Massachusetts
From Wikipedia encyclopedia.
Admission to Union February 6, 1788
6th State
Bird: Black-Capped Chickadee
Flower: Mayflower (trailing arbutus)
May 1, 1918: Put to the children of Massachusetts, the mayflower received more than twice as many votes as the water lily.
Massachusetts has been significant throughout American history. Plymouth was the second permanent English settlement in North America. Many of Massachusetts' towns were founded by colonists from England in the 1620s and 1630s. During the eighteenth century, Boston became known as the "Cradle of Liberty" for the foment there which led to the American Revolution and the independence of the United States from Great Britain. In the nineteenth century, Massachusetts was the first U.S. state to abolish slavery. Also, it was a center of the temperance movement and abolitionist activity preceding the American Civil War. In 2004, Massachusetts became the first U.S. state to legally recognize same-sex marriage. The state has contributed many prominent politicians to national service, including the Adams family and, more recently, the Kennedy family.