![Illinois state coat of arms (illustrated, 1876)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/62/Illinois_state_coat_of_arms_%28illustrated%2C_1876%29.jpg)
The Great Seal of the
State of Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockford ...
is the official emblem of the state, and signifies the official nature of a document produced by the state of Illinois. The
flag
A flag is a piece of fabric (most often rectangular or quadrilateral) with a distinctive design and colours. It is used as a symbol, a signalling device, or for decoration. The term ''flag'' is also used to refer to the graphic design empl ...
of the state of Illinois consists of the seal of Illinois on a white background, with the word "Illinois" underneath the seal. The present seal was adopted in 1869, the flag bearing the central elements of the seal was adopted in 1915, and the word ''Illinois'' was added to the flag in 1970. In a survey by the North American Vexillogical Association (NAVA), the flag of Illinois was ranked 49th out of 72 different flags of states and territories, mainly in the US and Canada.
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.
It is one of eight U.S. state flags to feature an eagle, alongside those of
Iowa
Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...
,
Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
,
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
,
North Dakota
North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...
,
Oregon
Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
,
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
and
Utah
Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...
.
Seal history
The first Great Seal of the State of Illinois was adopted in 1819 by the first
Illinois General Assembly
The Illinois General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois. It has two chambers, the Illinois House of Representatives and the Illinois Senate. The General Assembly was created by the first state constitution adopted in 181 ...
. The first law authorizing the Great Seal required the
Secretary of State of Illinois
The Secretary of State of Illinois is one of the six elected executive state offices of the government of Illinois, and one of the 47 Secretary of State (U.S. state government), secretaries of states in the United States. The Illinois Secretary o ...
to procure and keep the seal.
The first seal engraved was essentially a copy of the
Great Seal of the United States. It was used until 1839, when it was recut. The seal designed in 1839 became the Second Great Seal.
[
Illinois Secretary of State ]Sharon Tyndale
Sharon Tyndale (January 19, 1816 – April 29, 1871) was an American politician and designer who was the Secretary of State of Illinois, from 1865 to 1869. His tenure is notable for his redesign of the Great Seal of the State of Illinois.
Bac ...
spearheaded the drive to create a third state seal for Illinois. In 1867, he asked State Senator
A state senator is a member of a state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature.
Description
A state senator is a member of an upper house in the bicameral legislatures of 49 U ...
Allen C. Fuller to introduce legislation requiring a new seal, and suggested to Fuller that the words of the state motto be reversed, from "State Sovereignty, National Union", to "National Union, State Sovereignty". However, the bill passed by the legislature on March 7, 1867, kept the original wording. Despite declining his suggestion, the legislature nonetheless entrusted Tyndale with designing the new seal.[ And Tyndale managed to (literally) twist the legislature's intent; he kept the words in the correct order on the banner, but the banner ''twists'', so the word "Sovereignty" is upside down, arguably making it less readable.
Tyndale's seal features a ]bald eagle
The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...
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
A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed.
When ...
was adopted in Kaskaskia
The Kaskaskia were one of the indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands. They were one of about a dozen cognate tribes that made up the Illiniwek Confederation, also called the Illinois Confederation. Their longstanding homeland was in t ...
, 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.[
]
Flag history
Initial adoption, 1915
During her time as state regent of the Daughters of the American Revolution
The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) is a lineage-based membership service organization for women who are directly descended from a person involved in the United States' efforts towards independence.
A non-profit group, they promote ...
(DAR) in 1912, Ella Park Lawrence
Ella Park Lawrence (May 13, 1857 – March 17, 1924) was an avid advocate for, and is still known today as the “mother” of the Illinois State Flag. She was the Regent of the Rebecca Park chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution (D ...
began a campaign to have Illinois adopt a state flag
In vexillology, a state flag is either the flag of the government of a sovereign state, or the flag of an individual federated state (subnational administrative division).
Government flag
A state flag is a variant of a national flag (or occas ...
. She was unsuccessful during her time as state regent, but continued to lobby members of the Illinois General Assembly
The Illinois General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois. It has two chambers, the Illinois House of Representatives and the Illinois Senate. The General Assembly was created by the first state constitution adopted in 181 ...
to adopt a state flag as a member of the Rockford chapter of the DAR. On April 1, 1914, Lawrence sent a letter to every Illinois chapter of the DAR announcing a contest to design an Illinois state flag, with the winner receiving a prize of $25. Thirty-five designs were submitted in response to this contest.
The contest was judged by a panel chaired by Lewis Stevenson, Illinois Secretary of State
The Secretary of State of Illinois is one of the six elected executive state offices of the government of Illinois, and one of the 47 secretaries of states in the United States. The Illinois Secretary of State keeps the state records, laws, libr ...
. They selected the design of Lucy Derwent. The flag became the official state banner on July 6, 1915, following its passage in the Illinois State House and Senate. Governor Edward F. Dunne did not sign the bill, but he did not veto it.
1969 alterations
In the 1960s, Chief Petty Officer
A chief petty officer (CPO) is a senior non-commissioned officer in many navies and coast guards.
Canada
"Chief petty officer" refers to two ranks in the Royal Canadian Navy. A chief petty officer 2nd class (CPO2) (''premier maître de deuxi ...
Bruce McDaniel petitioned to have the name of the state added to the flag. He noted that many of the people with whom he served during the Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
did not recognize the banner. Governor Richard B. Ogilvie
Richard Buell Ogilvie (February 22, 1923 – May 10, 1988) was the 35th governor of Illinois and served from 1969 to 1973. A wounded combat veteran of World War II, he became known as the mafia-fighting sheriff of Cook County, Illinois, in t ...
signed the addition to the flag into law on September 17, 1969, and the new flag, designed by Mrs. Sanford (Florence) Hutchinson, became official on July 1, 1970.
Illinois Centennial design
For Illinois's first 100 years of statehood in 1918, Wallace Rice
Wallace deGroot Cecil Rice (10 November 1859 – 15 December 1939) was an American author and vexillographer from Hamilton, Ontario.
Biography
Wallace Rice was born 10 November 1859, to John Asaph Rice (1829–1888) and Margaret Van Slyke ...
, 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.
Illinois Bicentennial design
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."
Government seals of Illinois
File:Seal of the Attorney General of Illinois.svg, Seal of the Attorney General of Illinois
The Illinois Attorney General is the highest legal officer of the state of Illinois in the United States. Originally an appointed office, it is now an office filled by statewide election. Based in Chicago and Springfield, Illinois, the attorney ...
File:IDFPR circular logo.png, Seal of the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation
The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) is the Illinois state government code department that through its operational components, the Division of Banking, Division of Financial Institutions, Division of Profession ...
File:ISTHA Seal.JPG, Seal of the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority
The Illinois State Toll Highway Authority (ISTHA) is an administrative agency of the U.S. state of Illinois charged with building, operating, and maintaining toll roads in the state. The roads, as well as the authority itself, are sometimes referr ...
See also
* Illinois Centennial half dollar
The Illinois Centennial half dollar is a commemorative 50-cent piece struck by the United States Bureau of the Mint in 1918. The obverse, depicting Abraham Lincoln, was designed by Chief Engraver George T. Morgan; the reverse, based on the ...
* Symbols of Illinois
A symbol is a mark, sign, or word that indicates, signifies, or is understood as representing an idea, object, or relationship. Symbols allow people to go beyond what is known or seen by creating linkages between otherwise very different conce ...
References
External links
The Great Seal of the State of Illinois
Illinois State Flag
{{Illinois
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
Symbols of Illinois
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...