Introduction - Massachusetts Facts
Massachusetts, located in the Northeast region of the United States, may be a small state in size but it is big in history. This state was the birthplace of four great Americans who went on to become U.S. Presidents. It is where the Pilgrims landed and settled. Many "firsts" took place in Massachusetts; most notably the first Thanksgiving. What other state can claim the very first zip code or the first public park? Massachusetts has numerous landmarks, such as Plymouth Rock, familiar to every kid and adult in America. When reading the list of interesting facts below you will see what important events occurred in this state along with other interesting information including what event created Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard and much more.Click here for a great selection of Amazon.com books about Massachusetts.
State of Massachusetts Quick Facts
- Massachusetts was the 6th state to join the United States.
- Massachusetts officially became a state on February 6, 1788.
- The state capital of Massachusetts is Boston, which is also the largest city.
- This state is bordered by New York, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Vermont and the Atlantic Ocean.
- Massachusetts is the 14th most populated state (source 2013 United States Census Bureau estimate).
- The population of Massachusetts is 6,692,824 (source 2013 United States Census Bureau estimate).
- Massachusetts size is 10,555 square miles (27,336 square kilometers).
- The state flower of Massachusetts is the delicate, Epigaea repens, also known as the Mayflower.
- Residents of Massachusetts are called Massachusettsans.
- The nickname for Massachusetts is the Bay State.
- The state song of Massachusetts is All Hail to Massachusetts.
State of Massachusetts Interesting Facts
- On display at the Children's Museum in Boston is a milk bottle so big that, if it were real, it could hold 50,000 gallons of milk.
- With just 2.2 divorces per 1,000 people, the state boasts the lowest divorce rate in the country.
- The Boston Cream Pie was invented in Boston and is also the state's official dessert.
- The popular vacation islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket were both created by glaciers during the last Ice Age.
- The U.S. Navy's oldest commissioned warship, The USS Constitution, is kept at the Charlestown Navy Yard in Boston.
- The federal government purchased both private land and state-owned land to create the Cape Cod National Seashore, a 40 mile stretch of unspoiled, natural beauty.
List of Massachusetts Firsts
- 1636 - Harvard became the first college in the U.S.
- 1852 - First compulsory school laws were passed (first public school opened)
- 1877 - First residential telephone line
- 1895 - First public beach to open was Revere Beach
- 1897 - First subway system in the U.S.
- 1903- First state (with Missouri) to issue driver's licenses
- 1925 - First Howard Johnson's Restaurant opened
- 1950 - First Dunkin Donuts opened its doors
State of Massachusetts Historical Facts
- In 1620 the Pilgrims landed in Plymouth Massachusetts and set up a settlement there.
- The Salem witch trials of 1692 were an infamous series of trials that took place as an attempt to convict those believed to have practiced witchcraft in Colonial Massachusetts. Some accused died in prison while twenty were found guilty and executed.
- Numerous famous events that led up to the American Revolution occurred in this state including the Boston Tea Party, and the Boston Massacre.
- The first military engagements of the American Revolution, the Battles of Lexington and Concord, were in Massachusetts.
- Four U.S. presidents were born in MA; they are John Adams, John Quincy Adams, John Fitzgerald Kennedy, and George Herbert Walker Bush. They range from the second president to the 41st.
- In 1716, Boston Harbor became home to the first American lighthouse.