Mapping place mentions

Review state-name matches before drawing them

information visualization
maps
place names
Learn how naive place-name matches can mislead a map, and how reviewed readings keep non-place meanings visible.

Washington is the first problem in this map. In presidential speeches it can mean a person, a city, the federal government, or the state. The review below has to decide which readings are present.

Ben still wants a map from the speeches, but the name match is only the first step.

Locations on a map means more than finding a name. The reader has to decide whether the name really refers to a place, what place it means, what unit is being counted, and whether the basemap can honestly show it.

This lesson uses U.S. inaugural-address paragraphs and the state names bundled with R. The review rules and labels below are the author’s judgement after reading the matches in this corpus. They are not an independent geoparser.

TipWhat you will learn

This lesson shows how to:

  • match U.S. state names with case-sensitive, whole-word rules;
  • compare naive matches with reviewed readings;
  • keep person, river, event, government, and pre-statehood readings off the map;
  • count speeches with at least one reviewed state reading;
  • draw symbols with area scaling instead of a choropleth; and
  • state a basemap’s coverage and projection limits.

Match state names before reviewing them

The source data is the shared inaugural-address paragraph table used in earlier lessons. A paragraph and speech ID travel with every match. The matcher sorts state names from longest to shortest so West Virginia would be selected before Virginia when both could overlap.

library(dplyr)
library(ggplot2)
library(knitr)
library(purrr)
library(stringr)
library(tibble)
library(tidyr)

source("R/inaugural-corpus.R")

paragraphs <- inaugural_paragraphs()

state_lookup <- tibble(state = datasets::state.name) |>
  arrange(desc(str_length(state)), state)

empty_matches <- function() {
  tibble(
    state = character(),
    start = integer(),
    end = integer(),
    mention = character()
  )
}

state_pattern <- function(state_name) {
  regex(
    paste0("\\b", str_replace_all(state_name, " ", "\\\\s+"), "\\b"),
    ignore_case = FALSE
  )
}

find_all_state_candidates <- function(text) {
  state_lookup$state |>
    map_dfr(\(state_name) {
      locations <- str_locate_all(text, state_pattern(state_name))[[1]]
      if (nrow(locations) == 0L) {
        return(empty_matches())
      }

      tibble(
        state = state_name,
        start = as.integer(locations[, 1]),
        end = as.integer(locations[, 2]),
        mention = str_sub(text, start, end)
      )
    }) |>
    arrange(start, desc(end - start), state)
}

choose_longest_nonoverlap <- function(candidates, text_length) {
  if (nrow(candidates) == 0L) {
    return(candidates)
  }

  kept <- rep(FALSE, nrow(candidates))
  used_positions <- rep(FALSE, text_length)

  for (row_number in seq_len(nrow(candidates))) {
    span <- candidates$start[row_number]:candidates$end[row_number]
    if (!any(used_positions[span])) {
      kept[row_number] <- TRUE
      used_positions[span] <- TRUE
    }
  }

  candidates[kept, ]
}

find_state_matches <- function(text) {
  find_all_state_candidates(text) |>
    choose_longest_nonoverlap(nchar(text))
}

state_matches <- paragraphs |>
  mutate(matches = map(paragraph, find_state_matches)) |>
  filter(map_int(matches, nrow) > 0L) |>
  select(
    paragraph_id, speech_id, year, president, paragraph_words,
    paragraph, matches
  ) |>
  unnest(matches) |>
  mutate(
    match_key = str_c(paragraph_id, state, start, sep = ":"),
    context = str_squish(str_sub(
      paragraph,
      pmax(1L, start - 70L),
      pmin(nchar(paragraph), end + 70L)
    ))
  )

naive_state_counts <- state_matches |>
  summarise(
    naive_matches = n(),
    naive_speeches = n_distinct(speech_id),
    .by = state
  ) |>
  arrange(desc(naive_matches), state)

kable(
  naive_state_counts,
  col.names = c("Matched name", "Naive matches", "Speeches with a match"),
  caption = "Naive case-sensitive state-name matches before review",
  row.names = FALSE
)
Naive case-sensitive state-name matches before review
Matched name Naive matches Speeches with a match
Washington 22 17
Texas 11 2
Mississippi 7 5
Louisiana 4 4
New York 3 2
Virginia 3 3
Florida 2 1
Kansas 2 1
Nebraska 2 2
North Carolina 2 2
Pennsylvania 2 2
California 1 1
Iowa 1 1
Massachusetts 1 1
Missouri 1 1
Montana 1 1
Ohio 1 1
Oregon 1 1

The naive table counts strings. It does not know whether Washington is a person, the city, or the state. That is the next step.

Review what each match means

The categories below were written after reading the 67 matches. Any residue that the rules do not explain is assigned to uncertain, not to the map.

Each review key combines the paragraph ID, the matched name, and the 1-based character start returned for that paragraph, so a label stays with its sentence when rows are reordered.

category_table <- tribble(
  ~category, ~meaning,
  "person", "the state name is part of a person's name or title",
  "city or federal government", "the name refers to Washington, DC, New York City, or federal power",
  "event name", "the name belongs to a named meeting or conference",
  "river", "the name refers to a river or river valley",
  "territory or republic before statehood", "the text refers to land before it became a state",
  "law or organisation name", "the name appears inside a law, congress, or organisation label",
  "state or its people", "the text refers to the state, its residents, or someone from that state",
  "uncertain", "the author could not assign a safer category after reading the context"
)

review_labels <- tribble(
  ~match_key, ~reading_category,
  "1805-Jefferson-p06:Louisiana:317", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1805-Jefferson-p06:Mississippi:671", "river",
  "1821-Monroe-p13:Florida:562", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1821-Monroe-p14:Mississippi:490", "river",
  "1821-Monroe-p14:Florida:630", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1821-Monroe-p14:Mississippi:1229", "river",
  "1821-Monroe-p26:Mississippi:86", "river",
  "1821-Monroe-p26:Louisiana:404", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1825-Adams-p04:Mississippi:102", "river",
  "1845-Polk-p21:Texas:17", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1845-Polk-p21:Texas:194", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1845-Polk-p22:Texas:87", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1845-Polk-p22:Texas:916", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1845-Polk-p23:Texas:4", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1845-Polk-p24:Louisiana:329", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1845-Polk-p25:Texas:67", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1845-Polk-p25:Texas:260", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1845-Polk-p25:Texas:719", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1845-Polk-p25:Texas:1052", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1845-Polk-p25:Texas:1646", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1845-Polk-p26:Oregon:231", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1845-Polk-p26:Mississippi:627", "river",
  "1845-Polk-p26:Missouri:667", "river",
  "1849-Taylor-p07:Washington:216", "person",
  "1853-Pierce-p03:North Carolina:342", "state or its people",
  "1853-Pierce-p14:Washington:578", "person",
  "1857-Buchanan-p06:Kansas:83", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1857-Buchanan-p08:Nebraska:425", "law or organisation name",
  "1857-Buchanan-p08:Kansas:434", "law or organisation name",
  "1857-Buchanan-p17:California:696", "state or its people",
  "1857-Buchanan-p18:Washington:939", "person",
  "1857-Buchanan-p19:Texas:169", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1877-Hayes-p01:Washington:78", "person",
  "1885-Cleveland-p11:Washington:687", "person",
  "1889-Harrison-p03:Washington:184", "person",
  "1889-Harrison-p03:New York:209", "city or federal government",
  "1889-Harrison-p03:New York:599", "city or federal government",
  "1889-Harrison-p05:Washington:203", "person",
  "1889-Harrison-p06:Virginia:94", "state or its people",
  "1889-Harrison-p10:Pennsylvania:349", "state or its people",
  "1889-Harrison-p29:Montana:116", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1889-Harrison-p29:Washington:128", "territory or republic before statehood",
  "1897-McKinley-p14:Washington:321", "person",
  "1897-McKinley-p14:Washington:1622", "city or federal government",
  "1905-Roosevelt-p04:Washington:1135", "person",
  "1909-Taft-p14:Ohio:956", "river",
  "1909-Taft-p14:Mississippi:971", "river",
  "1925-Coolidge-p07:Washington:190", "event name",
  "1941-Roosevelt-p23:Washington:118", "person",
  "1953-Eisenhower-p21:Iowa:156", "state or its people",
  "1973-Nixon-p17:Washington:216", "city or federal government",
  "1981-Reagan-p22:Massachusetts:155", "law or organisation name",
  "1981-Reagan-p31:Washington:67", "person",
  "1985-Reagan-p01:Louisiana:80", "state or its people",
  "1985-Reagan-p03:Washington:144", "person",
  "1985-Reagan-p13:Virginia:64", "state or its people",
  "1989-Bush-p02:Washington:61", "person",
  "1989-Bush-p02:Washington:195", "person",
  "1989-Bush-p02:Washington:292", "person",
  "1993-Clinton-p04:Washington:13", "person",
  "2001-Bush-p28:Virginia:51", "state or its people",
  "2017-Trump-p03:Washington:207", "city or federal government",
  "2017-Trump-p18:Nebraska:87", "state or its people",
  "2025-Trump-p10:North Carolina:118", "state or its people",
  "2025-Trump-p17:Pennsylvania:39", "state or its people",
  "2025-Trump-p56:New York:6", "city or federal government",
  "2025-Trump-p56:Washington:114", "city or federal government"
)

review_matches <- state_matches |>
  left_join(
    review_labels,
    by = join_by(match_key),
    relationship = "one-to-one"
  ) |>
  mutate(
    reviewed_state_reading = reading_category == "state or its people"
  )

label_preview <- review_labels |>
  slice_head(n = 8)

category_counts <- category_table |>
  left_join(
    review_matches |>
      count(reading_category, name = "matches"),
    by = join_by(category == reading_category)
  ) |>
  mutate(matches = coalesce(matches, 0L))

kable(
  label_preview,
  col.names = c("Match key", "Reviewed category"),
  caption = "First keyed review-label decisions",
  row.names = FALSE
)
First keyed review-label decisions
Match key Reviewed category
1805-Jefferson-p06:Louisiana:317 territory or republic before statehood
1805-Jefferson-p06:Mississippi:671 river
1821-Monroe-p13:Florida:562 territory or republic before statehood
1821-Monroe-p14:Mississippi:490 river
1821-Monroe-p14:Florida:630 territory or republic before statehood
1821-Monroe-p14:Mississippi:1229 river
1821-Monroe-p26:Mississippi:86 river
1821-Monroe-p26:Louisiana:404 territory or republic before statehood 
kable(
  category_counts,
  col.names = c("Review category", "How this lesson uses the category", "Matches"),
  caption = "Author-written review categories for state-name matches",
  row.names = FALSE
)
Author-written review categories for state-name matches
Review category How this lesson uses the category Matches
person the state name is part of a person’s name or title 16
city or federal government the name refers to Washington, DC, New York City, or federal power 7
event name the name belongs to a named meeting or conference 1
river the name refers to a river or river valley 9
territory or republic before statehood the text refers to land before it became a state 20
law or organisation name the name appears inside a law, congress, or organisation label 3
state or its people the text refers to the state, its residents, or someone from that state 11
uncertain the author could not assign a safer category after reading the context 0

The category table is a disclosure, not a score. These labels were shaped by this corpus. A new collection would need a new review.

Compare naive and reviewed readings

The table below keeps the naive counts beside the reviewed counts. The reviewed unit is speeches with at least one state reading for a state. Repeated mentions inside one speech do not add more weight.

reviewed_state_counts <- review_matches |>
  filter(reviewed_state_reading) |>
  distinct(state, speech_id) |>
  count(state, name = "reviewed_state_speeches") |>
  arrange(desc(reviewed_state_speeches), state)

naive_review_comparison <- naive_state_counts |>
  left_join(reviewed_state_counts, by = join_by(state)) |>
  mutate(reviewed_state_speeches = coalesce(reviewed_state_speeches, 0L)) |>
  arrange(desc(naive_matches), state)

washington_summary <- review_matches |>
  filter(state == "Washington") |>
  summarise(
    matches = n(),
    speeches = n_distinct(speech_id),
    reviewed_state_speeches = n_distinct(speech_id[reviewed_state_reading])
  )

river_summary <- review_matches |>
  filter(state %in% c("Mississippi", "Ohio", "Missouri")) |>
  summarise(
    matches = n(),
    speeches = n_distinct(speech_id),
    categories = str_c(sort(unique(reading_category)), collapse = ", "),
    .by = state
  ) |>
  arrange(state)

kable(
  naive_review_comparison,
  col.names = c(
    "Matched name", "Naive matches", "Naive speeches",
    "Reviewed state speeches"
  ),
  caption = "Naive matches compared with reviewed state readings",
  row.names = FALSE
)
Naive matches compared with reviewed state readings
Matched name Naive matches Naive speeches Reviewed state speeches
Washington 22 17 0
Texas 11 2 0
Mississippi 7 5 0
Louisiana 4 4 1
New York 3 2 0
Virginia 3 3 3
Florida 2 1 0
Kansas 2 1 0
Nebraska 2 2 1
North Carolina 2 2 2
Pennsylvania 2 2 2
California 1 1 1
Iowa 1 1 1
Massachusetts 1 1 0
Missouri 1 1 0
Montana 1 1 0
Ohio 1 1 0
Oregon 1 1 0 
kable(
  river_summary,
  col.names = c("Matched name", "Matches", "Speeches", "Reviewed category"),
  caption = "River readings checked before mapping",
  row.names = FALSE
)
River readings checked before mapping
Matched name Matches Speeches Reviewed category
Mississippi 7 5 river
Missouri 1 1 river
Ohio 1 1 river

The code finds Washington in 17 speeches and the review counts none as Washington State. It also finds Mississippi, Ohio, and Missouri as river readings. Those names stay in the review tables and stay off the map.

The full review table is long because every non-state reading remains visible.

review_table <- review_matches |>
  transmute(
    paragraph_id,
    start,
    state,
    speech_id,
    year,
    president,
    reading_category,
    reviewed_state_reading,
    context
  ) |>
  arrange(paragraph_id, start, state)

kable(
  review_table,
  col.names = c(
    "Paragraph ID", "Character start", "Matched name", "Speech ID", "Year",
    "President", "Reviewed category", "Mapped as state", "Reading context"
  ),
  caption = "All reviewed state-name matches with author-written categories",
  row.names = FALSE,
  format = "html",
  escape = TRUE
)
All reviewed state-name matches with author-written categories
Paragraph ID Character start Matched name Speech ID Year President Reviewed category Mapped as state Reading context
1805-Jefferson-p06 317 Louisiana 1805-Jefferson 1805 Thomas Jefferson territory or republic before statehood FALSE place the advances we shall have made. I know that the acquisition of Louisiana had been disapproved by some from a candid apprehension that the enla
1805-Jefferson-p06 671 Mississippi 1805-Jefferson 1805 Thomas Jefferson river FALSE sions; and in any view is it not better that the opposite bank of the Mississippi should be settled by our own brethren and children than by strangers
1821-Monroe-p13 562 Florida 1821-Monroe 1821 James Monroe territory or republic before statehood FALSE nd in 1817, and by the occurrences which took place in other parts of Florida in 1818, the details of which in both instances are too well known to
1821-Monroe-p14 490 Mississippi 1821-Monroe 1821 James Monroe river FALSE is established between the territories of the parties westward of the Mississippi, heretofore in dispute, has, it is thought, been settled on condition
1821-Monroe-p14 630 Florida 1821-Monroe 1821 James Monroe territory or republic before statehood FALSE n conditions just and advantageous to both. But to the acquisition of Florida too much importance can not be attached. It secures to the United Sta
1821-Monroe-p14 1229 Mississippi 1821-Monroe 1821 James Monroe river FALSE of war of the largest size. It covers by its position in the Gulf the Mississippi and other great waters within our extended limits, and thereby enable
1821-Monroe-p26 86 Mississippi 1821-Monroe 1821 James Monroe river FALSE tainments have not been less eminent. Twenty-five years ago the river Mississippi was shut up and our Western brethren had no outlet for their commerce
1821-Monroe-p26 404 Louisiana 1821-Monroe 1821 James Monroe territory or republic before statehood FALSE ams (with the exception of the upper part of the Red River only), but Louisiana, with a fair and liberal boundary on the western side and the Florida
1825-Adams-p04 102 Mississippi 1825-Adams 1825 John Quincy Adams river FALSE of four millions has multiplied to twelve. A territory bounded by the Mississippi has been extended from sea to sea. New States have been admitted to t
1845-Polk-p21 17 Texas 1845-Polk 1845 James Knox Polk territory or republic before statehood FALSE The Republic of Texas has made known her desire to come into our Union, to form a part of o
1845-Polk-p21 194 Texas 1845-Polk 1845 James Knox Polk territory or republic before statehood FALSE the blessings of liberty secured and guaranteed by our Constitution. Texas was once a part of our country - was unwisely ceded away to a foreign
1845-Polk-p22 87 Texas 1845-Polk 1845 James Knox Polk territory or republic before statehood FALSE stion of annexation as belonging exclusively to the United States and Texas. They are independent powers competent to contract, and foreign natio
1845-Polk-p22 916 Texas 1845-Polk 1845 James Knox Polk territory or republic before statehood FALSE an pacific. Foreign powers should therefore look on the annexation of Texas to the United States not as the conquest of a nation seeking to exten
1845-Polk-p23 4 Texas 1845-Polk 1845 James Knox Polk territory or republic before statehood FALSE To Texas the reunion is important, because the strong protecting arm of our Go
1845-Polk-p24 329 Louisiana 1845-Polk 1845 James Knox Polk territory or republic before statehood FALSE ur boundaries. These objections were earnestly urged when we acquired Louisiana. Experience has shown that they were not well founded. The title of n
1845-Polk-p25 67 Texas 1845-Polk 1845 James Knox Polk territory or republic before statehood FALSE None can fail to see the danger to our safety and future peace if Texas remains an independent state or becomes an ally or dependency of some
1845-Polk-p25 260 Texas 1845-Polk 1845 James Knox Polk territory or republic before statehood FALSE here one among our citizens who would not prefer perpetual peace with Texas to occasional wars, which so often occur between bordering independen
1845-Polk-p25 719 Texas 1845-Polk 1845 James Knox Polk territory or republic before statehood FALSE t of the Union? Whatever is good or evil in the local institutions of Texas will remain her own whether annexed to the United States or not. None
1845-Polk-p25 1052 Texas 1845-Polk 1845 James Knox Polk territory or republic before statehood FALSE same principle that they would refuse to form a perpetual union with Texas because of her local institutions our forefathers would have been pre
1845-Polk-p25 1646 Texas 1845-Polk 1845 James Knox Polk territory or republic before statehood FALSE the people and Government of the United States by the reannexation of Texas to our Union at the earliest practicable period.
1845-Polk-p26 231 Oregon 1845-Polk 1845 James Knox Polk territory or republic before statehood FALSE hich lies beyond the Rocky Mountains. Our title to the country of the Oregon is "clear and unquestionable," and already are our people preparing t
1845-Polk-p26 627 Mississippi 1845-Polk 1845 James Knox Polk river FALSE e, increasing to many millions, have filled the eastern valley of the Mississippi, adventurously ascended the Missouri to its headsprings, and are alre
1845-Polk-p26 667 Missouri 1845-Polk 1845 James Knox Polk river FALSE led the eastern valley of the Mississippi, adventurously ascended the Missouri to its headsprings, and are already engaged in establishing the bless
1849-Taylor-p07 216 Washington 1849-Taylor 1849 Zachary Taylor person FALSE warned by the admonitions of history and the voice of our own beloved Washington to abstain from entangling alliances with foreign nations. In all dis
1853-Pierce-p03 342 North Carolina 1853-Pierce 1853 Franklin Pierce state or its people TRUE s Country made "the" then "recent accession of the important State of North Carolina to the Constitution of the United States" one of the subjects of his
1853-Pierce-p14 578 Washington 1853-Pierce 1853 Franklin Pierce person FALSE en slopes of Monticello, and, as it were, within reach of the tomb of Washington, with all the cherished memories of the past gathering around me like
1857-Buchanan-p06 83 Kansas 1857-Buchanan 1857 James Buchanan territory or republic before statehood FALSE consequence, Congress has also prescribed that when the Territory of Kansas shall be admitted as a State it "shall be received into the Union wit
1857-Buchanan-p08 425 Nebraska 1857-Buchanan 1857 James Buchanan law or organisation name FALSE may be, though it has ever been my individual opinion that under the Nebraska-Kansas act the appropriate period will be when the number of actual r
1857-Buchanan-p08 434 Kansas 1857-Buchanan 1857 James Buchanan law or organisation name FALSE though it has ever been my individual opinion that under the Nebraska-Kansas act the appropriate period will be when the number of actual resident
1857-Buchanan-p17 696 California 1857-Buchanan 1857 James Buchanan state or its people TRUE ainst invasion." Now, how is it possible to afford this protection to California and our Pacific possessions except by means of a military road throug
1857-Buchanan-p18 939 Washington 1857-Buchanan 1857 James Buchanan person FALSE gling alliances has been a maxim of our policy ever since the days of Washington, and its wisdom's no one will attempt to dispute. In short, we ought
1857-Buchanan-p19 169 Texas 1857-Buchanan 1857 James Buchanan territory or republic before statehood FALSE acquired any territory except by fair purchase or, as in the case of Texas, by the voluntary determination of a brave, kindred, and independent
1877-Hayes-p01 78 Washington 1877-Hayes 1877 Rutherford B. Hayes person FALSE citizens, we have assembled to repeat the public ceremonial, begun by Washington, observed by all my predecessors, and now a time-honored custom, whic
1885-Cleveland-p11 687 Washington 1885-Cleveland 1885 Grover Cleveland person FALSE and repelling their intrusion here. It is the policy of Monroe and of Washington and Jefferson - "Peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nati
1889-Harrison-p03 184 Washington 1889-Harrison 1889 Benjamin Harrison person FALSE nty-sixth under our Constitution. The first inauguration of President Washington took place in New York, where Congress was then sitting, on the 30th
1889-Harrison-p03 209 New York 1889-Harrison 1889 Benjamin Harrison city or federal government FALSE itution. The first inauguration of President Washington took place in New York, where Congress was then sitting, on the 30th day of April, 1789, hav
1889-Harrison-p03 599 New York 1889-Harrison 1889 Benjamin Harrison city or federal government FALSE nd of the adoption of the Constitution, and will shortly celebrate in New York the institution of the second great department of our constitutional
1889-Harrison-p05 203 Washington 1889-Harrison 1889 Benjamin Harrison person FALSE , or to find inspiration and guidance in the teachings and example of Washington and his great associates, and hope and courage in the contrast which
1889-Harrison-p06 94 Virginia 1889-Harrison 1889 Benjamin Harrison state or its people TRUE has now a population greater than any of the original States (except Virginia) and greater than the aggregate of five of the smaller States in 1790
1889-Harrison-p10 349 Pennsylvania 1889-Harrison 1889 Benjamin Harrison state or its people TRUE n fabrics. There was this reason only why the States that divide with Pennsylvania the mineral treasures of the great southeastern and central mountain
1889-Harrison-p29 116 Montana 1889-Harrison 1889 Benjamin Harrison territory or republic before statehood FALSE is a near prospect of the admission into the Union of the Dakotas and Montana and Washington Territories. This act of justice has been unreasonably
1889-Harrison-p29 128 Washington 1889-Harrison 1889 Benjamin Harrison territory or republic before statehood FALSE ospect of the admission into the Union of the Dakotas and Montana and Washington Territories. This act of justice has been unreasonably delayed in the
1897-McKinley-p14 321 Washington 1897-McKinley 1897 William McKinley person FALSE nterference with affairs of foreign governments wisely inaugurated by Washington, keeping ourselves free from entanglement, either as allies or foes,
1897-McKinley-p14 1622 Washington 1897-McKinley 1897 William McKinley city or federal government FALSE arbitration between the United States and Great Britain was signed at Washington and transmitted to the Senate for its ratification in January last. S
1905-Roosevelt-p04 1135 Washington 1905-Roosevelt 1905 Theodore Roosevelt person FALSE al, which made great the men who founded this Republic in the days of Washington, which made great the men who preserved this Republic in the days of
1909-Taft-p14 956 Ohio 1909-Taft 1909 William Howard Taft river FALSE and control of the channel of a great river system, like that of the Ohio or of the Mississippi, when definite and practical plans for the ente
1909-Taft-p14 971 Mississippi 1909-Taft 1909 William Howard Taft river FALSE the channel of a great river system, like that of the Ohio or of the Mississippi, when definite and practical plans for the enterprise have been appro
1925-Coolidge-p07 190 Washington 1925-Coolidge 1925 Calvin Coolidge event name FALSE es and consultations. We have before us the beneficial results of the Washington conference and the various consultations recently held upon European
1941-Roosevelt-p23 118 Washington 1941-Roosevelt 1941 Franklin D. Roosevelt person FALSE mothered with doubt and fear - then we shall reject the destiny which Washington strove so valiantly and so triumphantly to establish. The preservatio
1953-Eisenhower-p21 156 Iowa 1953-Eisenhower 1953 Dwight D. Eisenhower state or its people TRUE on bond binds the grower of rice in Burma and the planter of wheat in Iowa, the shepherd in southern Italy and the mountaineer in the Andes. It
1973-Nixon-p17 216 Washington 1973-Nixon 1973 Richard Milhous Nixon city or federal government FALSE consequences of attempting to gather all power and responsibility in Washington.
1981-Reagan-p22 155 Massachusetts 1981-Reagan 1981 Ronald Reagan law or organisation name FALSE atest among the Founding Fathers, Dr. Joseph Warren, President of the Massachusetts Congress, said to his fellow Americans, "Our country is in danger, bu
1981-Reagan-p31 67 Washington 1981-Reagan 1981 Ronald Reagan person FALSE Directly in front of me, the monument to a monumental man: George Washington, Father of our country. A man of humility who came to greatness reluc
1985-Reagan-p01 80 Louisiana 1985-Reagan 1985 Ronald Reagan state or its people TRUE however, one who is not with us today: Representative Gillis Long of Louisiana left us last night. I wonder if we could all join in a moment of sile
1985-Reagan-p03 144 Washington 1985-Reagan 1985 Ronald Reagan person FALSE e celebrated this historic occasion. When the first President, George Washington, placed his hand upon the Bible, he stood less than a single day's jo
1985-Reagan-p13 64 Virginia 1985-Reagan 1985 Ronald Reagan state or its people TRUE Two of our Founding Fathers, a Boston lawyer named Adams and a Virginia planter named Jefferson, members of that remarkable group who met in
1989-Bush-p02 61 Washington 1989-Bush 1989 George Bush person FALSE I have just repeated word for word the oath taken by George Washington 200 years ago, and the Bible on which I placed my hand is the Bible o
1989-Bush-p02 195 Washington 1989-Bush 1989 George Bush person FALSE d is the Bible on which he placed his. It is right that the memory of Washington be with us today, not only because this is our Bicentennial Inaugurat
1989-Bush-p02 292 Washington 1989-Bush 1989 George Bush person FALSE , not only because this is our Bicentennial Inauguration, but because Washington remains the Father of our Country. And he would, I think, be gladdene
1993-Clinton-p04 13 Washington 1993-Clinton 1993 Bill Clinton person FALSE When George Washington first took the oath I have just sworn to uphold, news travelled slowl
2001-Bush-p28 51 Virginia 2001-Bush 2001 George W. Bush state or its people TRUE After the Declaration of Independence was signed, Virginia statesman John Page wrote to Thomas Jefferson: "We know the race is n
2017-Trump-p03 207 Washington 2017-Trump 2017 Donald J. Trump city or federal government FALSE er, or from one party to another - but we are transferring power from Washington DC and giving it back to you, the people.
2017-Trump-p18 87 Nebraska 2017-Trump 2017 Donald J. Trump state or its people TRUE ild is born in the urban sprawl of Detroit or the windswept plains of Nebraska, they look up at the same night sky, they fill their heart with the s
2025-Trump-p10 118 North Carolina 2025-Trump 2025 Donald J. Trump state or its people TRUE s in times of emergency, as recently shown by the wonderful people of North Carolina — who have been treated so badly — (applause) — and other states who
2025-Trump-p17 39 Pennsylvania 2025-Trump 2025 Donald J. Trump state or its people TRUE Just a few months ago, in a beautiful Pennsylvania field, an assassin’s bullet ripped through my ear. But I felt then an
2025-Trump-p56 6 New York 2025-Trump 2025 Donald J. Trump city or federal government FALSE From New York to Los Angeles, from Philadelphia to Phoenix, from Chicago to Miami,
2025-Trump-p56 114 Washington 2025-Trump 2025 Donald J. Trump city or federal government FALSE phia to Phoenix, from Chicago to Miami, from Houston to right here in Washington, D.C., our country was forged and built by the generations of patriot

Draw the reviewed state counts

The basemap comes from ggplot2::map_data("state"), which uses the maps package state database. That database covers the 48 contiguous states and the District of Columbia. It does not draw Alaska or Hawaii, and this lesson does not plot their state.center points.

lower48_map <- ggplot2::map_data("state")

state_centers <- tibble(
  state = datasets::state.name,
  longitude = datasets::state.center$x,
  latitude = datasets::state.center$y
) |>
  mutate(
    lower48_or_dc = !state %in% c("Alaska", "Hawaii"),
    region = str_to_lower(state)
  )

map_points <- reviewed_state_counts |>
  left_join(state_centers, by = join_by(state)) |>
  filter(lower48_or_dc)

state_count_table <- map_points |>
  select(state, reviewed_state_speeches, longitude, latitude) |>
  arrange(desc(reviewed_state_speeches), state)

map_alt_text <- sprintf(
  paste(
    "Lower-48 U.S. map with proportional circles for seven reviewed state readings.",
    "Virginia appears in 3 speeches; North Carolina and Pennsylvania appear in 2 each;",
    "California, Iowa, Louisiana, and Nebraska appear in 1 each.",
    "Washington State is not plotted because its %d matches in %d speeches were reviewed as non-state readings."
  ),
  washington_summary$matches,
  washington_summary$speeches
)

kable(
  state_count_table,
  col.names = c(
    "State", "Speeches with reviewed state reading",
    "Approximate center longitude", "Approximate center latitude"
  ),
  caption = "Long description for the reviewed state-count map",
  row.names = FALSE
)
Long description for the reviewed state-count map
State Speeches with reviewed state reading Approximate center longitude Approximate center latitude
Virginia 3 -78.2005 37.5630
North Carolina 2 -78.4686 35.4195
Pennsylvania 2 -77.4500 40.9069
California 1 -119.7730 36.5341
Iowa 1 -93.3714 41.9358
Louisiana 1 -92.2724 30.6181
Nebraska 1 -99.5898 41.3356

The coordinates are approximate state centers. A symbol at a center is a count marker, not the place where a speech event happened. A choropleth shades whole areas by value; this map uses circles instead because the values are small counts of speeches, not rates or attention. Pre-statehood references such as the Republic of Texas were not counted as state readings.

mean_latitude <- mean(lower48_map$lat, na.rm = TRUE)
fixed_ratio <- 1 / cos(mean_latitude * pi / 180)
legend_breaks <- seq_len(max(map_points$reviewed_state_speeches))

ggplot() +
  geom_polygon(
    data = lower48_map,
    aes(x = long, y = lat, group = group),
    fill = "grey95",
    color = "grey65",
    linewidth = 0.2
  ) +
  geom_point(
    data = map_points,
    aes(x = longitude, y = latitude, size = reviewed_state_speeches),
    shape = 21,
    fill = "white",
    color = "black",
    stroke = 0.8
  ) +
  scale_size_area(
    breaks = legend_breaks,
    max_size = 10,
    name = "Reviewed speeches"
  ) +
  coord_fixed(ratio = fixed_ratio) +
  labs(
    x = "Longitude",
    y = "Latitude"
  ) +
  theme_void() +
  theme(
    legend.position = "right",
    plot.margin = margin(5.5, 24, 5.5, 5.5)
  )
Lower-48 U.S. map with proportional circles for seven reviewed state readings. Virginia appears in 3 speeches; North Carolina and Pennsylvania appear in 2 each; California, Iowa, Louisiana, and Nebraska appear in 1 each. Washington State is not plotted because its 22 matches in 17 speeches were reviewed as non-state readings.
Figure 1: Reviewed state readings in inaugural speeches on a lower-48 basemap; seven states remain after review.

The coordinate ratio is 1 / cos(mean latitude in radians), which is 1.27 in this render. One degree of latitude is drawn about 1.27 times as long as one degree of longitude, because a degree of longitude covers less ground away from the equator. Near the middle of the country, a mile east-west and a mile north-south then look about the same length. This does not preserve area. The circle areas encode the speech counts; exact values belong in the table.

Where this fits

Lesson 30 shows how a gazetteer can turn a place name into coordinates. This page begins earlier. It asks whether a matched name should become a place record at all. Names can refer to people, laws, rivers, cities, events, governments, or places from an earlier political period.

The lower-48 map also has coverage limits. If a reviewed state reading pointed to Alaska or Hawaii, this page would keep it in the table and not draw it on this basemap.

What to remember

  • A state-name match is not automatically a state reference.
  • Review labels shaped after reading the matches must be disclosed.
  • Count speeches, not repeated mentions, when the unit is speeches.
  • Rivers, people, events, and pre-statehood references stay off the reviewed map.
  • scale_size_area() maps values to circle area; the table carries exact counts.
  • A lower-48 basemap cannot show every U.S. state.

Ben can map seven reviewed states, but only after most naive matches have been kept out of the symbol layer. The table is part of the map because it shows what the picture refused to draw.

Sources