Tennessee is one of the 50 states of the United States. What is now Tennessee was initially part of North Carolina, and later part of the Southwest Territory. It was admitted to the Union on June 1, 1796, as the 16th state. Tennessee would earn the nickname "The Volunteer State" during the War of 1812, when many Tennesseans would step in to help with the war effort. Especially during the Americans victory at the Battle of New Orleans. The nickname would become even more applicable during the Mexican–American War in 1846, after the Secretary of War asked the state for 2,800 soldiers, and Tennessee sent over 30,000.