The flag of Minnesota is the state flag of

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over t ...

. Its design features a modified version of the seal of Minnesota on a blue field. The first version of the flag was flown from 1893 until 1957, and was changed to be more easily manufacturable, and the state seal became simpler. The current flag was adopted in 1957 and the state seal on the flag was modified in 1983. Observers have criticized the flag as racist and white supremacist for its depiction of a Native American "leaving

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willingly" to a white settler, despite "state-sponsored violence against people of color... eingnot merely part of Minnesota history but central to it". A bill was introduced in the 2021–2022 session of the

Minnesota Legislature The Minnesota Legislature is the bicameral legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota consisting of two houses: the Senate and the House of Representatives. Senators are elected from 67 single-member districts. In order to account for decenn ...

to create a task force to discuss possibilities for flag modification and replacement, but this failed in committee.

History

File:Flag of Minnesota (1893-1957).svg, File:Flag of Minnesota (1893).svg, File:Flag of Minnesota (1957-1983).svg,

Early military flags

During the Civil War, Minnesota had 11 infantry regiments, each with their own flag. The flags usually consisted of a blue background with an American Eagle or the state seal with a scroll, shown in the flags of the First, Second, Fourth, and Fifth regiment. Some have speculated that this design influenced the design of Amelia Hyde Center.

1893 flag

Because Minnesota was sponsoring an exhibition at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair, the then-current governor of Minnesota, William Merriam, appointed an all-male board to supervise the preparations. However, a group known as the Women's Auxiliary Board took over the 'women's work' and created a six-person committee to design the state flag. The boards then held a contest to design the flag, and 200 entries were submitted. The winner of the contest was Amelia Hyde Center, who received $15 for her winning design. Center's design was white on one side and light blue on the other. In the center was the state seal wreathed with white moccasin flowers, on a blue field. A red ribbon in the seal bore a motto, ''

L'Étoile du Nord ''L'Étoile du Nord'' is a French phrase meaning "The Star of the North". It is the motto of the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the only U.S. state motto in French. It was chosen by the state's first governor, Henry Hastings Sibley, and was adop ...

'' (French for "The Star of the North"). The years 1819 (establishment of

Fort Snelling Fort Snelling is a former military fortification and National Historic Landmark in the U.S. state of Minnesota on the bluffs overlooking the confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers. The military site was initially named Fort Saint Anth ...

), 1858 (statehood), and 1893 (adoption of the flag) appeared in gold around the state seal. "Minnesota" was written under the state seal in gold and 19 gold stars arranged in clusters to form the points of a star, representing the fact that Minnesota was the 19th state to be admitted after the original 13 states. The first Minnesota flag was made of silk and was embroidered by Pauline and Thomane Fjelde, who won a gold medal for their creation. The flag was adopted on April 4, 1893.

1957 flag

The flag was redesigned in 1957 for the 1958 state centennial, eliminating the different-colored sides in favor of a royal blue field on both sides to save on manufacturing costs and to make the flag more durable, especially in high winds. This opportunity was used to correct an error of the flowers used on the seal; instead of a Pink and White Lady's Slipper, the 1893 flag showed a variant that was not native to the state.

1983 seal change

In 1983, the state seal was changed, and the flag also changed to reflect that. The background color was also lightened from a royal blue to a medium blue.

Design and symbolism

The design of the Minnesota flag consists of a version of the state seal on a blue background.

Design and symbolism of the seal

Symbolism

A Native American rides on horseback in the background, symbolizing Minnesota's Native American heritage. A sun on the western horizon is a sunset. The straight

horizon The horizon is the apparent line that separates the surface of a celestial body from its sky when viewed from the perspective of an observer on or near the surface of the relevant body. This line divides all viewing directions based on whether i ...

line reflects the plains covering much of Minnesota. The Native American is on horseback is riding towards the south. The native's horse and spear and the pioneer's ax, rifle, and plow represent tools of daily life. The only interaction between the figures is one observing the other. The tools used by the Native American and the farmer represent the tools used for labor and hunting while the stump symbolizes the taming of the land and the importance of the lumber industry to Minnesota in 1858. The

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest Drainage system (geomorphology), drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson B ...

and

St. Anthony Falls Saint Anthony Falls, or the Falls of Saint Anthony ( dak, italics=no, Owámniyomni, ) located at the northeastern edge of downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota, is the only natural major waterfall on the Mississippi River. Throughout the mid-to-late ...

are depicted in the revised seal to note the importance of these

resources Resource refers to all the materials available in our environment which are technologically accessible, economically feasible and culturally sustainable and help us to satisfy our needs and wants. Resources can broadly be classified upon their av ...

transportation Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land ( rail and road), water, cable, pipelin ...

, industry and the settling of the state. The furrowing of the ground by the plow represents the submission of the land to the pioneer. The plow also symbolizes the importance of agriculture to Minnesota and its future. The waterfalls are not on the original State Seal. Beyond the falls on the current seal are three

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s representing the

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and the three pine regions of the state; the

St Croix Saint Croix; nl, Sint-Kruis; french: link=no, Sainte-Croix; Danish and no, Sankt Croix, Taino: ''Ay Ay'' ( ) is an island in the Caribbean Sea, and a county and constituent district of the United States Virgin Islands (USVI), an unincorp ...

, Mississippi, and

Lake Superior Lake Superior in central North America is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. and the third-largest by volume, holding 10% of the world's surface fresh wa ...

Design and symbolism of the flag

The flag is rectangular, and consists of a design on a medium blue background. According to the official statute, the flag contains a thin gold border and gold fringe, however, this is rarely used. A white circle in the center contains the word MINNESOTA across the bottom, four groups of four stars and one group of three stars spread out evenly around the edge, and designs from the state seal in the center. The star at the top symbolizes the North Star. The design in the center is surrounded by pink-and-white lady's slippers, the state flower. The border also contains the dates 1819 (founding of

), 1858 (date of statehood), and 1893 (adoption of first flag).

Display and use

The flag is to be flown over the

Minnesota State Capitol The Minnesota State Capitol is the seat of government for the U.S. state of Minnesota, in its capital city of Saint Paul. It houses the Minnesota Senate, Minnesota House of Representatives, the office of the Attorney General and the office ...

from sunrise to sunset.

Folding the flag

When folding the flag for presentation or display, it must be folded lengthwise four times, then each side must be folded down so that the banner containing "L'Etoile du Nord" is displayed on a triangle. The ends below the triangle must be folded in a complicated way to form a triangle that is then tucked into the upper triangle so that the state motto is prominently displayed on the front. Some have described the method as being too overly complicated. When the flag is folded for storage, it should be folded in the same way as the national flag.

Desecration

In Minnesota, mutilating, defiling, or casting contempt upon the state flag, attaching any design to the flag, or using the flag for advertising are misdemeanor offenses under State Statute 609.40, excepting flags on written or printed documents.

Official statute

The law creating the 1957 state flag is located in Chapter 1 of the Official State Statutes. The chapter covers state symbols, sovereignty and other general issues. The location of the flag in the statutes is Section 1.141. The statute covers the adoption and description of the official flag, as well as the hours of flying and the method of folding the flag. The statute also requires the Secretary of State to keep a photograph of the official state flag and samples so they can be used by the public to make copies.

Criticism and replacement campaign

The Minnesota flag has been widely criticized for bad design and being overly complex. It has also been criticized as racist, depicting a white settler displacing a Native American. On numerous occasions over a span of several decades, bills have been introduced in the

to establish a legislative task force for studying changes to the flag. As of February, 2022, no changes to the flag have been made to address criticisms.

2001 NAVA survey

In 2001, the Minnesotan flag was chosen as one of the ten worst flag designs in an online poll conducted by the

North American Vexillological Association The North American Vexillological Association (NAVA) is a membership organization devoted to vexillology, the scientific and scholarly study of flags. It was founded in 1967 by American vexillologist Whitney Smith (1940–2016), and others. It ...

. The survey consisted of 100 NAVA members and 300 members of the public. Minnesota received a score of 3.13 on a scale of 1 to 10, on par with other flags that consisted of the state seal on a blue background, which were ranked very unfavorably.

North Star Flag

In 1989,

vexillologists Vexillology ( ) is the study of the history, symbolism and usage of flags or, by extension, any interest in flags in general.Smith, Whitney. ''Flags Through the Ages and Across the World'' New York: McGraw-Hill, 1975. Print. The word is a synthe ...

William Becker and Lee Herold proposed an alternative to the Minnesota state flag known as the North Star Flag. The design consists of a blue background with a yellow five-pointed star, and green and white wavy horizontal stripes. The star represents

and Minnesota's natural wealth, the blue background represents Minnesota's lakes and rivers, the white represents winter, and the green represents farmland and forests. The waves represent the name Minnesota, a Dakota word which means "sky-tinted waters". The flag was the winner of an unofficial contest by the

St. Paul Pioneer Press The ''St. Paul Pioneer Press'' is a newspaper based in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. It serves the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area. Circulation is heaviest in the east metro, including Ramsey, Dakota, and Washington counties, ...

to design a new state flag, as well as being widely endorsed by state politicians and newspapers, including the

Star Tribune The ''Star Tribune'' is the largest newspaper in Minnesota. It originated as the ''Minneapolis Tribune'' in 1867 and the competing ''Minneapolis Daily Star'' in 1920. During the 1930s and 1940s, Minneapolis's competing newspapers were consolida ...

and

March 2017 petition

In March 2017, Guy Johnson, a resident of Saint Paul, started a petition on Change.org to change the Minnesota state flag, calling it "shameful" due to its "unoriginality and laziness". , the petition has received 400 signatures. The petition also offers nine alternatives that came from Reddit's vexillological community.

References

External links

The Minnesota Flag StatuteThe Origin of the Minnesota State FlagNorth Star Flag Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Flag Of Minnesota

Symbols of Minnesota Flags of Minnesota

Flag controversies in the United States