Pine Cone & Pine Tassel
In advance of the World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893 in Chicago, states were invited to select a flower to represent them in a “National Garland of Flowers” that would be exhibited during the world’s fair. In Maine, residents were invited to vote on three candidates: goldenrod, apple blossom, and the white pine cone and tassel. The white pine cone and tassel won overwhelmingly.
That the white pine cone and tassel was selected to be the state’s official floral emblem is no surprise given the eastern white pine tree’s economic and cultural importance to Maine. In a state that also takes some pride in its independence, it’s also not a surprise that the official floral emblem isn’t actually a flower.
Eastern white pines are botanically classified as gymnosperms, meaning they reproduce not with flowers but by producing cones that carry seeds. Maine adopted the pine cone and tassel as the state floral emblem in 1895. Today, it remains the only state with an official floral emblem that is not a flower.
