The hubby & I just had a nice bowl of popcorn for a snack this evening. So what, you say! Well, immediately after eating the 
popcorn, I headed for the kitchen cabinet for a toothpick and decided to write this post. What does a toothpick have to do with Maine? Once upon a time 90% of toothpicks were made right here in the great state of Maine!
According to an article written in “The Manufacturer and Builder Volume 0019 Issue 12 (December 1887)”, it all started right in Strong, Maine! The article states the following:
“The wooden toothpick is no small thing in the industrial activity of Maine. The original wooden toothpick man is said to be Charles Forster, of Strong, Franklin county. He has done more for the teeth of America, it is said, than any other man under the sweep of her eagle’s wings. He whittled the original box of Yankee toothpicks, but he copied the art from natives of South America, where he was a merchant years ago. The South Americans picked their teeth with whittled out splints. Forster sent a sample box to his wife in the United States as a curiosity. A hotel man got hold of them and sent to Forster for a box, and the latter whittled them out and filled the order. More orders came, and he began to get busy. Pretty soon he had natives whittling out toothpicks for hotels all over the United States. He moved home and opened up a branch office, and in 1860 began making his toothpicks by machinery. The first year he sold 65 cases, containing 250,000 toothpicks each. Now he sells 30,000 cases a year. He is thought to make three-fifths of all the wooden toothpicks made in the country.” There is a bit more to the article and if you are interested, you can click HERE to read it.
Forster Manufacturing Company produced toothpicks in Strong until 2003, when the mill was closed. Most toothpicks are made in China these days.
While I was researching for this article, I discovered that toothpicks are not only used for picking your teeth. Folks use toothpicks to create art and crafts. Those of you that know me, know that I wouldn’t have the patience to be one of those crafty folks. 
Well, there you have it. Just think, this post started with an evening snack!
Hello,
I was wondering if you know of anybody that carries the Forster toothpicks anymore. I’m talkng about the one with the square center/round tips. The last time I bought these I noticed that they were getting a little hard to find, and told myself that in the meantime, I need to find a place & buy 10 boxes or so. You know how these days, if something isn’t flying off of the shelf, they yank it out and put something else in it’s place. So….if you do like a certain product, you need to stock-up on it, as it may not be there when you come back for more. Any and all help would be greatly appreciated. By the way, my web search keeps running around in circles & into dead ends.
Thank You in Advance for Your Anticipated Cooperation, Jeff Kroeger