Maine State Facts - Maine History Firsts
Catch up on your state trivia with these Maine history firsts and interesting fun facts about the state.
Official Name |
Maine |
Capital |
Augusta |
Location
Region |
44.33064 N, 069.72971 W
Northeast |
Constitution Ratified |
1820 |
Statehood |
March 15, 1820
23rd state |
Number of Counties |
16 Counties in Maine |
Largest County
(by population) |
Cumberland County
265,612
836 sq. mi. |
- 1607 - An unsuccessful attempt at establishing a permanent English settlement in the New World was at the location now known as Popham
Beach. Sir George Popham led the expedition.
- 1607 - First ship build by English colonists in Americas was launched on the Kennebec River.
- 1623 - First sawmill in the nation was established near York.
- 1641 - First chartered city in America was York.
- 1642 - First incorporated city in the nation's .
- 1775 - First naval battle of the Revolutionary War was fought off Machias.
- 1807 - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was considered the most influential poet of his day. The writer was born in Portland, on February 2,
1807. His most popular works include "The Courtship of Miles Standish", "Evangeline" and "Hiawatha".
- 1814 - Eastport is the only United States owned principality that has been under rule by a foreign government. It was held from 1814 to
1818 by British troops under King George following the conclusion of the War of 1812.
- 1820 - Maine was admitted to the Union as the 23rd state on March 15, 1820.
- 1832 - Portland was first temporarily selected as the state capital. In 1832 the capital was moved to the centrally located site of Augusta.
- 1840 - One of Maine's most important industries, cotton and woolen textiles, emerged in the 1840s in towns along the Androscoggin and Kennebec
rivers.
- 1844 - Fort Knox erected in 1844 is a state historic site originally built to protect the Penobscot River Valley from British naval attack.
The fort was constructed from granite from nearby Mount Waldo.
- 1866 - Founded in 1866, Togus became the first Veteran's Hospital in the US
- 1895 - Maine state flower and floral emblem is the
white pine cone and tassel.
- 1909 - Maine State Flag was adopted
- 1916 - Acadia National Park is one of the most visited U.S. National Parks, with over 2 million annual visitors.
The Park was first established and opened in 1916.
- 1919 - Maine State Great Seal adopted
- 1927 - The chickadee is Maine
official state bird.
- 1937 - Maine State Song: "State of Maine Song," words and music
by Roger Vinton Snow was adopted
- 1945 - Maine Official State Tree is the
White Pine (Pinus strobus L.)
- 1969 - The Maine State Fish is the
Landlocked Salmon (Salmo salar sebago Girard)
- 1971 - Maine Official State Mineral is
Tourmaline
- 1975 - The honeybee is
Maine official state insect.
- 1979 - The Maine State Animal is the
Moose (Alces alces)
- 1985 -
- 1987 - Maine Official State Vessel is the
Schooner "Bowdoin"
- 1991 -
- 1999 -
- 2005 -
- 2007 - Maine State Heritage Fish is the Blueback charr (Salvelinus alpinus oquassa)
- 2010 -
- Maine State Official Dessert is the Blueberry pie
- Maine State Treat is the Whoopie pie
Maine History Firsts & State Facts
- Eastport is the most eastern city in the United States. The city is considered the first place in the United States to receive the rays of the
morning sun.
- American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow spent much of his childhood in Portland.
- Maine's coastal waters attract a steadily increasing number of saltwater sports fishing enthusiasts.
- More than nine-tenths of Maine's total land area is forested, the highest percentage of forest coverage of any state.
- In Wilton there is a cannery that imports and cans only dandelion greens
- Maine is the only state in the United States whose name has one syllable.
- Maine is the only state that shares its border with only one other state, New Hampshire.
- Bath is known as the City of Ships.
- Joshua L. Chamberlain born in Brewer received the only battlefield promotion to General during the Civil War. He was also the last Civil War soldier
to die of wounds incurred in the War.
- The White Mountain National Forest covers nearly 800,000 acres, the forest covers a landscape ranging from hardwood forests to the largest alpine
area east of the Rocky Mountains
- More wooden toothpicks are produced in Maine that in any other state.
- Eastport is the most eastern city in the United States, receiving the first rays of the morning.
- Freeport is home to the L.L. Bean Company.
- Maine is the only state in the United States whose name has one syllable.
- Aroostook County at 6,453 square miles covers an area greater than the combined size of Connecticut and Rhode Island.
- Maine produces 99% of all the blueberries in the country making it the single largest producer of blueberries in the United States.
- Maine's earliest inhabitants were descendants of Ice Age hunters.
- West Quoddy Head is the most easterly point in the United States.
- Augusta is the most eastern capital city in the United States.
- Mount Katahdin is the state's highest point at 5,268 feet above sea level.
- Portland is the birthplace of poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
- Senator Margaret Chase Smith stood up in the senate and gave the famous Declaration of Conscious speech, speaking out against the McCarthy era.
Senator Smith was the first female presidential candidate.
- Author Steven King is a resident of Bangor.
- Former President George Bush has a summer home in Kennebunkport.
- The skating scene in the movie "The Preacher's Wife" was filmed in Deering Oaks Park in Portland.
- Maine lies farther northeast than any other state.
- Maine's nickname as the "Pine Tree
State" comes from the pines that once dotted the state's forests.
- With a total area of 33,215 square miles the state covers nearly as many square miles as the other five New England states combined.
- Maine has 3,478 miles of coastline - more than California (3,427), and over 5,000 miles of coast if you include all of the islands
as well. Only Florida and Louisiana (mostly bayou) have more miles of coastline. The coastline boasts so many deep harbors it is thought all the navies
in the world could anchor in them.
- Maine is most famous for... Lobster and harvests the majority of the lobster in the United States. Approximately 40 millions
pounds (nearly 90 percent) of the nation's lobster supply is caught off the coast of Maine. Maine lobsters have won international fame for their flavor
and contribution to the culinary world.
- Maine has 3,166 off-shore islands. Only about 1,200 Maine coast islands have an acre or more, 600 comprise 95% of the island
acreage.
- Maine has over 32,000 miles of Rivers and Streams.
- The Vikings are believed to have discovered Maine 1,000 years ago.
- The Penobscot Marine Museum in Searsport houses numerous historic buildings and marine memorabilia.
- Number of Maine Lighthouses: 67 (Quoddy Head Light is the eastern most point in the U.S.) Numerous lighthouses dot the Main coast
including Fort Point Lighthouse at Fort Point State Park in Stockton Springs and Grindle Point Lighthouse on Isleboro.
- Acadia National Park is one of the most visited U.S. National Parks, with over 2 million annual visitors. The Park was first
established and opened in 1916.
- The Sailor's Memorial Museum in Isleboro features displays depicting life at sea.
- Located in Thorndike Village, the Bryant Stove Works and Museum displays an eclectic collection of antique cast iron stoves, parlor heaters, roadsters
and touring cars. In addition, the museum features antique layer pianos, pipe organs and music boxes, calliopes, nickelodeons, and hurdy-gurdys.
- Maine's blueberry crop is the largest in the nation.
- Maine contains 542,629 acres of state and national parks.
- Edmund S. Muskie became the first Democratic United States senator ever elected by popular vote in Maine. He was also elected governor for two
terms. He was born in Rumford.
- Maine's government entities are comprised of 16 counties with 22 cities, 435 towns, 33 plantations, 424 unorganized townships and 3 Indian reservation.
County Information and County History
Androscoggin, Aroostook, Cumberland, Franklin, Hancock, Kennebec, Knox, Lincoln, Oxford, Penobscot, Piscataquis, Sagadahoc, Somerset, Waldo, Washington, York
State Facts & History Firsts