Weirdest Laws In Maine's State History

April 2024 ยท 2 minute read

It's currently illegal in the town of Wells in Maine to post advertising signs in the local cemetery. No signs of any type can be placed in the cemetery unless they're historical markers or necessary for the operation of the cemetery itself (via Town of Wells). 

In addition, it's also illegal to ride a snowmobile or an all-terrain vehicle in the cemetery area, as well as removing or disinterring a "dead human body or remains from a gravesite, whether marked or unmarked." According to Forbes, Maine was one of five states to pass anti-grave robbing laws in the 19th century (New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Ohio were the other four) to stop people from stealing corpses, so this might be a modern-day version of this law. 

Just in case you were wondering, it's also illegal to do gravestone rubbings in Maine. This means you cannot bring paper and crayons or pencils with you to a cemetery to try to get a tombstone impression to take home with you, according to the Town of Wells. 

If you're up for making friends with wildlife, this isn't a great destination for you either. The town of Wells also has a very specific law about touching, feeding, or attracting deer. In fact, their law is very specific about not leaving "shelled corn, shucked or unshucked corn, wheat or other grains, bread, salt or any other feed or nutritive substances" in any place with the intention of attracting deer (per Town of Wells).

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