3 Things You May Not Know About The State Of Maine

While Maine is known for things like lobster, lighthouses, Pine trees and Paul Bunyan, there are a handful of interesting things folks may not know about this great state.

During a recent car ride home from school, my daughter started to ask about all the "Maine" facts I knew. I told her that Maine was the only state with one syllable in its name, that we got to be the state where the sun's first light hits in the morning and that we have a longer coastline than California. I even knew that earmuffs were invented here.

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But then we started to dive into some facts of which I was unaware. So I thought I'd share them with you, too.

Here are 3 things you may not know about the state nicknamed "Vacationland."

1.) Maine's 'state flower' isn't a 'flowering' flower like all other states have.

With the exception of Nevada's 'Sagebrush', Maine's 'White Pine Cone and Tassel' is the only other state flower that isn't a beautiful plant with petals.

The story goes that in 1893, the folks at the World's Fair in Chicago wanted to create a 'National Garland of Flowers' with floral representations from each state. A year later, Mainers were made to vote for their choice of flower, and it's the pine cone that won by over 60%.

According to Bouqs.com, Maine went with the Pine Cone, at the Pine Tree State, instead of a different flower, to honor our woodland roots!

"...the white pine cone and tassel were officially adopted as the state flower of Maine on July 21, 1895. While most states chose colorful blooms, Maine decided to honor a plant that truly represented its forests and people’s livelihood. The choice reflects Maine’s deep connection to its natural environment. The white pine wasn’t selected for its appearance but for what it stands for resilience, resourcefulness, and growth."

2.) Billboards Are Against The Law in Maine

The saying goes, 'As Maine goes, so goes the nation,' but in this case, it was Vermont who went first, and we followed suit. Other states like Alaska and Hawaii don't allow billboards, either. When you think about what they all have in common (some of the most gorgeous natural scenery in the nation) in makes sense.

According a Maine State Law passed in 1977, big billboards are banned in Maine. Now, that's not to say a company can't have a big sign on their own property (up to a certain size and within a certain distance from their location) but companies cannot erect giant signs that would block Maine' beauty along any Maine roads or highways.

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The Natural Resource Council of Maine says that before the ban, Maine was littered with billboards advertising everything from cars to smokes, and it took many years to phase them out.

"The 'billboard ban' law, which took effect on January 1, 1978, slowly worked over many years to decommission and dismantle existing billboard advertisements along major roadways in the state. The final sign, a double-sided billboard in York County, came down in 1984. Today, the scenic landscapes unmarred by gaudy advertisements that unfold for motorists as they cross the state have become, as Dana Connors, president of the Maine State Chamber of Commerce, put it: 'part of Maine’s quality of place.' "

3.) The guy who created the donut hole was from Maine.

They don't call it 'Yankee Ingenuity' for nothing! See a problem, solve the problem. That's exactly what historians claim a 15-year-old Maine kid from Rockport named Hanson Crockett Gregory did in the summer of 1847.

As legend has it, Gregory who was a sailor himself, took a popular sailor's snack, friend dough, and made it better. You see, the middle of the dough blobs, which they all called 'dough-nuts' would never cook up right. It was always raw and indigestible. So he got the idea to cut the middle right out. And according to Roadside America, the rest is history.

"Rockport didn't forget Hanson. In 1947, the 100th anniversary of his discovery, a small monument was erected at his birthplace (spelling his invention "donut")...Hanson died in 1921, and the National Bakers Association officially recognized him as the inventor of the doughnut hole in 1948. By pure coincidence the town in which Hanson was buried -- Quincy, Massachusetts -- was also where the first Dunkin' Donuts opened, and when its owners learned in 1982 that Hanson lacked a tombstone, they paid for one themselves."

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What other not-so-well-known facts do you know about our home state? Feel free to share!