The way the map of the states should look!

Source: The Washington Post

Republicans, taking advantage of their long term political domination after the Civil War, took advantage of an oddity in the Constitution to increase Republican influence in the Senate and the electoral college. They did this by creating a lot of states with small populations that would be dominated by Republicans. Look at the map, and you will see where they are.

I will admit that the government from the time of the Northwest Territory had a policy of making states of approximately equal size, admitting them to statehood soon after they achieved a minimum population. They did not take into account the fact that some locations were suitable for urban manufacturing, and some areas had climates that would only allow sparse populations.