The US state Vermont has many symbols, some officially codified by legislation (mineral, flower, bird, beverage, pie, mammal, song, insect, tree, and fish), and several unofficial symbols. These unofficial symbols of Vermont include:

maple syrup Maple syrup is a syrup made from the sap of maple trees. In cold climates, these trees store starch in their trunks and roots before winter; the starch is then converted to sugar that rises in the sap in late winter and early spring. Maple tree ...

; the

eastern white pine ''Pinus strobus'', commonly called the eastern white pine, northern white pine, white pine, Weymouth pine (British), and soft pine is a large pine native to eastern North America. It occurs from Newfoundland, Canada west through the Great Lakes ...

(''Pinus strobus''), which was worn as a badge by the

Green Mountain Boys The Green Mountain Boys were a militia organization first established in 1770 in the territory between the British provinces of New York and New Hampshire, known as the New Hampshire Grants and later in 1777 as the Vermont Republic (which late ...

and appears on the Vermont coat of arms and

Vermont Military Crest The Vermont Military Crest was first used in the coats of arms of units of Vermont state regiments, and later by the Vermont National Guard, as granted by the precursor organizations of what is now the United States Army Institute of Heraldry. The ...

; and the white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), which also appears on the state's coat of arms. The number 14 figures prominentally in the state's history and lore. The

Vermont Republic The Vermont Republic ( French: ''République du Vermont''), officially known at the time as the State of Vermont ( French: ''État du Vermont''), was an independent state in New England that existed from January 15, 1777, to March 4, 1791. The ...

lasted for fourteen years, the pine tree on the

Great Seal of Vermont The Great Seal of the State of Vermont is the official seal of the U.S. state of Vermont, used to emboss and authenticate official documents. It was designed by Ira Allen, brother of Ethan Allen and one of the state's founders. Great Seal The ...

has fourteen branches, the state has fourteen counties, and Vermont was the fourteenth state in the Union. Vermont's

state song Forty-eight of the fifty U.S. states have one or more state songs, a type of regional anthem, which are selected by each state legislature as a symbol (or emblem) of that particular U.S. state. Some U.S. states have more than one official state ...

is "

These Green Mountains "These Green Mountains" is the official state song of Vermont. History In 1998, the Vermont Legislature resolved to have the Vermont Arts Council establish a committee to find and recommend a new state song to replace "Hail to Vermont!". The ...

", composed by Diane Martin and arranged by Rita Buglass Gluck. This song was officially designated as the state song on 22 May 2000. This song replaced " Hail to Vermont!", which was written by Josephine Hovey-Perry and made the state song in 1938. However, "Moonlight in Vermont" remains an unofficial favorite. The

state bird A state bird is the insignia of a nation or a state (sub-national entity). For lists of these animals, see: * List of national birds, national birds on country level * List of Australian bird emblems, for the Australian states * List of Brazilian ...

is the hermit thrush (''Catharus guttatus''). This was adopted in 1941. The bird was only designated after debate in the legislature; though the hermit thrush is found in all of 14 counties and has a distinctive sweet call, it leaves the state during the winter for its yearly southward migration. Many legislators favored the

blue jay The blue jay (''Cyanocitta cristata'') is a passerine bird in the family Corvidae, native to eastern North America. It lives in most of the eastern and central United States; some eastern populations may be migratory. Resident populations are a ...

(''Cyanocitta cristata''). The red clover (''Trifolium pratense'') was designated as the

state flower This is a list of U.S. state, federal district, and territory flowers. See also *List of U.S. state trees * Lists of U.S. state insignia References External linksList of state flowers {{USStateLists * U.S. state flowers Flowers ...

by the Vermont General Assembly in 1895. The red clover is often seen in the countryside of Vermont hosting the

state insect State insects are designated by 48 individual states of the fifty United States. Some states have more than one designated insect, or have multiple categories (e.g., state insect and state butterfly, etc.). Iowa and Michigan are the two states with ...

– the western honey bee (''Apis mellifera''), designated by Act 124 of the 1978 biennial session of the Vermont General Assembly. A natural companion and frequent visitor to the state flower, the honey bee was chosen for its agricultural benefits, and for being a "social" insect and representing the unity side of Vermont's state motto

Freedom and Unity "Freedom and Unity" is the official motto of the U.S. state of Vermont. The motto was first adopted in 1788 for use on the Great Seal of the Vermont Republic. Ira Allen designed the Vermont seal and is often credited as its author. Allen's 1798 ...

. Vermont named two official

state fish This is a list of official and unofficial U.S. state fishes: __TOC__ Table See also * Lists of U.S. state insignia * Lists of U.S. state animals Notes References Netstate.com state fish tables External links {{state insignia .State ...

Joint Resolution In the United States Congress, a joint resolution is a legislative measure that requires passage by the Senate and the House of Representatives and is presented to the President for their approval or disapproval. Generally, there is no legal differ ...

of the Vermont General Assembly in 1978 and statute in 2011: the cold-water fish, the

brook trout The brook trout (''Salvelinus fontinalis'') is a species of freshwater fish in the char genus ''Salvelinus'' of the salmon family Salmonidae. It is native to Eastern North America in the United States and Canada, but has been introduced elsewhere ...

(''Salvelinus fontinalis'') and the warm-water fish, the walleye (''Sander vitreous vitreous''). The

state tree This is a list of U.S. state, federal district, and territory trees, including official trees of the following of the states, of the federal district, and of the territories. Table See also * List of U.S. state, district, and territorial insign ...

is the sugar maple (''Acer saccharum''), effective in 1949. The sugar maple is the source of

, Vermont's most famous export. The

Morgan horse The Morgan horse is one of the earliest horse breeds developed in the United States. Tracing back to the foundation sire Figure, later named Justin Morgan after his best-known owner, Morgans served many roles in 19th-century American histo ...

became the

state mammal This is a list of animals that represent List of first-level administrative country subdivisions, first-level administrative country subdivisions. List by country Australia Brazil * See also List of Brazilian state birds Canada People's ...

in 1961. The Morgan horse is a

horse breed A horse breed is a selectively bred population of domesticated horses, often with pedigrees recorded in a breed registry. However, the term is sometimes used in a broader sense to define landrace animals of a common phenotype located within a lim ...

originally from Vermont, and named for Justin Morgan. The state maintains standards and develops bloodlines for the breed at the University of Vermont's Morgan Horse Farm at Weybridge. The state amphibian, adopted by the legislature in 1997, is the northern leopard frog (''Rana pipiens''). Vermont has also designated an official state mineral ( talc),

pie A pie is a baked dish which is usually made of a pastry dough casing that contains a filling of various sweet or savoury ingredients. Sweet pies may be filled with fruit (as in an apple pie), nuts ( pecan pie), brown sugar ( sugar pie), swe ...

( apple pie), soil ("Tunbridge Soil Series"), beverage (milk),

gem A gemstone (also called a fine gem, jewel, precious stone, or semiprecious stone) is a piece of mineral crystal which, in cut and polished form, is used to make jewelry or other adornments. However, certain rocks (such as lapis lazuli, opal, a ...

(

grossular garnet Grossular is a calcium-aluminium species of the garnet group of minerals. It has the chemical formula of Ca3Al2(SiO4)3 but the calcium may, in part, be replaced by ferrous iron and the aluminium by ferric iron. The name grossular is derived from t ...

), and fossil (the beluga skeleton at the University of Vermont'
Perkins Geology Museum
. The

state reptile Twenty-eight U.S. states have named an official state reptile. As with other state symbols, states compare admirable aspects of the reptile and of the state, within designating statutes. Schoolchildren often start campaigns promoting their favo ...

is the

painted turtle The painted turtle (''Chrysemys picta'') is the most widespread native turtle of North America. It lives in slow-moving fresh waters, from southern Canada to northern Mexico, and from the Atlantic to the Pacific. They have been shown to prefer l ...

. The state rocks are granite, marble, and

slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...

. Vermont is distinct for being among only three U.S. states with both a state seal and a coat of arms. Vermont is the only U.S. state to have a heraldically correct blazon describing its coat of arms.

References

External links

The Department of Libraries web page on Vermont emblems, facts and figures
* ttps://legislature.vermont.gov/statutes/fullchapter/01/011 The Vermont Statutes Online, Title 1: General Provisions, Chapter 11: Flag, Insignia, Seal, Etc. {{state symbols, collapsed State symbols Vermont