I recently purchased a book from Half Price Books titled The Great American Bathroom Reader, which is filled with small articles of varying interest to help pass the time while making ahh-ahh. While in the "library" today, I came across this tidbit:
There are only 46 states in the United States. Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Delaware are commonwealths.
A quick trip to the internet confirms Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Virginia as commonwealths. Delaware, however, asserts itself as a state. Another quick trip to dictionary.com looking up the word commonwealth lists Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Virginia as commonwealths. A search for Kentucky also confirms it to be a commonwealth.
Each one of these "states" have representatives in the US government, however, a websearch for Puerto Rico reveals it too is a commonwealth, but one that is self-governing, with basically its only affiliation with US government is that the US President is the Chief of State. They have no representation in Congress. (but they are exempt from the IRS codes)
How did this "state" of affairs come about, that some plots of land can call themselves a commonwealth and be fully represented in Congress, and at least one other can take the same moniker, but be allowed to self-govern?