All about Maine

State abbreviation/Postal code: Maine/ME
U.S. Representatives: 2



Bird:
Chickadee
Capital City:
Augusta
Constitution:
Maine's Constitution , 23rd State
Flag:
The state coat of arms is placed on a blue field. In the center of the shield a moose rests under a tall pine tree. A farmer and seaman represents the work that people did in early times. The North Star represents the state motto:
"Dirigo" ("I Direct"). Flag adopted 1909.
Flower:
White Pine cone and tassel (Pinus strobus 'Linnaeus') | Other State Flowers
Largest Cities:
Portland | Lewiston | Bangor | South Portland | Auburn |Biddeford | Augusta | Saco | Westbrook | Scarborough
Nickname:
Pine Tree State
Origin of State Name:
Assumed to be a reference to the state region being a mainland, different from its many surrounding islands
Population (2013):
1,328,302; Rank: 41 of 50
Soil:
Chesuncook
Song:
"State Song of Maine"
Tree:
Eastern White Pine (Pinus strobus)
animal moose (1979)
cat Maine coon cat (1985)
fossil pertica quadrifaria (1985)
insect honeybee (1975)

John Cabot and his son, Sebastian, are believed to have visited the Maine coast in 1498. However, the first permanent English settlements were not established until more than a century later, in 1623.

The first naval action of the Revolutionary War occurred in 1775 when colonials captured the British sloop Margaretta off Machias on the Maine coast. In that same year, the British burned Falmouth (now Portland).

Long governed by Massachusetts, Maine became the 23rd state as part of the Missouri Compromise in 1820.

Maine produces 98% of the nation's low-bush blueberries. Farm income is also derived from apples, potatoes, dairy products, and vegetables, with poultry and eggs the largest selling items.

The state is one of the world's largest pulp-paper producers. With almost 89% of its area forested, Maine turns out wood products from boats to toothpicks. Maine also leads the world in the production of the familiar flat tins of sardines, producing more than 75 million of them annually. In 2005, Maine lobstermen landed nearly 63 million pounds of lobster. A glut of lobsters in 2012, caused by warmer temperatures and successful conservation, drove the price fisherman receive to 40-year lows, well under $2.00 per pound.

A scenic seacoast, beaches, lakes, mountains, and resorts make Maine a popular vacationland. There are more than 2,500 lakes and 5,000 streams, plus more than 30 state parks to attract hunters, fishermen, skiers, and campers.

Major points of interest are Bar Harbor, Acadia National Park, Allagash National Wilderness Waterway, the Wadsworth-Longfellow House in Portland, Roosevelt Campobello International Park, and the St. Croix Island National Monument




Maine Facts and Trivia

• 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.
• In Wilton there's 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.
• 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
• Aroostook County at 6,453 square miles covers an area greater than the combined size of Connecticut and Rhode Island.
• Approximately 40 millions pounds (nearly 90 percent) of the nation's lobster supply is caught off the coast of Maine.
• 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.
• Portland was first temporarily selected as the state capital. In 1832 the capital was moved to the centrally located site of Augusta.
• In 1641 America's first chartered city was York.
• Acadia National Park is the second most visited national park in the United States.
• 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.
• Togus was the first Veteran's Hospital in the United States. The facility was founded in 1866.
• 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 in 1607.
• 90% of the country's toothpick supply is produced in Maine.
• 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.
• Freeport is the home to the L.L. Bean Company.
• The skating scene in the movie "The Preacher's Wife" was filmed in Deering Oaks Park in Portland.
• The chickadee is the official state bird.
• 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.
• The state flower is the white pine cone and tassel.
• The coastline boasts so many deep harbors it is thought all the navies in the world could anchor in them.
• Maine lobsters have won international fame for their flavor and contribution to the culinary world.
• The Penobscot Marine Museum in Searsport houses numerous historic buildings and marine memorabilia.
• 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.
• Numerous lighthouses dot the Main coast including Fort Point Lighthouse at Fort Point State Park in Stockton Springs and Grindle Point Lighthouse on Isleboro.
• 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.
• 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".
• The nation's first sawmill was established near York in 1623.
• York became the nation's first incorporated city in 1642.
• The first ship build by English colonists in Americas was launched on the Kennebec River in 1607.
• The first naval battle of the Revolutionary War was fought off Machias in 1775.
• Maine was admitted to the Union as the 23rd state on March 15, 1820.
• Maine's blueberry crop is the largest in the nation.
• The honeybee is the official state insect.
• 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.
• 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.
• Maine's government entities are comprised of 16 counties with 22 cities, 435 towns, 33 plantations, 424 unorganized townships and 3 Indian reservations.