Illinois Flag

The Illinois state flag was designed in by Lucy Derwent in 1912. She participated in a flag design competition held by the Daughters of the American Revolution. But it was not until July 6th 1915 that Lucy’s flag was adopted and became the official state flag of Illinois. As with a few others, the flag made its way to the regular proceedings, but it did not get the Governor of Illinois signature of approval. But on the other side, he did not veto either.

The first Illinois flag was slightly different in the way that the name of the state was not written on the flag and therefore in the 1960s Bruce Daniel, a Chief Petty Officer petitioned and collected signatures to add the name of Illinois to the state flag. His reason for adding the name was that veterans he served with and also other people did not recognize his states flag that he was so proud of. The new flag of Illinois was designed and approved in 1969 by Mrs. Sanford Hutchinson. It was adopted and became the official Illinois flag in 1970.

The current flag of the state of Illinois bears the Great Seal of the state of Illinois. The seal was originally designed in 1819 and resembled the Great Seal of the United States in several ways.

The eagle in the State seal of Illinois holds a banner in his beak with Illinois state motto. Illinois state motto is “State Souvereignity, National Union”. Two dates are imprinted on the Great Seal of Illinois are 1818 and 1868. These dates refer to the date that Illinois became a state and the date the Great Seal of Illinois was designed. Sharon Tyndale was the designer of the Great Seal.

Illinois flags can be found with one of the many flag stores across the United States and with several online retailers. If you are looking for a fun educational activity why not try one of the Illinois flag coloring pages or the Illinois state flag printout. A big picture of the Illinois state flag and other images of the Illinois flag can be found online. Other sources for pictures of the flag of Illinois can also be found in many good history books and museums. More information and facts about the Illinois flag can be found with the state government of Illinois and the state’s official web pages. Illinois flag is proudly displayed in Illinois capital Springfield.