One of my favorite things about Maine is its dynamic personality and absolutely quirky nature. We have some of the most beautiful landscape in all the country, but we also have an entire museum devoted to umbrella covers. We have the depth and breadth of Acadia National Park, but we also pride ourselves on having invented the earmuffs. We are made up of so many cool things that it’s hard to keep track of who we really are. We thought it might be helpful to remind everyone of a few things Maine has given the world, along with some downright cool facts. Here are 12 things you didn’t know about Maine.
- We have the world’s tallest Indian statue.
Jimmy Emerson, DVM / Flickr Forget about Freeport’s Indian, the Skowhegan Indian is the tallest in the world. We can pretty much stop this list now given how excited I’m sure you all must be now! Erected in 1969 in honor of Maine’s 150th anniversary and dedicated to the Abenaki Indians who inhabited the land, Skowhegan’s Indian measures in a whopping 62 feet tall - and that’s not including the 20-foot base.
- The depth of our many harbors would allow us to provide anchorage for all the Navy fleets in the world.
Paul VanDerWerf / Flickr
- Maine has over 3,166 islands and if you visited one a day, it would take you almost 9 years to see them all!
Martin Cathrae / Flickr Here’s some more math: Only about 1,200 Maine coast islands have an acre or more, 600 comprise 95% of the island acreage.
- The first transatlantic television signal came from Maine.
Wikimedia Commons Telstar was launched by NASA on July 10, 1962, from Cape Canaveral, Florida and was the first privately sponsored space-faring mission. Two days later, it relayed the world’s first transatlantic television signal, from Andover Earth Station, Maine, to the Pleumeur-Bodou Telecom Center, Brittany, France.
- Geographically, Maine is bigger than the other five New England States combined.
mapsof.net We are deceptively big!
- Even more impressive? Aroostook County’s 6,453 square miles is bigger than the area of Connecticut and Rhode Island combined.
Christopher Mills / Flickr So, let’s all remember that Maine is NOT just coastal.
- In 2015, Maine became the first state to offer scholarships to middleschoolers to join a virtual international space station.
nasamarshall / Flickr Offered through the Space Station Academy, recipients get to be part of actual simulated space missions!
- Maine has over 32,000 miles of rivers and streams.
Jack Heddon / Flickr That makes for a lot of fishing!
- Quoddy Head State Park in Maine is the closest point in the US to Africa.
Michael DeRamo / Wikimedia Commons This is, hands down, one of my favorite facts about Maine! You’re closer to Safi Province, Morocco than you thought.
- Maine was one of the first states to legalize same-sex marriage by popular vote.
Chris H / Flickr It happened by popular vote In 2012, along with Maryland and Washington.
- The most sustainably farmed mussels come from Maine.
Bangs Island Mussels / Facebook According to an Outside Magazine article published in May 2015 titled “The Piscivore’s Dilemma,” you may want to try Bangs Island Mussels if you want to make the smallest impact on the environment while still eating meat.
- Mainer’s don’t need Craigslist.
Uncle Henry’s / Facebook We have Henry’s Swap or Sell It Guide to help us find everything we need. You won’t find this down south and we’re pretty proud of that.
What are your favorite Maine facts? Have any corrections to ours? Let us know over on our Facebook page!
Jimmy Emerson, DVM / Flickr
Forget about Freeport’s Indian, the Skowhegan Indian is the tallest in the world. We can pretty much stop this list now given how excited I’m sure you all must be now! Erected in 1969 in honor of Maine’s 150th anniversary and dedicated to the Abenaki Indians who inhabited the land, Skowhegan’s Indian measures in a whopping 62 feet tall - and that’s not including the 20-foot base.
Paul VanDerWerf / Flickr
Martin Cathrae / Flickr
Here’s some more math: Only about 1,200 Maine coast islands have an acre or more, 600 comprise 95% of the island acreage.
Wikimedia Commons
Telstar was launched by NASA on July 10, 1962, from Cape Canaveral, Florida and was the first privately sponsored space-faring mission. Two days later, it relayed the world’s first transatlantic television signal, from Andover Earth Station, Maine, to the Pleumeur-Bodou Telecom Center, Brittany, France.
mapsof.net
We are deceptively big!
Christopher Mills / Flickr
So, let’s all remember that Maine is NOT just coastal.
nasamarshall / Flickr
Offered through the Space Station Academy, recipients get to be part of actual simulated space missions!
Jack Heddon / Flickr
That makes for a lot of fishing!
Michael DeRamo / Wikimedia Commons
This is, hands down, one of my favorite facts about Maine! You’re closer to Safi Province, Morocco than you thought.
Chris H / Flickr
It happened by popular vote In 2012, along with Maryland and Washington.
Bangs Island Mussels / Facebook
According to an Outside Magazine article published in May 2015 titled “The Piscivore’s Dilemma,” you may want to try Bangs Island Mussels if you want to make the smallest impact on the environment while still eating meat.
Uncle Henry’s / Facebook
We have Henry’s Swap or Sell It Guide to help us find everything we need. You won’t find this down south and we’re pretty proud of that.
OnlyInYourState may earn compensation through affiliate links in this article.
