Louise Funk (February 9, 1900 - July 27, 1986) was born in

Van Buren, Arkansas Van Buren ( ) is the second-largest city in the Fort Smith, Arkansas–Oklahoma Metropolitan Statistical Area and the county seat of Crawford County, Arkansas, United States. The city is located directly northeast of Fort Smith at the Interstat ...

to R. W. and Trimmier Sloan Funk and moved to

Shawnee, Oklahoma Shawnee ( sac, Shânîheki) is a city in Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma, Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 29,857 in 2010, a 4.9 percent increase from the figure of 28,692 in 2000. The city is part of the Oklahoma Cit ...

with her family a year later. As a young girl she received art lessons from Marjorie Dodge Tapp. After graduating from Shawnee High School, she continued her art lessons at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

and the

Chicago Art Institute The Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago's Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and list of largest art museums, largest art museums in the world. Recognized for its curatorial efforts and popularity among visit ...

. After returning to Shawnee, she married George Fluke on December 18, 1924. While sewing her own wedding gown, she learned that the state organization of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) had announced a contest to design a new state flag. Her fiance encouraged her to take the time to enter the contest. She took three weeks to study artifacts at the Oklahoma Historical Society, and entered five different designs. The DAR judges picked one of hers as the winner. The legislature approved her

Flag of Oklahoma The flag of Oklahoma consists of a traditional Osage buffalo-skin shield with seven eagle feathers on a Choctaw sky blue field. The buffalo shield is covered by two symbols of peace: the Plains-style ceremonial pipe representing Native A ...

on March 25, 1926. Fluke died of pneumonia in July 1986, at the age of 86. On April 2, 2005, the 80th anniversary of this version of the flag flying above the state capitol, the descendants of Mrs. Fluke presented the Oklahoma Senate with an original large silk flag that was both sewn and painted by hand. Louise Fluke had signed the banner; her signature is quite visible on the right-hand side below the shield. The flag has been treated and mounted in a pressurized gilt frame."Oklahoma's First Official Flag Donated to State by Designer's Family." Oklahoma State Senate. Press Release. April 2, 2005.
Accessed January 3, 2017. IN July, 1925, the Flukes moved to

Ponca City, Oklahoma Ponca City ( iow, Chína Uhánⁿdhe) is a city in Kay County in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The city was named after the Ponca tribe. Ponca City had a population of 25,387 at the time of the 2010 census- and a population of 24,424 in the 2020 ...

. She continued living there even after her husband died in 1953. She survived an automobile accident that claimed the life of her husband. Hendley, Ray. "The Sooner State's Flag." ''Oklahoma Today''. Vol. VI, No. 8 Sept.-Oct. 1956.
Accessed January 4, 2017. She raised their son, who was also named George. She worked as a substitute art teacher in the Ponca City public schools, served as President of the Twentieth Century Club and was a regent of the DAR. In 1982, her activities were recognized with the Pioneer Woman Award by Governor

George Nigh George Patterson Nigh (born June 9, 1927) is an American politician and civic leader from the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Nigh served as the 17th and the 22nd governor of Oklahoma and as the eighth and tenth lieutenant governor of Oklahoma. He was th ...

at the Marland Mansion Renaissance Ball."Louise Trimmier Funk Fluke." FindAGrave. August 7, 2007.
Accessed January 3, 2017. Louise died July 27, 1986. She was buried at Fairview Cemetery in Shawnee, Oklahoma with her parents and her husband George.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fluke, Louise 1986 deaths 1900 births People from Shawnee, Oklahoma People from Ponca City, Oklahoma Artists from Oklahoma Deaths from pneumonia in Oklahoma Flag designers

See also

References