I remember how upset I was the first time I read about the history of the Alaskan panhandle. And yeah.... we should have fought over that border... but the Brits were occupied in other regions in the world and just caved in. Canada wasn't really independent yet.

At least the 54'40 border suggestion wasn't taken seriously at the end. Even so, many folks don't realise that the very southern tip of Vancouver Island is part of the USA The boundary was just drawn straight across instead of dipping down a bit to make the whole island part of Canada. The mistake wasn't realised until afterwards, and both Canada and USA agreed to let it stand.