Moosylvania is a fictional island located in the

Lake of the Woods Lake of the Woods (french: Lac des Bois, oj, Pikwedina Sagainan) is a lake occupying parts of the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Manitoba and the U.S. state of Minnesota. Lake of the Woods is over long and wide, containing more than 14,55 ...

along the

Canada–United States border The border between Canada and the United States is the longest international border in the world. The terrestrial boundary (including boundaries in the Great Lakes, Atlantic, and Pacific coasts) is long. The land border has two sections: Can ...

that served as a plot device in '' The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show''. The island has no permanent population, and conditions are said to be harsh and unpleasant. The island is in a state of '' terra nullius'', since neither Canada nor the United States wants to claim the land and each country says it belongs to the other. (See Bir Tawil for a similar real-life example of this.)

Bullwinkle J. Moose Bullwinkle J. Moose is a fictional character which premiered in the 1959–1964 ABC network animated television series ''Rocky and His Friends'' and ''The Bullwinkle Show'', often collectively referred to as ''Rocky and Bullwinkle'', produced by ...

serves as Moosylvania's presumed namesake and its governor but only stays two weeks at a time, since (according to Bullwinkle) "after two weeks here, anyplace else in the ''world'' feels like Heaven!" In the series finale "Moosylvania Saved," Fearless Leader, the head of state of the Eastern European state of

Pottsylvania Pottsylvania is a fictional country that appeared in the television series ''Rocky and His Friends'' and '' The Bullwinkle Show'', collectively referred to as ''Rocky and Bullwinkle''. Pottsylvania is a parody of a Cold War-era eastern Europe ...

, attempts to destroy Moosylvania. The plot is foiled when Bullwinkle, who was going to go down with his sinking country, asked Rocky for a stick of gum, which inspired Rocky the Flying Squirrel to raise up Moosylvania with bubble gum balloons. The plan worked and Moosylvania was saved, giving the series a happy ending. In the fall of 1962, Jay Ward, producer of the ''Rocky and Bullwinkle'' show, decided to campaign for statehood for Moosylvania. Ward sent Skip Craig to Minnesota to buy an island in Lake of the Woods. Craig wasn't able to find one for sale on the U.S. side of the lake (most of the islands in that lake belong to Canada), but managed to lease one for three years. Ward and publicist Howard Brandy conducted a cross-country tour in a decorated van, gathering signatures on a petition for statehood for Moosylvania. While in Washington, D.C., they sought an audience with President John F. Kennedy. However, they arrived at the White House on the very day the

Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis (of 1962) ( es, Crisis de Octubre) in Cuba, the Caribbean Crisis () in Russia, or the Missile Scare, was a 35-day (16 October – 20 November 1962) confrontation between the United S ...

broke, and were ordered to leave. A national anthem for Moosylvania was included on the mini-album ''A Salute to Moosylvania!! Recorded Live at the Moosylvania Jazz Festival'', self-released by Jay Ward in 1962.Listen to the entire album o
The Moosylvania Jazz Festival
(a Jay Ward production)

References

{{The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle and Friends Fictional locations in North America Fictional islands The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle and Friends Micronations in the United States Lake of the Woods