Flag and seal of Illinois
Use | Civil and state flag |
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Proportion | 3:5 |
Adopted | September 17, 1969 |
Design | A state seal above the word Illinois in blue on a white field. |
Designed by | Sharon Tyndale |
Great Seal of the State of Illinois | |
---|---|
Armiger | State of Illinois |
Adopted | 1868 |
Motto | "State Sovereignty, National Union" |
The Great Seal of the State of Illinois is the official emblem of the
Design
The current flag depicts the Great Seal of Illinois, which was originally designed in 1819 and emulated the Great Seal of the United States. In the eagle's beak there is a banner with the state motto, "State Sovereignty, National Union." The dates on the seal, 1818 and 1868, represent the year Illinois became a state and the year in which the Great Seal was redesigned by Sharon Tyndale. Although "State Sovereignty" comes first in the motto, "State" is at the bottom and "Sovereignty" is upside-down.[2]
It is one of nine U.S. state flags to feature an eagle, alongside those of Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Wyoming.
Seal history
The first Great Seal of the State of Illinois was adopted in 1819 by the first
Illinois Secretary of State
Tyndale's seal features a bald eagle pitched on a rock carrying a shield in its talons and a banner with the state motto in its beak. Thirteen stars and thirteen stripes on the shield represent the original thirteen states of the Union. The date August 26, 1818, when Illinois's first constitution was adopted in Kaskaskia, appears along the bottom arc of the circle, and 1818, the year of statehood, displays on the seal below 1868, the year the current seal was adopted. This basic design has survived through several minor modifications since it was first conceived. The Illinois secretary of state is still the keeper of the Great Seal of the State of Illinois.[4]
Flag history
Initial adoption, 1915
During her time as state regent of the
The contest was judged by a panel chaired by Lewis Stevenson, Illinois Secretary of State. They selected the design of Lucy Derwent.[5] The flag became the official state banner on July 6, 1915, following its passage in the Illinois State House and Senate.[5] Governor Edward F. Dunne did not sign the bill, but he did not veto it.[4]
1969 alterations
In the 1960s,
Illinois Centennial design
For Illinois's first 100 years of statehood in 1918, Wallace Rice, who designed Chicago's flag, designed a centennial flag for the state. It had three horizontal bands of equal width alternating white, blue, white. It was charged with 21 stars along the edge of the hoist. There were 10 blue stars in the upper white band and 10 in the lower white band, representing the 10 northern and 10 southern states at the time of Illinois' statehood in 1818. The center blue band had one large, white star for the state of Illinois itself.[7]
Illinois Sesquicentennial design
To mark Illinois' 150th anniversary of statehood in 1968, a sesquicentennial flag was designed for the state. The flag was dark blue, with a stylised white letter "I" defaced with a red map of Illinois in the center, which was surrounded by a circle of twenty white five-pointed stars, with an additional twenty-first star (larger than the others) set outside the circle to the upper-right.[8]
Illinois Bicentennial design
There was no bicentennial flag. However, on January 12, 2017, the state unveiled a logo in preparation for the state's bicentennial the following year. The logo, designed by Ben Olsen, features a blue silhouette of the state with the word ILLINOIS above. In the center of the silhouette, is a sunburst effect with the number 200 in gold. Along the right side is the word Bicentennial also in gold from bottom to top and beneath are the dates 1818 and 2018. This is all surrounded by 21 gold stars denoting Illinois position as the twenty-first state. Executive Director of the Bicentennial Office, Stewart Layne, added, "The sunburst in the middle of the state outline portrays the impact Illinois has made on the country and the world over the past two centuries and the bright future we aspire to for the next 200 years."[9][10]
Possible redesign
During March 2023, the Illinois Senate approved the Illinois Flag Commission, a commission to explore and develop a design for a new state flag.[11] In May 2023, the Illinois House approved the same bill.[12] Lawmakers stated that the decision on a new flag (made by the General Assembly) could come in the next few years.[13]
Government seals of Illinois
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Seal of theattorney general of Illinois
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Seal of theIllinois State Toll Highway Authority
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In 1918 Springfield artist George H. Schanbacher painted the eagles and shields between the corbel statues in the upper rotunda as part of Illinois' centennial celebration. This shield was modeled after the centennial flag designed by Wallace Rice.[14]
See also
- Illinois Centennial half dollar
- Symbols of Illinois
References
- ^ "The Great NAVA Flag Survey of 2001" (PDF). North American Vexillological Association. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2022-11-19.
- ^ "Seal of the State of Illinois". State of Illinois. Archived from the original on February 10, 2012. Retrieved 2021-02-13.
- ^ a b Bartlett, Mabel Lane; John E. Grinnell (1967). "Illinois: know your state: [a text workbook]". Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press. p. ii. Archived from the original on 2016-09-27.
- ^ a b c d "Illinois Handbook of Government: 2007-2008" (PDF). Secretary of State of Illinois. 2007-03-31. p. 135. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-12-03. Retrieved 2007-09-14.
- ^ a b c d e f Schock, Barbara (May 12, 2007). "Park Lawrence, Mother of the Illinois Flag". The Zephyr. Archived from the original on 2012-03-10.
- ^ "Official State Flag". Illinois Facts. Archived from the original on 2010-06-28.
- ^ "Illinois Anniversary Flags (U.S.)". Flags of the World. Archived from the original on 2012-10-19. Retrieved 2021-02-13.
- ^ Valentin Poposki (27 January 2009). "Illinois Anniversary Flags: Sesquicentennial flag". Flags of the World. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- ^ Lazare, Lewis (January 12, 2017). "Illinois unveils new logo for a big birthday". Chicago Business Journal. Retrieved 2021-02-13.
- ^ Sepeda-Miller, Kiannah (January 12, 2017). "Illinois prepares to celebrate 200 years with new state logo". The State Journal-Register. Springfield. Associated Press. Retrieved 2021-02-13.
- NBC Chicago. Chicago. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
- ^ IN May 2023, the Illinois house approved the same bill, and in August 2023, Governor Pritzker signed the bill into law.
- NBC Chicago. Chicago. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
- ^ "Illinois Statehouse - Fourth Floor". www.ilstatehouse.com. Retrieved 2023-04-03.
External links
- The Great Seal of the State of Illinois Archived 2014-09-26 at the Wayback Machine
- Illinois State Flag Archived 2010-06-28 at the Wayback Machine
- Whitlock, Brand. "Great Seal of Illinois: First Complete History of the State Symbol." Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society. Jan., 1913, Vol. 5, No. 4 (Jan., 1913), pp. 435-450.