50 Fun Facts About US State Flags

Which is the only US state flag that is not rectangular?

The swallowtail 'burgee' was designed by John Eisenmann in 1901; its 17 stars mark Ohio as the 17th state and the disc suggests the letter O.

Which state's flag was designed by a 13-year-old orphan, Benny Benson, in a 1927 territorial contest?

His eight gold stars show the Big Dipper and Polaris on a blue field; it beat roughly 700 other entries.

Which state flag features the Union Jack of the United Kingdom in its canton?

The Kingdom of Hawaii was never a British possession; the flag reflects King Kamehameha I's friendship with the Royal Navy, and its eight stripes are the eight main islands.

Which mainland state's flag once served as the national flag of an independent country?

The Lone Star Flag flew over the Republic of Texas; its designer is not known for certain.

The bear on the Bear Flag is said to be modelled on Monarch, who was what?

Monarch was captured in 1889 by a reporter for William Randolph Hearst; California grizzlies are now extinct.

Maryland's distinctive black-and-gold, red-and-white flag is the heraldic banner of which family?

It quarters the arms of the 1st Baron Baltimore with those of his grandmother's Crossland family, and was adopted in 1904.

The red sun on a yellow field, adopted as a state flag in 1925, comes from which Native American people?

The red and yellow are the colours of old Spain; the flag was adopted in 1925.

Which flag topped a 2001 North American Vexillological Association survey of 72 state, territorial and provincial flags?

Texas came second and Alaska fifth; Georgia's then-flag came dead last.

The orange-coloured star at the centre of Arizona's flag represents what?

The 13 red and gold rays above it stand for the original colonies and the colours of Spain.

The gold disc inside the red C on Colorado's flag represents what?

The blue is the sky, the white the snow-capped Rockies and the red the ruddy earth; it was adopted in 1911.

The palmetto tree on South Carolina's flag honours the tree's role in what?

Palmetto logs laid over sand walls let the fort survive the 1776 attack; the crescent came from militia cap badges.

Which state adopted a brand-new flag in January 2021, featuring a magnolia blossom and 21 stars?

It replaced the 1894 flag that had carried the Confederate battle flag in its canton.

On the magnolia flag adopted in 2021, what does the single gold star at the top represent?

The other 20 white stars mark Mississippi as the 20th state.

The Peach State's flag adopted in 2003 is based on which historic banner?

The 'Stars and Bars' design left Georgia's as one of the few state flags still referencing the Confederacy after Mississippi changed in 2020.

Which state's 2024 flag features a gold beehive above a white star inside a blue hexagon?

The 1913 flag was kept as a co-official 'Historic State Flag' and still flies year-round at the Capitol.

Which state adopted a new state flag that took effect in May 2024?

Its dark blue shape echoes the state outline and carries an eight-pointed North Star; the old seal-based flag was criticised for its imagery.

Which state's flag has a white silhouette of an American bison bearing the state seal on its side?

The blue field is bordered in white and red; it was adopted in 1917.

Which is the only US state flag with a different design on each side?

The front shows the state escutcheon and the reverse a gold beaver, the state animal.

Which is the only US state flag with a green field?

It is also the only one bearing the likeness of a US president, whose portrait forms the seal.

The stars on Tennessee's flag represent what?

East, Middle and West Tennessee are legally distinct regions; the blue circle around the stars stands for their unity.

Rhode Island's flag shows a gold anchor and 13 stars above which one-word motto?

The 13 stars mark the original colonies and Rhode Island's place as the 13th state to ratify the Constitution.

Which state's flag was ranked worst of 72 in a vexillology survey for violating 'all the principles of good design'?

Georgia scrapped that flag in 2003; Nebraska's came second-worst.

Which state's flag, rated second-worst of 72 in a 2001 vexillology survey, was only designated a flag in 1963?

Adopted as a banner in 1925, it was not designated the official state flag until 1963.

Oklahoma's flag shows a war shield of which Native American nation?

The shield carries six crosses and seven eagle feathers on a sky-blue field.

Indiana's flag shows a gold torch surrounded by how many stars, marking its order of admission?

Thirteen stars form the outer circle for the original colonies; designed by Paul Hadley in 1917.

Louisiana's flag shows a pelican doing what?

The heraldic term is 'vulning'; the motto beneath reads Union, Justice, Confidence.

Which two state flags consist of a red diagonal cross (saltire) on a white field?

Alabama's is a plain crimson St Andrew's cross from 1895; Florida's adds the state seal in the centre.

Arkansas's flag shows a large white lozenge. What shape is it, and how many small white stars border it?

The 25 stars mark it as the 25th state, and four larger blue stars sit inside the diamond.

The wreath on Nevada's flag is made of which plant, the state flower?

The silver star inside it refers to the Silver State nickname; the flag dates from 1929.

Kansas's flag pairs the state seal with which flower?

The state's name was added at the bottom in 1961.

How many US state flags feature an eagle, according to the description of Iowa's flag?

Iowa, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Wyoming all have one.

Which animal rests beneath a pine tree on Maine's flag?

A farmer and a seaman flank the shield, and the North Star alludes to the motto Dirigo, 'I lead'.

Delaware's flag carries a date, December 7, 1787. What happened that day?

The buff and colonial blue colours reflect the first president's uniform.

Connecticut's flag shows a shield bearing three of what?

Its motto Qui Transtulit Sustinet means 'He who transplanted sustains'.

Which state's flag is described as the only one to bear crossing rifles?

The coat of arms sits on a white field bordered in blue and wreathed in rhododendron.

Missouri's flag of red, white and blue horizontal stripes was designed by whom?

The red and white stand for valour and purity; it was adopted in 1913.

The seal on New Hampshire's flag shows which Revolutionary War frigate?

The ship is encircled by a laurel wreath and nine stars, with Portsmouth harbour behind.

The District of Columbia flag, three red stars over two red bars, is based on whose coat of arms?

The arms belonged to Lawrence Washington of Sulgrave Manor in 1592; the president used them privately at Mount Vernon.

North Dakota's flag is an almost exact copy of a regimental banner carried by state troops in which war?

The only change was swapping the unit designation on the scroll for the state's name.

South Dakota's flag spells out which nickname beneath the seal?

Gold triangles around the seal represent the sun's rays; the current version dates from 1992.

What has caused occasional controversy about the female figure on Virginia's flag?

An attorney general once handed out lapel pins with a covered-up version in 2010.

Most modern state flags date from around which event, when states wanted distinctive symbols?

The bulk were designed and adopted between 1893 and World War I.

The most common design pattern among US state flags is what?

Vexillologists call them 'seals on bedsheets', and several states have redesigned to escape the pattern.

Which state put a flag redesign to voters in November 2024, only to see the new design lose?

Massachusetts and Illinois have also started redesign processes.

Which state's flag, adopted in 1863, shows the coat of arms on blue?

It was modified in 1979 to add the state name and the date 1848.

Which state's flag has a buff (tan) field, the colour of Continental Army uniform facings?

The coat of arms on it shows three ploughs, a horse's head and the motto Liberty and Prosperity 1776.

Michigan observes an official flag month running from June 14 to which date?

The state has had three flags; the current coat-of-arms-on-blue design dates from 1911.

Which state's flag has its name written in Helvetica Bold above the seal, standardised in 1985?

The name was only added in 1981 to stop it being confused with other blue seal flags.

The Massachusetts flag is one of only two state flags to prominently feature what?

Florida is the other; Massachusetts has been working on a redesign since 2021.

Florida is one of three state flags to carry the words 'In God We Trust'. Which two others do?

The phrase became the US national motto in 1956.