Flag of Tennessee

Last updated

State of Tennessee
Flag of Tennessee.svg
The Tri-Star Flag
Use Civil and state flag FIAV 110000.svg FIAV normal.svg IFIS Mirror.svg
Proportion3:5
AdoptedApril 17, 1905;119 years ago (1905-04-17)
DesignA blue circle with three white five-pointed stars on a rectangular field of red, with a strip of white and blue on the fly.
Designed byCol. Le Roy Reeves [1]

The flag of Tennessee is the official flag of the U.S. state of Tennessee. The flag displays an emblem on a field of red, with a strip of blue bordered by white on the fly. The emblem in the middle consists of three white stars on a blue circle also with a white border. The central emblem portion of the flag has been adopted as the state's unofficial logo, and appears in the logos of some Tennessee-based companies and sports teams. Examples include the First Horizon Bank and the Tennessee Titans.

Contents

In 2001, the North American Vexillological Association surveyed its members on the designs of the 72 U.S. state, territorial, and Canadian provincial flags and ranked the Tennessee flag 14th. [2]

History

In 1897, Tennessee adopted a red, white, and blue tricolor. [3] The three bars were deliberately slanted in an effort to represent the geographically distinct regions of Tennessee. The flag included the number "16", Tennessee having been admitted as the 16th state of the Union, and the words "The Volunteer State", the state's official nickname.

The current flag was designed by Colonel Le Roy Reeves, [4] a Johnson City attorney who was then serving in the Tennessee National Guard. [5] The Tennessee General Assembly officially adopted the flag on April 17, 1905. [6]

Description

Symbolism

The flag of Tennessee in Nashville Flag of Tennessee at Opryland Hotel, Mar 2019.jpg
The flag of Tennessee in Nashville

The stars represent the three geographically and legally distinct Grand Divisions of Tennessee (i.e. East, Middle, and West Tennessee). The blue circle around the stars represents the unity of those grand divisions. The blue bar at the edge of the flag was just a design consideration. When asked about the blue bar, Reeves stated "The final blue bar relieves the sameness of the crimson field and prevents the flag from showing too much crimson when hanging limp." In October 1917, National Geographic erroneously reported the stars represented the state as the third to enter the Union after the original thirteen. [7]

Star arrangement

State law dictates exactly how the central emblem is to be displayed on the flag.

The arrangement of the three (3) stars shall be such that the centers of no two stars shall be in a line parallel to either the side or the end of the flag, but intermediate between the same; and the highest star shall be the one nearest the upper confined corner of the flag. [7]

In 1976, the U.S. Postal Service issued a sheet of 13 cent stamps illustrating U.S. state flags. Tennessee's was illustrated upside down. [8]

Government flags

Alongside the state flag, there are other flags used by the government of Tennessee. The flag for the governor of Tennessee has been in use since 1939. It is a scarlet flag, with four stars, one in each corner, and the state military crest, a tree with three white stars, in the center. The Tennessee General Assembly has its own flag as well.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Europe</span> Official symbol used by the Council of Europe and the European Union

The flag of Europe or European flag consists of twelve golden stars forming a circle on a blue field. It is the official flag of the European Union. It was designed and adopted in 1955 by the Council of Europe (CoE) as a symbol for the whole of Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Alabama</span>

The current flag of Alabama was adopted by Act 383 of the Alabama Legislature on February 16, 1895:

"The flag of the State of Alabama shall be a crimson cross of St. Andrew on a field of white. The bars forming the cross shall be not less than six inches broad, and must extend diagonally across the flag from side to side." – (Code 1896, §3751; Code 1907, §2058; Code 1923, §2995; Code 1940, T. 55, §5.)

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flags of the Confederate States of America</span>

The flags of the Confederate States of America have a history of three successive designs during the American Civil War. The flags were known as the "Stars and Bars", used from 1861 to 1863; the "Stainless Banner", used from 1863 to 1865; and the "Blood-Stained Banner", used in 1865 shortly before the Confederacy's dissolution. A rejected national flag design was also used as a battle flag by the Confederate Army and featured in the "Stainless Banner" and "Blood-Stained Banner" designs. Although this design was never a national flag, it is the most commonly recognized symbol of the Confederacy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Georgia (U.S. state)</span>

The flag of the U.S. state of Georgia bears three horizontal stripes and features a blue canton containing a ring of 13 white stars that encircle the state's gold-colored coat of arms. The ring of stars that encompass the state's coat of arms represents Georgia as one of the original Thirteen Colonies. Its current iteration was adopted on February 19, 2003. the coat the arch symbolizes the state's constitution while the pillars represent the three branches of government. The words of the state motto, "Wisdom, Justice, and Moderation", are wrapped around the pillars, guarded by a figure dressed in colonial attire from the American Revolutionary War. Within the arms, a sword is drawn to represent the defense of the state's constitution with the motto of the United States, "In God We Trust", featured below these elements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flags of the U.S. states and territories</span>

The flags of the U.S. states, territories, and the District of Columbia exhibit a variety of regional influences and local histories, as well as different styles and design principles. Modern U.S. state flags date from the turn of the 20th century, when states considered distinctive symbols for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, Illinois. Most U.S. state flags were designed and adopted between 1893 and World War I.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Ohio</span>

The Ohio Burgee is the official flag of the U.S. state of Ohio. It is a distinctive triangular swallowtail flag. Its red, white, and blue elements symbolize the state's natural features and order of admission into the Union. A prominent disc in the flag's triangular canton is suggestive of the state's name. The flag was adopted in 1902.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Colorado</span> U.S. state flag

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Indiana</span>

The current flag of Indiana was designed by Paul Hadley and officially adopted by the State of Indiana on May 31, 1917.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Minnesota</span> U.S. state flag

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Mississippi</span> US state flag

The flag of Mississippi consists of a white magnolia blossom surrounded by 21 stars and the words "In God We Trust" written below, all put over a blue Canadian pale with two vertical gold borders on a red field. The topmost star is composed of a pattern of five diamonds, an Indigenous symbol; the other 20 stars are white, as Mississippi was the 20th state to join the Union. The flag was adopted on January 11, 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Indianapolis</span>

The flag of Indianapolis has a dark blue field with a white five-pointed star pointing upwards in the center. Around the star is a circular field in red. Surrounding the red field is a white ring, from which extend four white stripes from top to bottom and from hoist to fly, thus creating four equal quadrants in the field. The stripes are about one-seventh the width of the flag, with the white ring the same width as the stripes. The diameter of the red circle is about two-ninths the width of the flag.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag and seal of Illinois</span> Official flag and government emblem of the U.S. state of Illinois

The Great Seal of the State of Illinois is the official emblem of the U.S. state of Illinois, and signifies the official nature of a document produced by the state. The present seal was designed and proposed in 1868 and officially adopted in 1869. It depicts in profile a bald eagle perched on a rock with wings spread and holding a shield, with a banner in its beak and sunrise over water in the background. It replaced an earlier seal that was almost the same as the Great Seal of the United States, adopted when Illinois became a state in 1818.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Los Angeles</span>

The city flag of Los Angeles consists of a background of three notched stripes of green, gold and red. The flag was designed by Roy E. Silent and E.S. Jones in 1931 for the Los Angeles sesquicentennial from 1781.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Baton Rouge, Louisiana</span>

The flag of Baton Rouge contains a red field with a small shield and cursive text reading "Baton Rouge". The current flag was adopted in 1995 by the city council, replacing an older flag that had been in use since 1968.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of New Orleans</span>

The flag of New Orleans contains a large white field that contains three gold fleurs-de-lis and is bordered on the top by a red stripe and from below by a blue stripe. The presence of the fleur-de-lis, a stylized depiction of a flower and a traditional French symbol demonstrates the city's French heritage and strong ties to France, while the presence of the design being a Spanish fess demonstrates the city's Spanish heritage and strong ties to Spain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Cincinnati</span>

The flag of Cincinnati, Ohio was selected in an 1896 contest. It was formally adopted on June 15, 1940.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Phoenix</span>

The flag of Phoenix, Arizona contains a maroon field with a white phoenix emblem in the center. Its design is the second in the city's history and has been in place since 1990, replacing a flag that was adopted in 1921.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Mobile, Alabama</span>

The city flag of Mobile is a flag which represents the seal of the six flags that have flown over the state of Alabama before and since it became a state. The flag was adopted in December 1968 after one was suggested by Commissioner Lambert C. Mims. The original seal which was used in the flag was adopted in 1961.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Provo, Utah</span>

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).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of El Paso, Texas</span>

The current city flag of El Paso, Texas is an augmentation of the city's seal in the center of a dark blue field, which has been in place since 1962.

References

  1. "Ancestral sketches by Reeves, Le Roy, 1876-1960". archive.org.
  2. Kaye, Ted (June 10, 2001). "New Mexico Tops State/provincial Flags Survey, Georgia Loses By Wide Margin". NAVA News. Vol. 34, no. 2 Issue #170. North American Vexillological Association. pp. 4–5. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  3. Huff, Caitlin (January 6, 2021). "The Tri-Star Flag: What's behind the beloved emblem". WKRN.com. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  4. Reeves, LeRoy (1951). Ancestral sketches. Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center. Lynchburg, Va. : J.P. Bell.
  5. Reeves, LeRoy. LeRoy Reeves Papers, Fonds: AppMs-9, Series: Tennessee state flag material, Box: 2. Johnson City, Tennessee: Archives of Appalachia, East Tennessee State University.(Accessed November 10, 2021.)
  6. Darnell, Riley C. (2006). Tennessee Blue Book (PDF). Nashville, Tennessee: State of Tennessee. pp. 515–516. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 23, 2015.
  7. 1 2 "Tennessee State Flag". Tennessee Military Department. Archived from the original on January 14, 2008. Retrieved October 26, 2007.
  8. "Knoxville Philatelic Society News" (PDF). stampclubs.com. February 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 16, 2011. Retrieved February 12, 2010.