Is This Sweet Ball of Dough Maine’s Most Important Invention?

Maine is known for some very influential inventions over the years. Earmuffs, snowmobiles, the zig-zag stitch, the machine gun, and the sealed diving suit all have their origins here. However, these might play second fiddle to a sweet ball of dough that took the world by storm.

We Mainers love our treats, especially when they come from our great state. Whoopie Pies and Needhams get most of the headlines, but did you know the one and only doughnut hole also hails from Maine?

Ah yes, doughnut holes. The little clump of dough "allegedly" from the inside of a freshly made doughnut. Sometimes plain, sometimes sprinkled, sometimes glazed, and all-the-time delicious. And apparently 100% Maine.

According to roadsideamerica.com, the story begins in 1847 in the Midcoast town of Rockland. A 15-year-old sailor by the name of Hanson Crockett Gregory was tired of eating disgustingly undercooked "doughnuts" while working on the ship.

The problem with these doughnuts was the fact that the center would always be underdone, rendering it nearly inedible. So as the story goes, Hanson got this wild idea to do something nobody had ever thought to do before: cut out the middle.

All of a sudden, Hanson had created both the modern-day doughnut and doughy "hole", which the sailors would eat as well. Roadside America even points out that these new food innovations were so popular that Hanson's mom started selling them around town. Talk about that American entrepreneurial spirit.

Hanson's creation(s) can now be found in coffee shops, national chains, bakeries, and stores across the country and the world. In fact, there's a good chance you had one this morning for breakfast.

While this story doesn't get a ton of publicity, it didn't stop the town of Rockport from forever immortalizing Hanson and his significant contribution to Americana. In 1947, the town erected a monument in Hanson's memory of his amazing creation that occurred 100 years before.

America thanks you, Hanson. Your creation has made the world a better and much sweeter place.