The 39th meridian west from Washington is an archaic
meridian
Meridian or a meridian line (from Latin ''meridies'' via Old French ''meridiane'', meaning “midday”) may refer to
Science
* Meridian (astronomy), imaginary circle in a plane perpendicular to the planes of the celestial equator and horizon
* ...
based on the
Washington meridian
The Washington meridians are four meridians that were used as prime meridians in the United States and pass through Washington, D.C. The four which have been specified are:
# through the Capitol
# through the White House
# through the old Naval Ob ...
. The meridian is currently used as a boundary for two states.
The first usage of the meridian as a boundary occurred in 1861, when
Nevada Territory
The Territory of Nevada (N.T.) was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until October 31, 1864, when it was admitted to the Union as the State of Nevada.
Prior to the creation of the Nevada ...
was created from the western part of
Utah Territory
The Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah, the 45th state ...
. Initially, the eastern boundary of Nevada Territory was set at this meridian. However, in 1862, that boundary was moved a degree east to follow the
38th meridian, and a few years later was moved still further east to the
37th meridian.
The 39th meridian was used again for a boundary in 1864. In that year, the
Montana Territory
The Territory of Montana was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 26, 1864, until November 8, 1889, when it was admitted as the 41st state in the Union as the state of Montana.
Original boundaries
...
was created from
Idaho Territory with the meridian serving as its extreme northwestern boundary.
Montana
Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columb ...
became a state in 1889, with
Idaho
Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyomi ...
following the next year.
References
Borders of Idaho
Borders of Montana
Meridians (geography)
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