higher Education Secretariat; serves as a forum for the chief executive officers in the higher education association community
- Grad Schools: Directory of post-baccalaureate educational information; program listings categorized by curriculum and subdivided by geography; a service of Educational Directories Unlimited, Inc.
- Studentaid.ed.gov: official U.S. government site; for college students and their families; provides information and resources from the US government for higher education; choosing, applying, careers, volunteer opportunities and more
- Schools: the USA's primary, secondary, trade, and professional schools
- Greatschools: School information on elementary, middle and high schools; includes public, private and charter schools in the US and detailed school profiles for some states
- Independent: National Association of Independent Schools; a membership organization and the national voice of independent education
- Vocational RWM: database of private post-secondary vocational schools; organized first by State, then by Training Occupation; Included are private schools that offer certificates, diplomas, associate (junior college) degrees, and bachelor (college) degrees in various Business, Trade and Technical disciplines
Commerce
The USA's business community
Groups
Organizations promoting business and business opportunities in the USA
- Chamber, US: United States Chamber of Commerce; serves business interests in Washington DC
- Chamber Directory: Information about communities; includes links to chambers of commerce, convention and visitors associations, state chambers, TV, newspaper, radio Web sites, and some privately-developed city guides
- Federal Reserve: central banking system
- Intl Trade: Federation of International Trade Associations; Directory of International Trade Associations in North America
Notable
Directories of USA companies
- Hoover's: Businesses directory; searchable database of millions of companies; free information available; in-depth information available for purchase
- IQS Directory: Comprehensive Manufacturers Directory; leading industrial manufacturing companies, suppliers and distributors by category; industrial directory of industrial supply, manufacturers, purchasing, services and components
- ThomasNet: Industrial directory; directory of products and services from industrial distributors, manufacturers, and service companies; national manufacturing search, CAD search, and brand search
- IndustrialLeaders: information on industrial companies
- Websters Online: Business directory; Searchable directory of industrial and commercial products, services and brand names; searchable by SIC codes (Federal Standard Industrial Classification Codes) and NAICS Codes (North American Industrial Classification system)
- MacRAE's: Industrial directory; database of manufacturers, exporters, distributors and service companies
- Zycon: search engine for manufacturers and distributors; online industrial directory, engineering resource, and vertical search engine that directly targets buyers and sellers in the industrial, manufacturing, contract manufacturing and distribution sectors worldwide
Reference
Works to help you find out more about the USA
Guides
Learn more about the USA with online guides that describe area attractions
- AreaGuides: City Directories; tens of thousands of US cities with links to businesses, yellow pages, white pages, hotel reservations, tickets, weather, real estate
- AreaVibes: useful information about cities across the USA; covers cost of living, crime, employment, education, housing, weather; a score or AreaVibe is assigned to each city
- BootsnAll: travel community; encourages independent travel; travel stories & travel blogs written by travellers; travel guides to destinations all over the world
- Boulevards: Guides to major cities; general description and links to areas of interest, discounted rates on hotels, air travel and car rentals, as well as online restaurant bookings
- Fodor's: Guides to worldwide travel; information on destinations, hotels, restaurants, travel, and booking
- Frommer's: Guides to major and minor US cities, regions, parks, and areas of interest; includes overview, information on accommodations, dining, attractions; from Frommer's travel publishers of travel books
- City Rating: Selected places to live; Provides city demographic guides, local weather forecasts, cost of living, population statistics, school rankings, career and occupational outlook, weather history, average temperatures, relative humidity and general relocation information about the most prominent metro areas in the nation
- NFT: Not For Tourists Guides; city user guides aimed at residents
- Roadside America: Offbeat tourist attractions; lists the strange and odd tourist attractions in the USA; searchable; examples: World's Largest Replica Train Engine in Beloit WI, World's Largest Ball of Paint in Alexandria IN, Largest Ball of Twine Made by One Man, Darwin MN
Indexes
Access online information about the USA through general and specialized indexes
- Allplaces.us: Local information based on zip code; provides demographic and general information about an area based on its zip code including links to official government and tourism sites, crime ratings, movies, news, weather, real estate
- CityTownInfo: Comparative information about local U.S. communities, careers, and colleges; statistics, articles, and user-provided information; information sources include a variety of government agencies, research conducted by Moving Traffic, CityTownInfo's site visitors, and research and data licensed from third parties
- Places: Indexes to selected US cities and regions; Links to the major Web sites for current facts, activities, events, attractions, sports, media, education, commerce, and directories; currently covers New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Milwaukee, Seattle, San Francisco, Washington DC, Madison WI, New York State's Capital District, Michigan's Upper Peninsula, and a reference page for the whole United States
- Yellow Pages: Business phone directory; find businesses and organizations using the SMARTpages.com directory
General
Find more information related to the USA
- Classifieds: National classified advertising
- Craigslist: Classifieds for select metro areas; includes jobs, housing, personals, community information
- Ebay: global online marketplace; buy or sell goods online
- Sell.com: Online classifieds
- Jobs: Sites to help locate employment opportunities
- Discussion: Talk about the USA; includes discussions about a range of topics; reviews of things to do and places to go; ideas, social networking
- Usenet us.: Usenet us groups; Google's Web-based interface to Usenet newsgroups in the us.* hierarchy;
- Blogs: Blogosphere Index; shows high-level information about Web-based Web logs
- Yelp: Social networking and reviews; discussion on local shopping, food, night life, beauty and spas, arts & entertainment, health and medical, active life, local services, event planning & services, home services, automotive, hotels & travel, pets, education, real estate, financial services, mass media, public services, professional services, and local flavor
- Lookup: Use online reference resources to look up information.
- Lookup Top: Lookup reference resources; list of useful sites for looking up information in phone book directories, reference, zip-code based information, and online encyclopedias and almanacs