10 Quirky Facts About Idaho

The origin of the state's name is a mystery. Originally proposed for the Colorado Territory by industrialist George Willing, the name Idaho was said to be derived from the Shoshone Indian term meaning "gem of the mountains". After it was chosen a curious senator did some investigating and figured out it was a made up word meaning absolutely nothing. The territory was then renamed Colorado. A year later Idaho was suggested again for another new mining territory in the northwest. Nobody did any fact checking this time and Idaho got its unique but mysterious name.

Baked, mashed, or fried we all know and love Idaho potatoes. But the state's spuds are actually russet potatoes. This kind was invented by Massachusetts botanist Luther Burbank as a solution to the Irish Potato Famine in the mid-19th century. Russets were made to resist the disease that had wiped out the crop in Ireland, but the spuds found their perfect growing home in the soil of Idaho and thus one of the most famous ad campaigns in American history began.

In 2004, the mayor of Wallace, Idaho—a town with a population under 800 people—declared the town as the 'Center Of The Universe', complete with a manhole cover painted to mark the site.

At around 7,900 feet, Idaho’s Hell’s Canyon is the deepest gorge in the United States, even deeper than the Grand Canyon.

Lewiston (where Samuel D. Hunter's play of the same name is set) is Idaho's only seaport and the the most inland seaport on the West Coast, located 465 river miles from the ocean. Lewiston sits at the confluence of the Clearwater River and the Snake River (a tributary of the Columbia River) in the northern panhandle of the state. Thanks to locks and dams on the Snake and Columbia, Lewiston is reachable by some ocean-going vessels.

It is against the law in Idaho for a man to give his sweetheart a box of candy weighing more than 50 pounds. It's illegal in the state to fish while sitting on the back of a camel or a giraffe. And in Pocatello, it’s against the law to be seen in person without a smile on your face (but the law’s not enforced). We're just as puzzled as you about these.

The Boise State University Broncos play on the world’s only blue football field, known as The Smurf Turf.

Idaho is home to the largest hops farm in the world, Elk Mountain Farms, which grows hops for parent company Anheuser-Busch on 1,800 acres of land. It's five o' clock somewhere, right?

Yes, it's a little ironic, but you know what they say, if you're going thru hell keep on going. In this case it's worth it because when you get to Heaven’s Gate Lookout, you can see four states at one time: Idaho, Washington, Montana and Oregon.

You've probably heard of a few people from Idaho and didn't even know it. Aaron Paul of 'Breaking Bad' fame was born and raised in Emmett, Idaho. Ernest Hemingway moved to Ketchum, Idaho in 1959 where he lived until his death. Hailey, Idaho is the birthplace of famed poet Ezra Pound. Olympic gold medal skier Picabo Street calls Triumph, Idaho home while Preston, Idaho has the unique distinction of being the 'flippin sweet' hometown of fictional character Napoleon Dynamite. We're. of course, partial to one Idaho native in particular: LEWISTON playwright and MacArthur Fellowship recipient Samuel D. Hunter who's from Moscow, Idaho.