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In 1993 the Legislature
determined that the Navy Bean
had been the original BEAN in
the famous venerable Boston Baked Bean recipe. |
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A fifth-grade class on the
North Shore adopted the cause of making the Cranberry
(Vaccinium macrocarpon) the official BERRY
of the state. Their two years of lobbying,
petitions, and hearings were finally rewarded in
July of 1994. |
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Cranberry Juice
was named the state BEVERAGE on
May 4, 1970, as a tribute to the great
Massachusetts cranberry industry. |
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The Black-Tipped
Chickadee (Penthestes atricapillus)
was adopted as the state BIRD
was the Legislature on March 21, 1941. |
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Granite was
made the BUILDING ROCK of the
state in 1983. Granite from Quincy was used to
build the Washington Monument. |
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The Tabby was
made the official state CAT in
1988, in response to the wishes of the
schoolchildren of Massachusetts. |
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The song The Road
to Boston, whose composer is
unknown, has been the official CEREMONIAL
MARCH of the Commonwealth since 1985. |
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On December 18, 1990, the
Legislature decided that the CITIZENRY of
Massachusetts would be designated as Bay Staters. |
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The Chocolate Chip
Cookie was designated the official COOKIE
of the Commonwealth on July 9, 1997. A third
grade class from Somerset proposed the bill to
honor the cookie invented in 1930 at the Toll
House Restaurant in Whitman. |
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The Boston Creme Pie,
created in the 19th century, was chosen as the
official state DESSERT on
December 12, 1996. A civics class from Norton
High School sponsored the bill. The pie beat out
other candidates, including the toll house cookie
and Indian pudding. |
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The state DOG
is the Boston Terrier, the first
purebred dog developed in America (1869). It was
recognized by the Legislature in 1979. |
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Dighton Rock
was made the official state EXPLORER ROCK
in 1983. |
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The state FISH
is the Cod (Gadus morrhua).
Indians and Pilgrims used cod as common food and
as fertilizer. A sculpture of a cod hangs in the
House of Representatives as a tribute to this
useful aquatic creature. |
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The FLAG is
white, bearing on both sides a representation of
the coat of arms. It was adopted in its final
form in 1971; before that, the obverse side
depicted a pine tree. |
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The Mayflower
(Epigaea regens) was adopted as the
official state FLOWER by the
General Court on May 1, 1918. |
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Square Dancing
became the official FOLK DANCE
on April 8, 1990. |
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Johnny Appleseed
was designated the official FOLK HERO of
the Commonwealth on August 2, 1996. |
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Massachusetts,
words and music by Arlo Guthrie, was adopted as
the FOLK SONG of the
Commonwealth by the Legislature in July 1981. |
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The Dinosaur Tracks
found in Granby were made the official state FOSSIL
in 1980. The prints were made by a theropod
dinosaur over 200 million years ago. |
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The Wild Turkey
(Meleagris gallopavo), which was eaten
at the first Thanksgiving, was designated the
state GAME BIRD on December 23,
1991. |
| |
Rhodonite is
the most beautiful gem material found in the
state. It varies in hue from a light pink to a
deep rose or reddish pink and is associated with
black manganese. It was adopted in as the state GEM
in 1979. |
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The Great State of
Massachusetts, words by George A.
Wells, music by J. Earl Bley, was designated the
state GLEE CLUB SONG on November
24, 1997. |
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The official state HEROINE
is Deborah Samson, who fought in
the Revolutionary War under the name of Robert
Shurtleff. Her masquerade remained undiscovered
until she was wounded in battle. The Legislature
recognized her heroism on July 22, 1983. |
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Although the Pilgrims did not
actually land on Plymouth Rock,
its historical significance led the Legislature
to commemorate it as the state HISTORICAL
ROCK in 1983. |
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The state INSECT
is the Ladybug. The most common
in the state is the two-spotted lady beetle (Adalia
bipunctata). The idea originated with a
second-grade class in the town of Franklin, in
1974. |
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The Morgan
was designated as the state HORSE
in 1970. The breed is descended from a single bay
born in West Springfield in 1789, and was named
for the original breeder, Justin Morgan. |
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The Right Whale
(Eubabalena glacialis) was so called
because the flourishing whale industry in
Massachusetts found the cetacean the
"right" whale to hunt, especially
before 1750. The Legislature designated it as the
state MARINE MAMMAL in March
1980. |
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The finest quality Babingtonite
in America is found in Massachusetts. In fact,
this state is one of the few locations in the
world where this usually jet black material with
a brilliant submetallic luster is found. The
Legislature designated it as the state MINERAL
in April of 1971. |
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The official state MOTTO
is "Ense petit placidam
sub libertate quietem," which
means "By the sword we seek peace, but peace
only under liberty." The motto is the second
of two lines written about 1659 by Algernon
Sydney, an English soldier and politician, in the
Book of Mottoes in the King's Library in
Copenhagen, Denmark. It was adopted in 1775 by
the Provincial Congress. |
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The schoolchildren of
Massachusetts petitioned for the Corn
Muffin, a staple of New England cooking,
to be the official MUFFIN, and
the Legislature made it official in 1986. |
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Massachusetts
(Because of You Our Land is Free),
words and music by Bernard Davidson, was made the
official PATRIOTIC SONG on
October 23, 1989. |
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In 1981, the General Court
designated "Blue Hills of
Massachusetts" by Katherine E.
Mullen of Barre as the official state POEM. |
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On October 1, 1998, Say
Hello to Someone from Massachusetts,
by Lenny Gomulka, was approved as the official POLKA
of the Commonwealth. |
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The Roxbury
Puddingstone became the state ROCK
in 1983. |
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The STATE SEAL,
as adopted by Governor John Hancock and the
Council on December 13, 1870, and made official
by the General Court on June 4, 1885, bears a
representation of the arms of the Commonwealth
encircled within the words "Sigillum
Reipublicae Massachusettensis" (Seal of the
Republic of Massachusetts). The final form of the
seal was determined by a statewide contest. The
arms consist of "a shield having a blue
field or surface with an Indian thereon, dressed
in a shirt and moccasins, holding in his right
hand a bow, and in his left hand an arrow, point
downward, all of gold; and, in the upper corner
of the field, above his right arm, a silver star
with five points. The crest is a wreath of blue
and gold, on which in gold is a right arm, bent
at the elbow, clothed and ruffled, with the hand
grasping a broadsword." The Indian model
used was of the Algonquin nation; the arrow
points downward to indicate that the Indian is
peaceful; and the star indicates that
Massachusetts was one of the original thirteen
states.
|
| |
The New England
Neptune (Neptuna lyrata decemcostata)
was made the state SHELL in
1987. |
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The Paxton Soil Series
was adopted as the SOIL of the
Commonwealth by the Legislature on July 10, 1990. |
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All Hail to
Massachusetts, words and music by
Arthur Marsh, was designated the official SONG
of the Commonwealth by an act of the Legislature
in July of 1981. |
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The American Elm
(Ulmus americana) was adopted as the
official state TREE on March 21,
1941, to commemorate the fact that General George
Washington took command of the Continental Army
beneath one on Cambridge Common in 1775. |
