Tuesday, July 12, 2016

Iowa State Flag

By Alisia Ronson


In the summer of 1673, French explorers Louis Joliet and Father Jacques Marquette traveled down the Mississippi River past the land that was to become the state of Iowa. The two explorers, along with their five crewmen, stepped ashore near where the Iowa river flowed into the Mississippi. It is believed that the 1673 voyage marked the first time that white people visited the region of Iowa. After surveying the surrounding area, the Frenchmen recorded in their journals that Iowa appeared lush, green, and fertile.

After white settlement began with the Black Hawk Purchase, Iowa became part of Michigan Territory. When Michigan achieved statehood in 1836, Iowa then became a part of Wisconsin Territory. Finally, two years later, Iowa Territory was carved out of the area of Wisconsin Territory west of the Mississippi River.

Iowa did not have a state flag after becoming a member of the Union in1846. When the US participated in the World War I, in 1917, Iowa still did not possess a flag. The Iowa National Guardsmen noticed that other state units carried special banners that gave them individual identities. They too felt the need of an appropriate flag to represent themselves. The Governor William L. Harding mulled over this proposal and agreed.

Iowa was almost 75 years old before the state banner was adopted by the Legislature in 1921. With the memory of the Civil War still fresh in their minds, Iowans had not adopted a state banner because they felt a national banner was the only one needed. Iowa's flag was designed by the state's Daughters of the American Revolution in response to Iowa national Guardsmen stationed at the Mexican border during WWI that requested an emblem of Iowa to represent their unit.

The Iowa Flag is composed of three vertical stripes of blue, white and red, arranged from left to right. The central white stripe bears the image of a bald eagle, with a blue ribbon dangling from its beak. The ribbon reads "Our Liberties We Prize, And Our Rights We Will Maintain", the state motto of Iowa. The state name is etched in bold red letters, below the motto. The symbolism of Iowa Flag lies in the flag's very pattern. The colors and the image truly depict the ideals of the state.

There is a barrage of cheap and inferior Iowa flags being imported and sold, that do not comply with the flag statute. This is bad for a number of reasons. Imported flags are cheaply made and more importantly, the designs, materials, colors, and methods of printing do not compare well with the better quality, longer-lasting, and correctly designed flags made by American manufacturers. The Flag Company Inc specialized in flag designs offered a special edition of decals and flags to memorize the history of Iowa flag for the future.




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