Fnord wrote:
Hawaii has been part of the USA since August 21, 1959.
Hawaii was annexed by the US back in 1898. That was the starting point of it being "part of the US".
It just didn't achieve statehood until 1959.
As with most of the other states, it went through the stage of being a "territory" before it was granted statehood. But it was still part of the US.