Since 1969, we’ve believed that Virginia was the lovers’ state, thanks to a misleading tourism campaign. Turns out, we’ve been wrong all along.
In an attempt to determine the “sultriest state”, Mental Floss has looked at the data across six sexy categories — birth rate, marriage rate, wine sales, cut flower sales, bed and breakfasts, and Marvin Gaye listens — to see which state tops the lists.
(PHOTOS: Married for 50 Years: Love Ever After)
For the full effect of Mental Floss‘s findings, you really need to check out their great chart, but here are a few highlights:
The Most Baby-loving State: Utah has the highest birthrate, with 20.3 births per 1,000 people.
The Most Marriage-loving State: Nevada has the most marriages, with 40.9 unions per 1,000 people. (We wonder what percentage of those are in Vegas.)
The Most Wine-loving State: New Hampshire is apparently full of lushes, with 6.26 gallons of wine consumed per capita.
The Most Flower-loving State: Hawaii wins this category.
The Most Bed and Breakfast-loving State: Alaska has the most B&Bs in the country.
The Most Marvin Gaye-loving State: Nebraskans listen to the sexy crooner more than anyone else, according to Last.fm.
Overall Loviest State: Alaska is the true state state for lovers, with Virginia coming in at number 17. (For shame, Virginia!)