Idaho Fun Facts
Information About Idaho, Idaho Geography, and Idaho Schools

The capital and largest city in Idaho is Boise. Boise is also the largest city in Idaho. The abbreviation is ID, and Idaho residents are known as "Idahoans." The world's very first ski lift was installed in Idaho.

The unofficial nickname of Idaho is the Gem State. It is called this because almost every type of gem has been found in Idaho. "Here We Have Idaho" is the state song. Idaho was the name of a steamship which traveled the Columbia River. When gold was discovered in the Clearwater River in 1860, diggings were called the Idaho mines. " Idaho" is a coined word, and is not a derivation of an Indian phrase "E Dah Hoe (How)" supposedly meaning "gem of the mountains."

The Mountain Bluebird is Idaho's state bird. The Syringa is the state flower and the Western White Pine is the state tree.

Idaho borders Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. There are no major bodies of water surrounding or near Idaho.

Idaho is known for its agriculture of potatoes, wheat, sugar beets, and barley.

There were 245,252 K12 students in the Idaho public schools in 1996. Out of those students 18,805 were first grade students. There were also 13,078 K12 public school teachers in the Idaho public schools system. There were a total of 629 Idaho public schools in 1996. (Source: IES National Center for Education Statistics)