The Great Seal of the State of Iowa was created in 1847 (one year after

Iowa Iowa () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, 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: Wiscon ...

became a U.S. state) and depicts a citizen soldier standing in a wheat field surrounded by symbols including farming, mining, and transportation with 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 ...

in the background. An eagle overhead bears the state motto.

Definition

The Seal of Iowa is described carefully under Iowa Code 1A.1 in the following: "''The secretary of state be, and is, hereby authorized to procure a seal which shall be the great seal of the state of Iowa, two inches in diameter, upon which shall be engraved the following device, surrounded by the words, 'The Great Seal of the State of Iowa' - a sheaf and field of standing

wheat Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeologi ...

, with a sickle and other farming utensils, on the left side near the bottom; a

lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cut, ...

furnace and pile of pig lead on the right side; the citizen soldier, with a

plow A plough or plow ( US; both ) is a farm tool for loosening or turning the soil before sowing seed or planting. Ploughs were traditionally drawn by oxen and horses, but in modern farms are drawn by tractors. A plough may have a wooden, iron or ...

in his rear, supporting the American flag and liberty cap with his right hand, and his gun with his left, in the center and near the bottom; the

in the rear of the whole, with the steamer Iowa under way; an

eagle Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, j ...

near the upper edge, holding in his beak a scroll, with the following inscription upon it: Our liberties we prize, and our rights we will maintain.''" Seal of iowa over time

It was approved by the First

Iowa General Assembly The Iowa General Assembly is the legislative branch of the state government of Iowa. Like the federal United States Congress, the General Assembly is a bicameral body, composed of the upper house Iowa Senate and the lower Iowa House of ...

on February 25, 1847. Since that date, there have been no revisions to the code governing this Seal. The Seal of Iowa is kept and used by the

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

for official purposes. Because the seal was not illustrated in the Iowa code, over the years there have been several variations with differences in color and arrangement of objects. The seal was not universally beloved when introduced, it was considered cluttered and ungainly, and the older Territorial Seal was utilized in several instances on official publications into the 1860s, including official currency. " Gov. Lowe, who, with every other gentleman of refinement, cannot but regret the bad taste that conceived and adopted the conglomerate devices of our present 'Great Seal'."

Symbols

The symbols presented on the seal reflect things important to early Iowa settlers. *Citizen soldier. The seal was approved during the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the ...

of 1846–1848, and the citizen soldier depicted with a "liberty cap" represents volunteer soldiers from Iowa. Battles of the Mexican-American war are memorialized in several Iowa place names, including the counties of

Buena Vista Buena Vista, meaning "good view" in Spanish, may refer to: Places Canada *Bonavista, Newfoundland and Labrador, with the name being originally derived from “Buena Vista” *Buena Vista, Saskatchewan * Buena Vista, Saskatoon, a neighborhood in ...

Palo Alto Palo Alto (; Spanish for "tall stick") is a charter city in the northwestern corner of Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto. The city was es ...

and Cerro Gordo. As is traditional in official symbols, weapons are held in the soldier's left hand, and items of peace and freedom in the right. * Liberty Cap. A "liberty cap", also called a Phrygian cap, is a brimless hat resembling a tall beret that is an ancient Greek symbol of freedom. However, the soldier on the seal typically wears a wide-brimmed hat that resembles a Civil War-era Cavalry hat. Most versions of the seal put the liberty cap on top of the flag staff, in imitation of a Liberty pole. *Wheat. Early settlers in the 1840s primarily planted wheat, and it was not until the introduction of the railroad in the 1850s and 1860s that

corn Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. The ...

became the primary crop grown in Iowa. Lead mining Barber 1865p321cropped

*Lead. Lead mining in the

Dubuque Dubuque (, ) is the county seat of Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, located along the Mississippi River. At the time of the 2020 census, the population of Dubuque was 59,667. The city lies at the junction of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, a ...

region was an early economic force; no lead is mined in Iowa today. A "pig" is a large slab of lead shaped in a furnace mold, with four corners protruding slightly to facilitate handling; thought to resemble the animal pig. *Steamer Iowa. The '' Steamboat Iowa'' was revered as one of the largest and fastest boats on the Mississippi; it set the speed record from Galena, Illinois to St. Louis in 1843, making the trip in 44 hours, a record that held until 1849. The Mississippi was the primary route of transportation in Iowa in the 1840s, and most large Iowa towns were on or near the Mississippi. *Eagle. The federal eagle was used in the earlier Seal of the Iowa Territory, and this symbol holding a banner with the motto of Iowa on it was incorporated into the

flag of Iowa The flag of the state of Iowa is a vertical tricolor flag designed by Mrs. Dixie Cornell Gebhardt in 1917. Iowa legislators officially adopted the flag in 1921. History The State of Iowa did not have a banner for the first 75 years of its co ...

"Plow in his rear" controversy

Concerned about portraying members of the Iowa National Guard in a poor light, in 2010 Rep. Ray Zirkelbach, a state legislator, recommended changing the text "the citizen soldier, with a plow in his rear" to "the citizen soldier, standing in front of a plow” because "in his rear" is considered a

malapropism A malapropism (also called a malaprop, acyrologia, or Dogberryism) is the mistaken use of an incorrect word in place of a word with a similar sound, resulting in a nonsensical, sometimes humorous utterance. An example is the statement attributed t ...

. His proposal was not considered in 2010 because of time constraints.

Iowa territorial seal

The state seal supplanted the Iowa Territory seal (1838–1846), which consisted of a Federal eagle holding an arrow in its mouth and a bow in its talon. "The Seal of Iowa contains the following simple device: An Eagle In the attitude of flight grasping in its dexter talon a Bow and holding in its beak an arrow. Around the border of the seal are the words, SEAL OF THE TERRITORY OF IOWA." The territorial seal was the basis for other state seals, including the first seal of the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized into 12 co ...

and the State Historical Society of Iowa, as well as the Civil War Arms of Iowa; these later seals had the bow held in the left talon, rather than the right. The Territorial seal was well liked as a simple image of the state and was used on state documents well into the 1860s, even after it had been officially replaced. According to the originator of the seal, territorial secretary

William B. Conway William Bernard Conway (1802–1839) was an American politician and newspaperman who was the first secretary and first acting governor of Iowa Territory. Early life and newspaper career Conway was born in New Castle County, Delaware. In Pittsburg ...

, "It is regarded as perfectly expressive of a distinct idea, intimately associated with the history of the delightful country which we have the happiness to inhabit... The slightest examination of the seal will disclose to the Honorable Council the eagle, the proud and appropriate emblem of our national power, bearing in its beak an Indian arrow, and clutching in its talons an unstrung bow; and while the idea thus delicately evolved is so well calculated to make the eye glisten with patriotic pride, and cause the heart to beat high with the pulsations of conscious superiority, it nevertheless presents a touching appeal to our manly sensibilities." Image: Iowa territorial seal.jpg, Iowa

Territorial A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or an ...

Seal, 1838. Image: University of Iowa mosaic.jpg,

seal mosaic, c. 1908, based on 1847 seal. Image:Old iowa hist soc seal.jpg, Original seal of the State Historical Society of Iowa, 1857. Image:Arms of Iowa 1865.jpg, Stylized

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...

arms of Iowa, c. 1861.

References

External links