 | |
| Use | Civil and state flag    |
|---|---|
| Proportion | 2:3 |
| Adopted | July 1, 1981 |
| Design | The Great Seal of the State of Montana on a blue field. Above the seal the text “MONTANA” in yellow. |
The flag of the state of Montana consists of the image of the Montana state seal centered on a blue field.
Within the seal, a plow, shovel, and pick rest in a field in front of the Great Falls of the Missouri River. The ribbon contains the state motto, ORO Y PLATA, which is Spanish for “gold and silver". The current flag was adopted in 1905, and the word “MONTANA” above the seal was added in 1981. In 1985, the flag was again modified to specify the font used in “MONTANA”: Helvetica Bold. [1] [2] Before it was adopted as a state flag, it was used by Montana troops deploying for the Spanish–American War. [3]
The North American Vexillological Association (NAVA) declared the flag of Montana to be the third worst state/provincial flag, 70th in a field of 72 in a list that contained all the provinces of Canada, U.S. states and U.S. territories. Georgia's flag was named the worst, but has since been changed, and Nebraska's flag was named second worst. [4] NAVA stated that about half of U.S. states used blue fields, which rendered them difficult to distinguish; furthermore, the survey ranked flags which had both words and complex seals the lowest.
In 1974, the Montana Legislature considered adopting a new flag to replace the 1905 design. The first design submitted for proposal had a white field with three stylized mountain peaks of black in the upper hoist, and a green horizontal stripe along the bottom. The second proposal was designed by James Croft and featured a blue stripe representing Montana’s "Big Sky State" nickname, a white stripe for the state’s pure rivers, and a green stripe symbolizing forests and fields. A stylized mountain silhouette symbolized the "Land of Shining Mountains" and the Spanish word montaña (mountainous), while a copper arrowhead at the staff finial honored Montana’s Indigenous heritage. [5] However, on February 8, 1975, the Senate rejected Croft's proposal by a vote of 30-19, postponing further flag redesign considerations for at least a year.
In 1979, Edward Mooney, an undergraduate at Montana State University, along with friends, designed another alternative flag. The design featured a green bottom third to represent Montana’s productive land and a blue top two-thirds for the “Big Sky” slogan, separated by a white line that formed an "M" on the left side, symbolizing both Montana and the state’s geographic divide between the Rocky Mountains in the west and Great Plains in the east. A white five-pointed star above the “M” symbolized Montana’s statehood, while the white color also represented the snows of winter. [6] Mooney and his group presented the design to Governor Thomas Lee Judge and members of the Montana Legislature, with all parties refusing to consider the change. However, the 1981 legislature did agree to add the word “MONTANA” to the existing flag, which remains the current flag to this day.
In 2021, Democratic Rep. Moffie Funk proposed a bill to study the possibility of designing a new state flag, with an emphasis on evaluating whether the flag truly represents Montana's diversity and magnificence. Republican Rep. Caleb Hinkle then proposed an amendment to Funk's bill that would add firearms to the state flag as a tribute to Montana’s history with pioneers, soldiers, Native tribes, and hunters. His design concept suggested including semi-automatic rifles, such as the AR-15, but it faced strong criticism, including from Democratic Rep. Jonathan Windy Boy of the Chippewa Cree tribe. [7] Windy Boy pointed out the negative historical associations of firearms for Native Americans, and lawmakers ultimately voted against Hinkle’s amendment, with only 12 in favor and 88 opposed. Funk’s original proposal to create a committee to consider a new design also failed with a vote of 37-63.
The state flag of Alaska displays eight gold stars, forming the Big Dipper and Polaris, on a dark blue field. The Big Dipper is an asterism in the constellation Ursa Major, which symbolizes a bear, indigenous to Alaska. As depicted on the flag, its stars can be used as a guide by the novice to locate Polaris and determine true north.
The coat of arms of the state of New York was formally adopted in 1778, and appears as a component of the state's flag and seal.
The flag of the U.S. state of Colorado was officially adopted on June 5, 1911. The flag, designed by Andrew Carlisle Carson, consists of a fess design of three horizontal stripes of equal width, with the top and bottom stripes colored blue, and the middle stripe colored white. A circular red "C", filled with a golden disk, sits atop the stripes. All aspects of the flag contain symbolism related to the state, as the blue is meant to represent the sky, the gold the abundant sunshine the state receives, the white the snowcapped Rocky Mountains, and the red the "ruddy" earth. The gold and white portions of the flag also represent the state's gold and silver mining industries, respectively.
The flag of the state of Iowa is a vertical tricolor flag designed by Dixie Cornell Gebhardt in 1917. Iowa, United States legislators officially adopted the flag in 1921.
The flag of Louisiana consists of a rectangular field of blue with the arms of Louisiana, a pelican vulning herself, in white in the center, with a ribbon beneath, also in white, containing in blue the state motto: "Union Justice Confidence". The flag was officially adopted July 1, 1912, and is often referred to as the Pelican flag.
The flag of Maine features the state coat of arms on a blue field. In the center of a heraldic shield, a moose rests under a tall pine tree. A farmer and seaman are meant to represent the traditional reliance on agriculture and the sea by the state. The North Star is intended to allude to the state motto: dirigo.
The state flag of the U.S. state of Minnesota consists of a dark blue field representing the night sky and the state's shape, an eight-pointed star representing the North Star, and a bright blue field representing the state's abundant waters; the star is based on one prominently featured in the Minnesota State Capitol rotunda.
The flag of Pennsylvania consists of a blue field on which the state coat of arms is displayed.
The Beehive Flag is the official flag of the U.S. state of Utah. It is a horizontal tricolor with irregular bands of blue, white, and red. The middle white band contains a blue hexagon outlined in gold. Within the hexagon lies a gold-colored beehive, and below it sits a five-pointed white star.
The state flag of Vermont displays the state's coat of arms and motto on a rectangular blue background. The Vermont General Assembly adopted the flag on June 1, 1923.
The state flag of West Virginia was officially adopted by the West Virginia Legislature on March 7, 1929. The present flag consists of a pure white field bordered by a blue stripe with the coat of arms of West Virginia in the center, wreathed by Rhododendron maximum and topped by an unfurled red ribbon reading, "State of West Virginia." It is the only state flag to bear crossing rifles, meant to illustrate the importance of the state's fight for liberty during the Civil War as the southern unionist 35th state.
The U.S. state of New Hampshire has held two seals since it declared its independence from Great Britain on January 5, 1776. While both seals have been retained, most people are only familiar with the Great Seal due to its corporate use.
The flag of Las Vegas consists of blue field with a diagonal gray stripe running from the top of the hoist to the bottom of the fly. Las Vegas' city seal, adopted on March 16, 1966 and designed by Richard Thompson, is located in the canton breaking the stripe.
The state flag of Wisconsin was first adopted in 1863, and was modified in 1979. It is a blue flag charged with the state coat of arms of Wisconsin.
The flag of the state of Nebraska is a blue rectangular cloth charged with a variation of the Nebraskan state seal. The current design was commissioned in 1925, when the Nebraska legislature passed a bill stating that the flag would consist of the state seal in gold and silver on a field of blue.
The city flag of Tampa, Florida was adopted by the city on July 1, 1930. The many pieces of the unique flag portray the various elements that made the city itself a success. The flag is one of the few non-quadrilateral flags in use.
The municipal flag of Provo, Utah, United States, features the city's logo on a light blue field. It was adopted on January 6, 2015, after a multi-year debate to replace the previous one. The former flag, adopted in 1989, was ridiculed in particular for its perceived ugliness and its similarity to the Centrum logo, and was voted one of the worst American city flags by the North American Vexillological Association (NAVA).
The city flag of Austin, Texas consists of a white field with the seal of Austin without the surrounding circle of text. Below the seal of Austin is the text "CITY OF AUSTIN", written in blue and arched upwards.
The current city flag of Columbus, Ohio is a yellow-white-red vertical triband with the city seal on a blue field. Officially, the flag was adopted in 1929, although it is unknown if the flag was ever flown when it was first adopted.
The flag of Burlington, Vermont was adopted by the Burlington city council on November 27, 2017 during the mayorship of Miro Weinberger. It is five horizontal, zig-zag stripes of blue, white, green, white, and blue.
