Flag of Wisconsin

Wisconsin
Flag of Wisconsin
Use Civil and state flag
Adopted May 1, 1981 (1981-05-01) [1]
Design Blue flag charged with the Wisconsin coat of arms.

The flag of the state of Wisconsin is a blue flag charged with the state coat of arms.

History

Wisconsin state flag from 1866 to 1913.
Wisconsin state flag from 1913 to 1981.

1860s

Originally designed in 1866 when regiments from Wisconsin wanted a flag for battlefield use, in 1913, state statutes specified the design of the state flag.[2]

1940s

In 1941, Carl R. Eklund reported that he raised the state flag over Antarctica, at the behest of Wisconsin Governor Julius P. Heil, about 500 miles north of the south pole and 620 miles into a previously unexplored area.[3] In 1958, Eklund flew another flag over Antarctica which he presented for display in a state museum.[4]

1950s

In 1953, state assemblyman William N. Belter of Wautoma criticized the flag as too costly because of the details.[5]

1970s

In 1973, when the state senate was attempting to add the word Wisconsin to the flag, it was criticized as already too cluttered.[6]

In 1975, some state flags were being sold that improperly had the state seal on them instead of the state coat of arms. Wisconsin Secretary of State Douglas J. La Follette noted that the correct state flag did not have the banner of thirteen stars at the bottom.[7]

1980s

In order to distinguish it from the many other blue U.S. state flags, Wisconsin's flag was modified in 1979 to add "Wisconsin" and "1848", the year Wisconsin was admitted to the Union.[8] All Wisconsin state flags manufactured after May 1, 1981 were required to use this design.[1]

2000s

In 2001, a survey conducted by the North American Vexillological Association (NAVA) placed Wisconsin's flag 65th out of the 72 Canadian provincial, U.S. state and U.S. territory flags. The NAVA stated that about half of U.S. states used blue fields making them difficult to distinguish and the survey ranked flags with words and complex seals the lowest. The NAVA survey "favored strong, simple, distinctive flags" and ranked "seal-on-a-bedsheet" type flags the lowest.[9][10]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 State of Wisconsin. "286". Section: 1.08: State flag. Laws of 1979. Retrieved August 21, 2015. The department of administration shall ensure that all official state flags that are manufactured on or after May 1, 1981 conform to the requirements of this section. State flags manufactured before May 1, 1981 may continue to be used as state flags.
  2. ↑ State of Wisconsin Blue Book 2007-2008, p. 963.
  3. ↑ "Antarctic Explorer Returns to State; Reports to Heil". Milwaukee Sentinel. Milwaukee, WI. 1941-08-31. Retrieved 2014-08-02.
  4. ↑ "Badger Flag back Home". Milwaukee Sentinel. Milwaukee, WI. 1958-06-03. Retrieved 2014-08-02.
  5. ↑ "New State Flag is Urged; Present One 'Too Costly'". Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee, WI. 1973-07-29. Retrieved 2014-08-02.
  6. ↑ "On Wisconsin, our cluttered state flag needs to be simplified". Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee, WI. 1973-07-29. Retrieved 2014-08-02.
  7. ↑ "Flag Flap; If Seal's on Your Flag, It's Wrong". Milwaukee Journal. Milwaukee, WI. 1975-07-10. Retrieved 2014-08-03.
  8. ↑ Environmental Education for Kids! - Wisconsin's State Flag
  9. ↑ "2001 State/Provincial Flag Survey - NAVA.org" (PDF). nava.org.
  10. ↑ "Lowering the Flag of Wisconsin", The Capital Times (Madison, WI), June 21, 2001.
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