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October 16, 2023
State pins are a way to show how proud you are of where you live. State pins are collectible. Whether you have amazing scenery, the coolest city life, or a winning sports team, you’ve probably found at least one reason to be proud of your home state. So why not add another? Here are some reasons you might not have thought of:
Alabama: Huntsville, AL is known as the rocket capital of the world, and for good reason. The Marshall Center located there developed the Saturn V rocket and headed up other space projects like the Hubble Space Telescope.
Alaska: Alaska’s oil pipeline is one of the longest in the world. The oil from there accounts for 25% of the oil produced in America.
Arizona: Grand Canyon National Park is one of the most visited National Parks in the United States. In 2015 it had over 5.5 million visitors!
Arkansas: Sam Walton opened the first Walmart in 1962 in Rogers, AR. Today Walmart is a global retail leader. Their headquarters are located in Bentonville, AR
California: Hyperion, a 379 feet tall redwood, is currently the tallest tree in the world. Located somewhere in the Redwood National Forest it’s so tall that you can’t fit the entire tree in one picture.
Colorado: Although many claim to have created the first cheeseburger, most people believe that Louis Ballast of the Humpty Dumpty Drive-In in Denver, CO was the first to make the delicious sandwich in 1935.
Connecticut: There are many world-renowned chocolatiers in Connecticut. People hoping to visit 13 of them (and taste a few delectable treats!) can drive the Chocolate Trail throughout the state.
Delaware: Delaware was the first state in the Union to ratify the Constitution. It ratified on December 7, 1787.
Florida: As a solution to athletes losing electrolytes and fluids while competing, University of Florida physicians created a new drink that would replace key components for the players. And so, Gatorade, named for the Gators, was born.
Georgia: Xavier Roberts of Georgia created the Cabbage Patch Kid after being inspired by the German craft of needle molding. Little did he know that by the end of the 1980s over 65 million Cabbage Patch Kids would be sold.
Hawaii: Although there’s no monarchy in the United States, we do have a palace! The Iolani Palace in Honolulu is the only palace in America that was actually built for royalty. It housed the Hawaiian monarchy until they were overthrown in 1893.
Idaho: Idaho is home to the most useable hot springs of any state in the US. There are 130 hot springs in all.
Illinois: Chicago was home to the first skyscraper in the world. The Home Insurance Building was 10 stories high—a very impressive size at the time!
Indiana: On May 4, 1878 the first National Association game was played between the Cleveland Forest Cities and Ft. Wayne Kekiongas. Luckily for Indiana, Ft. Wayne won!
Iowa: The Iowa 80 is the world’s largest truck stop. It’s at Exit 284 on I-80.
Kansas: The Kansas Cosmosphere houses over 13,000 space artifacts. That is the largest combined collection of US and Russian space memorabilia in the world.
Kentucky: The Mammoth Cave in Kentucky is the longest cave system in the world. It has 405 miles of surveyed passageways.
Louisiana: The lake Ponchartrain Causeway in Louisiana is the longest continuous bridge over water in the world. It’s so long that you can’t see land for more than eight miles when in the center.
Maine: The headquarters of mapmakers DeLorme in Yarmouth is home to the world’s largest rotating globe. The globe is named Eartha.
Maryland: Jacob Fussell, Baltimore dairy farmer, established himself as the Father of Ice Cream when he opened the first ice cream factory in 1851. Since ice cream was a pricey indulgence at the time Fussell became the first to mass-produce it and sell it at affordable prices.
Massachusetts: Ruth Wakefield baked the first chocolate chip cookie at her Toll House Restaurant in Whitman, Massachusetts. The state was so grateful they declared the chocolate chip cookie to be the state cookie.
Michigan: Colon, MI is known as the magic capital of the world. There are a number of famous magicians buried there, and it’s home to the world’s largest magic supply manufacturer.
Minnesota: The Water Park of America in Bloomington, MN has the tallest indoor water slide in the world. The slide is 10 stories tall.
Mississippi: Although Coca Cola was created in Atlanta, GA, it was only sold as a fountain drink. But in 1894 Joseph Biedenharn decided to bottle the drink, making it available to those who couldn’t make it in to town.
Missouri: Inspired by the popularity of postcards, Joyce Clyde Hall created Hallmark in Kansas City, MO. Today Hallmark is a nearly $4 billion greeting card business.
Montana: In January 1887 Fort Keogh, MT recorded the world’s largest snowflake. The massive flake was 15 inches in diameter!
Nebraska: Nebraska native Edwin E. Perkins invented Kool-Aid in 1927. His hometown, Hastings, now holds a Kool-Aid Days Festival each year.
Nevada: It was the Nevada tailor Jacob Davis who first patented the riveted pants that would eventually become blue jeans.
New Hampshire: Ruggles Mine in New Hampshire will let you mine your own gemstones. It’s also the oldest mica, feldspar, beryl, and uranium mine in the US.
New Jersey: Bernardsville, NJ native, Henry Rushmann, invented our contemporary glitter in 1934. His company still exists today. Unfortunately he didn’t invent a way to clean it up…
New Mexico: The Carizoz Maripas is a lava flow that runs 44 miles through the Tularosa Basin. But one of the coolest things about the flow is that it can be seen from space.
New York: Home to the second-largest private residence in the US. The Oheka Castle was built by Otto Hermann Kahn and sits on 443 acres.
North Carolina: On July 13, 1937 Vernon Rudolph opened the first Krispy Kreme doughnut factory in Winston-Salem, NC. Because the smell attracted so many people, he ended up cutting a wall in the building and selling the doughnuts through it!
North Dakota: Rugby, ND claims to be the geographical center of North America. They even have a 21-foot high monument declaring it.
Ohio: Cedar Point in Sandusky, OH is known as the rollercoaster capital of the world. The amusement park has a world-record 71 rides, 16 of which are rollercoasters.
Oklahoma: Oklahoma is home to the world’s largest praying hands. The 60- feet tall statue is at the entrance to Oral Roberts University in Tulsa.
Oregon: Crater Lake is the deepest lake in America. Formed from a volcanic basin, the lake is 1,943 feet deep.
Pennsylvania: In 1946 the University of Pennsylvania created the world’s first completely electric computer. Named ENIAC, it was often nicknamed “Giant Brain”.
Rhode Island: Newport, RI became home to the country’s first circus performance when they hosted the circus in 1774.
South Carolina: Charleston, SC is the only US city to have a popular dance named after it. The Charleston dance took off in the ‘20s during the time of the flappers.
South Dakota: Mitchell, SD is home to the world’s only Corn Palace. The large building is covered completely with corn, grain, and grasses each spring.
Tennessee: Reelfoot Lake in Tennessee is touted as the “Turtle Capital of the World”. There are thousands of turtles, of various species, that live in the state park.
Texas: Austin, TX is known as the Live Music Capital of the World. With almost 200 live music venues, it has more live music venues per capita than anywhere else in the nation.
Utah: Utah has been featured in over 900 films. In fact, Kanab, Utah has even been called ‘Little Hollywood’.
Vermont: Middlebury College in Vermont created a “muggle” version of Quiditch, the fantasy sport from Harry Potter. Nowadays there’s even an official sports association and World Cup for the game.
Virginia: The College of William & Mary in Virginia is home of the first fraternity. Five students founded Phi Beta Kappa there in 1776.
Washington: Seattle, WA use to have a real-life superhero team fighting crime around the city. The Rain City Superhero Movement was comprised of costumed former MMA fighters, police, military, and medical professionals. When not out protecting the city they gave anti-bullying talks ot local schools.
West Virginia: In 1912 West Virginia became the first state to designate the Mother’s Day holiday.
Wisconsin: Although the Barbie doll was not created in Wisconsin, the character Barbie is. Barbie, or Barbara Millicent Roberts, is supposedly from the fictional town of Willows, Wisconsin.
Wyoming: Wyoming is home to the first official national park. Yellowstone National Park was created in 1872.
Now that you’ve found a good reason to be proud of your home state, why not get some state pins from PinProsPlus to show your pride? Whether it shows the state flag, your favorite landmark, or even some of the scenery, you might need these custom pins to help you convince your friends that your home state is the best!
