Edmund Muskie is known as one of the most famous politicians of all time. He was a Representative to the Maine Legislature, he was governor of Maine, he was a longtime Senator, he ran for Vice President and almost ran for President and was Secretary of State. He did a lot for his state of Maine.

Edmund was born in Rumford, Maine in 1914. He was the second of six children. His father Stephen came to Maine from Poland. The Muskies came to Maine in 1911 about three years before Edmund was born. Edmund was one of the few people of Polish descent in the town. He was also Catholic and since most people in town weren't that made him different from other children in town. Edmund was a shy child and he was teased quite a bit when he was growing up. He was a very smart boy however and a good athlete, so by the time he was in high school he was much more popular. In fact he was the number one student in his senior class.

He went to Bates College in Lewiston. He worked his way through college by working each summer. He did very well and went to law school after he finished college. When he was finished, he went to Waterville to become a lawyer. During World War II he was in the Navy. He came back to Waterville after the war and decided to run for the Maine Legislature. He was a Democrat and Maine was mostly Republican so not many people expected him to win. He won and served three two year terms.

In 1948 he married a Waterville woman. He also ran for governor of Maine. He won even though people didn't think he had a chance. He won a second four year term and did a good job for the state. In 1958 he ran for the United States Senate and again he won. He served there for three six year terms. He worked for many things, but worked extra hard on things that have to do with the environment. He worked for the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act. He also worked to start the Environmental Protection Agency.

In 1968 he was selected to run for Vice President of the United States. He did not win. A few years later, he tried to run for President and again he lost. He returned to the Senate until 1980 when he became the Secretary of State under President Jimmy Carter. After that he returned to Maine and went back into law. From time to time he was called on to do other important jobs in Washington.

Adams, Herb and Verde, Tom. Maine's Claim to Fame. Augusta: Maine Department of Education, date on publication not available.