Posted in Maine May 16, 2020 by

The Iconic Maine Whoopie Pie Didn’t Even Exist Until 1925

From summer versus winter to inland versus the coast, there’s a lot of things that Mainers just can’t agree on. But, one thing we call all get behind is a universal love of Maine’s most treasured dessert, the whoopie pie! While there’s been a bit of a debate around where the treat first originated, we believe its home is rightfully in Maine. Here’s even more about it!

There’s been some talk of the original whoopie pie originating among the Amish community in Pennsylvania.
ophile / Flickr
According to the story, Amish women used leftover cookie crumbs to create their own small pies. When their loved ones saw the pies, they would exclaim “Whoooppieee!” As a result, sometimes Pennsylvania believes this is their dessert.
shinyasuzuki / Flickr
But, we disagree and so does the Food Timeline Website. The organization has more than 2,300 books, tons of 20th century food brand brochures and lots of vintage magazines. Despite this collection, they have no documented proof that the recipe comes from Amish Pennsylvania.
Instead, the widely held belief is that the whoopie pie was invented in 1925 by Labadie's Bakery in Lewiston.
Tom Metivier / Google
The original Labadie’s burned down along with all their sales records, leaving no real way to prove this. But, at this point, it doesn’t matter. Mainers have claimed what is rightfully theirs, as evidenced by the creation of the Maine Whoopie Pie Festival.
Each summer in Dover-Foxcroft, the sweet festival celebrates the whoopie pie bringing together folks from all over who believe that a sweet treat is worth celebrating.
Maine Whoopie Pie Festival / Facebook
Attendance is nearly 10,000 each year and one festival even saw a 50-pound whoopie pie raffled off to a lucky winner!
While other states continue to make claims, Maine officially named the whoopie pie the state treat in 2011. Why not make it the official dessert?
stefanoodle / Flickr
That’s already been claimed by the blueberry pie and as most Mainers will agree, that would have been a tough competition! Today, Maine is still the only state with an official treat!
Labadie's Bakery / Facebook
The world's largest whoopie pie was created in 2011 in South Portland on March 26th, 2011.
woodwood / Flickr
At more than 1,000 pounds, it broke the previous 200-pound world record held in Pennsylvania.
seelensturm / Flickr
The Maine whoopie pie has a long history and we’re grateful to be responsible for one of the world’s best desserts!
cookbookqueen / Flickr

Now that you’ve got whoopie pies on the brain, how about actually eating some? As we all now know, Maine pretty much invented the whoopie pie and here are the 9 best places to try it!

Address: Labadie's Bakery, 161 Lincoln St, Lewiston, ME 04240, USA