1. On April 2, 1876, Alexander Graham Bell conducted the world's first long-distance telephone conversation between Boston and Paris. Bell had recently moved to Maine and conducted many of his experiments there.

2. In 1833, the first issue of the Portland Transcript newspaper was published in Portland, Maine. It became a popular weekly paper and was known for its political commentary and literary reviews.

3. On April 2, 1865, Confederate General Robert E. Lee sent a letter to Union General Ulysses S. Grant requesting a meeting to discuss surrender terms. This eventually led to the end of the Civil War.

4. In 1952, the Songo River Queen II, a paddlewheel boat, launched its first cruise on Sebago Lake in Maine. It has been a popular tourist attraction and event venue ever since.

5. On April 2, 1976, after a long and contentious battle, the Maine legislature passed the groundbreaking Maine Human Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination based on race, sex, religion, national origin, age, and physical or mental disability in areas such as employment, housing, and public accommodations.