Discover the Top 15 Unbelievable Fun Facts About Massachusetts: Uncover Hidden Gems, Amazing History, and More!

1. Witch Timeout Sanctuary

When witches need a time-out, they head to Massachusetts: The Salem Witch Trials Memorial, designed by Maggie Smith and James Cutler and dedicated by Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel in 1992, serves as a place to honor the courage shown in 1692 and reflect on tolerance. Bonus spooky fact: the adjacent Old Burying Point Cemetery hosts the eternal slumbers of witch trials magistrates John Hathorne and Bartholomew Gedney.
Source => salemwitchmuseum.com

2. Clamtastic Massachusetts

In Massachusetts, when life gives you clams, you make clam-tastic dishes: From J.T. Farnhams in Essex to Woodman's of Essex and The Clam Box of Ipswich, Massachusetts boasts some of the most scrumptious clam shacks for seafood fanatics. Whether you're in the mood for fried clams, lobster rolls, or steamed clams, don't miss out on Blue Collar Lobster in Gloucester and Roy Moore Lobster Company in Rockport for truly affordable lobster roll indulgence.
Source => familytravelmagazine.com

Did you know NYC has about 4 million pigeons with incredible homing and distance-trekking skills? But beware, they might also carry diseases! Discover more fun facts about the Big Apple.

=> Fun Facts about New-York

3. Babe Ruth's Ghostly Curse

In Massachusetts, they say Ruth gave up baseball for ghost-hunting by placing a legendary curse on his former team: Boston's Red Sox went 86 years without a World Series win after selling Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees in 1920, leading to the famed "Curse of the Bambino." But fear not, Red Sox nation, for the curse was lifted in 2004 when the team finally clutched the championship trophy once more!
Source => en.wikipedia.org

4. Jumbo the Unstoppable Elephant

In the land of misfortune where elephants fear to tread, one jumbo-sized animal laughed in the face of superstition and train tracks: Jumbo the elephant, a towering 12-foot-tall and six-ton mascot for Tufts University, was once owned by P.T. Barnum and gallivanted with the Barnum & Bailey Circus until his untimely locomotive-induced demise in 1885; he now lives on in tail-tugging, penny-in-trunk-stuffing good luck rituals for Tufts scholars.
Source => tuftsjournal.tufts.edu

5. Snapchat-like Language Extinction

Leptospirosis and Loathing in Massachusetts: In an ironic twist of fate, the indigenous Massachusett tribe, one of the first to make contact with Europeans, were hit with a 90% mortality rate from diseases they brought over, causing their language to eventually fade like a bad Snapchat filter by the early 19th century.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

6. Massachusett's Crazy Craft Beer Scene

In Massachusetts, the beer gods must be crazy-- crazy about craft beer, that is! Hops are hopping and grains are grinning as this small state skillfully prepares an unforgettable liquid journey: The craft beer scene in Massachusetts is a force to be reckoned with, boasting 167 breweries and generating a frothy economic impact of $931 million in 2021, all while producing 204,052 barrels of the sudsy stuff per year.
Source => brewersassociation.org

7. Slush King's Frosty Reign

Once upon a frosty summer's day when the delectable cravings of a thousand New Englanders came a-calling, a royal decree was born: Slush King, the monarch of chilly refreshments, roamed the vast plains of Massachusetts to spread his icy joy: Established in 1965, Slush King continues to charm the palates of customers with its delightful homemade slush, gelato, and mouthwatering all-natural soft serve ice cream, all the while keeping safety in mind with outdoor ordering and social distancing measures for his loyal subjects.
Source => slushking.com

8. Bird Coin Crisis of 1650s

When the Massachusetts Bay Colony birds ran out of worms, they turned to coin-chomping instead: In the 1650s, facing a money shortage, the colony established their own mint in Boston, producing Pine Tree Shillings. John Hull and Robert Sanderson began striking these silver coins around 1670, mysteriously using the date 1652—potentially to avoid issues with the monarchy. The mint's doors closed in 1682 under royal scrutiny, but not before their coins gained popularity across the Northeast.
Source => americanhistory.si.edu

9. Chocolate Chip Cookie Origins

Whoever said, "a moment on the lips, forever on the hips," probably didn't know about the cookies that have made us all dough-eyed: The holy grail of deliciousness - chocolate chip cookies - can trace their roots back to the Toll House Inn in Whitman, Massachusetts! Here's the scoop: These iconic cookies were whipped up by Ruth Wakefield in the 1930s, as a result of a scrumptious experiment involving a bar of Nestle semi-sweet chocolate and a butter drop cookie batter. While the exact date of this mouthwatering creation remains a mystery, Ruth's original recipe endures and continues to delight our taste buds, ingrained on each bag of Nestle chocolate chips. Hallelujah!
Source => newengland.com

10. Mayflower II Adventure

Ahoy there landlubbers, searching for the OG Plymouth Rockers? Look no further than their trusty vessel: In Plymouth, Massachusetts, you can tour the Mayflower II, a true-to-life replica of the ship that carried the Pilgrims to America in 1620, offering an immersive experience of their historic journey and settlement.
Source => history.com

11. Star-studded Boston Latin School

Who needs a diploma when you're a genius, right? The Founding Fathers of the United States seemed to agree, as great minds flocked to a certain school in America's early days: Boston Latin School, established in 1635, holds the honor of being the oldest public school in the country and proudly lists five signers of the Declaration of Independence among its alumni – Benjamin Franklin, Samuel Adams, John Hancock, Robert Treat Paine, and William Hooper. Ironically, Franklin, one of America's brightest minds, didn't stick around long enough to graduate. The school now welcomes both boys and girls and calls Boston's Fenway neighborhood home.
Source => thefreedomtrail.org

12. Birth of the Computer Mouse

Before computers caught a "mouse" infestation and "clicked" their way into our hearts: Massachusetts hosted the revolutionary "Mother of All Demos" in 1968, where Douglas Engelbart unveiled the computer mouse, cross-file editing, and groupware, paving the way for the interactive and collaborative computing we know and love today.
Source => lemelson.mit.edu

13. Triple-Decker Housing Galore

In a city where three's a party and four's a crowd, the vibrant Boston scene has them stacked up to the rafters: At least 15,000 triple-decker houses grace the area, built in the late 19th century to provide safer, well-lit, and airy homes for waves of immigrants coming mainly from Ireland and southern Europe, known for their flat roofs, front and back porches, and windows reaching all four corners. Amidst condo conversions and modern updates, these towering triplets still stand proud, acting as a testament to history and Boston's commitment to preserving its unique heritage.
Source => boston.curbed.com

14. The Magical Yiddish Poet

Once upon a Yiddish prose: Massachusetts was not only home to some of the greatest American writers, but also the lesser-known Jacob Glatstein, a Yiddish poet whose works were as enchanting as a Hogwarts spell. The Glatstein Chronicles, his enticing autobiographical novellas, managed to swim under the mainstream-literature radar despite capturing the essence of his journey - much like a literary Platform 9¾.
Source => yiddishbookcenter.org

15. Cod Fishing Frenzy

Ever fished for compliments and ended up hooking a peninsula? Well, that's just what happened when an English explorer found himself swimming in cod on the shores of Massachusetts: Cape Cod, contrary to its name, is a 65-mile hooked peninsula jutting into the Atlantic Ocean, which was named for its abundant cod population. These once prosperous fishy fellows played a huge role in New England's economy before overfishing reeled in their numbers. But fear not, landlubbers — Cape Cod's natural wonders and historic nooks keep this retired fishing pier an alluring vacation spot.
Source => coastalneighborhoods.com