The state flag of Alaska displays eight gold stars, forming the

Big Dipper The Big Dipper ( US, Canada) or the Plough ( UK, Ireland) is a large asterism consisting of seven bright stars of the constellation Ursa Major; six of them are of second magnitude and one, Megrez (δ), of third magnitude. Four define a "bowl" ...

and Polaris, on a dark blue field. The Big Dipper is an asterism in the constellation

Ursa Major Ursa Major (; also known as the Great Bear) is a constellation in the northern sky, whose associated mythology likely dates back into prehistory. Its Latin name means "greater (or larger) bear," referring to and contrasting it with nearby Ursa ...

which symbolizes a bear, an animal indigenous to Alaska. As depicted on the flag, its stars can be used as a guide by the novice to locate Polaris and determine true north, which varies considerably from

magnetic north The north magnetic pole, also known as the magnetic north pole, is a point on the surface of Earth's Northern Hemisphere at which the planet's magnetic field points vertically downward (in other words, if a magnetic compass needle is allowed t ...

. The design was created by Benny Benson of Seward and selected from among roughly 700 entries in a 1927 contest. In 2001, a survey 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 ...

placed Alaska's flag fifth best in design quality out of the 72 Canadian provincial,

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

, and U.S. territory flags ranked. It finished behind the flags of New Mexico,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, and

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

respectively.

Design and origin

Thirty-two years before Alaska became a state, the Alaska Department of the American Legion sponsored a territorial contest for Alaskan children from seventh grade (age 12–13) to twelfth grade (age 17–18) to design a flag for the territory. In 1927, the contest committee chose fourteen year-old orphan Benny Benson's design to represent the future flag of the

Territory of Alaska The Territory of Alaska or Alaska Territory was an organized incorporated territory of the United States from August 24, 1912, until Alaska was granted statehood on January 3, 1959. The territory was previously Russian America, 1784–1867; the ...

. Benson, an Alaska Native, was a resident at the

Jesse Lee Home for Children The Jesse Lee Home for Children was a former home for displaced children on Swetmann Avenue in Seward, Alaska, United States. It was operated by the United Methodist Church from its opening in 1926 until the building suffered damage from a 1964 ...

in Seward. Until that time, Alaskans had flown only the

U.S. flag The national flag of the United States of America, often referred to as the ''American flag'' or the ''U.S. flag'', consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the ca ...

since the territory's purchase from Russia in 1867. Benson's design was chosen over roughly 700 other submissions from schoolchildren territory-wide. Most other entries featured variations on the territorial seal, the

midnight sun The midnight sun is a natural phenomenon that occurs in the summer months in places north of the Arctic Circle or south of the Antarctic Circle, when the Sun remains visible at the local midnight. When the midnight sun is seen in the Arctic, ...

, the northern lights,

polar bears The polar bear (''Ursus maritimus'') is a hypercarnivorous bear whose native range lies largely within the Arctic Circle, encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the largest extant bear specie ...

, and/or gold pans. To celebrate his achievement, Benson was awarded US$1,000 and an engraved

watch A watch is a portable timepiece intended to be carried or worn by a person. It is designed to keep a consistent movement despite the motions caused by the person's activities. A wristwatch is designed to be worn around the wrist, attached b ...

Flag of Alaska (Benny Benson Original Design)

Benny looked to the sky for the symbols he included in his design. Choosing the familiar constellation he looked for every night before going to sleep at the

orphanage An orphanage is a residential institution, total institution or group home, devoted to the care of orphans and children who, for various reasons, cannot be cared for by their biological families. The parents may be deceased, absent, or ab ...

, he submitted this description with it:

History

Russian-American Company Flag

Between 1799 and 1867 Alaska was governed by the

Russian-American Company The Russian-American Company Under the High Patronage of His Imperial Majesty (russian: Под высочайшим Его Императорского Величества покровительством Российская-Американс� ...

(RAC), a state-sponsored commercial company initially headquartered in Irkutsk, then St. Petersburg, Russia. The flag flown by the Company's ships and their shore establishments was Russia's commercial flag (civil ensign). On September 28 (October 10, new style) 1806, Aleksandr I, Emperor of Russia made a notation on the design submitted to him of a new flag for the Russian-American Company; "So be it", and added his cypher, thereby approving the first flag in Russia's history to be used by an Imperial chartered company. After Imperial confirmation, the ukase was heard in the Senate and on 19 October 1806 was sent for execution to the main office of the Russian-American Company (RAC), and also to the Admiralty and Commerce colleges. The new Company flag design of 1806 placed the Imperial eagle in the upper left quarter of Russia's commercial flag. In order that the State symbol remain unobstructed and more visible the width of the white stripe was enlarged to cover roughly one half of the flag's width. The normal width proportions of Russia's commercial flag were equal thirds. The Imperial eagle carried a scroll which dipped into the blue stripe, also for more visibility, which read, in abbreviated form "Russian American Company's". The symbolism of the scroll beneath the Imperial eagle complements the official version of the Company's name "Under His Imperial Majesty's Protection Russian-American Company."Бытъ По Сему – So be it: 200 years of the history and interpretation of "The flag granted by his Imperial Highness" The flag of the Russian-American Company. By John Middleton, September 2006. Fort Ross Conservancy web site
/ref> The flag flew over Alaska until October 18, 1867, when all Russian and American Company holdings in Alaska were sold to the United States.

State Flag

The Alaska Legislature adopted Benson's design as the official flag for the Territory of Alaska on May 2, 1927. The first flag made based on Benny's design was made of blue

silk Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. The best-known silk is obtained from the ...

and

appliqué Appliqué is ornamental needlework in which pieces or patches of fabric in different shapes and patterns are sewn or stuck onto a larger piece to form a picture or pattern. It is commonly used as decoration, especially on garments. The technique ...

d gold stars. It was retained as the state flag at Statehood in 1959. The flag's symbolism is described in the state song, " Alaska's Flag".

Historical Flags

{, class="sortable wikitable" , - ! class="unsortable" , Allegiance ! class="unsortable" , Governing Body ! class="unsortable" , Design(s) ! class="unsortable" , Dates in Use , - style="vertical-align:center;text-align:center;" , Claimed by Russian Empire , , N/A, , Flag of Russia

, , {{Dts, July 15, 1741 – July 8, 1799 , - style="vertical-align:center;text-align:center;" , rowspan="3" , Russian Empire , , rowspan="3" ,

, , {{Dts, 1799, 07, 8 – October 10, 1806 , - style="vertical-align:center;text-align:center;" , Flag of the Russian-American Company

, , {{Dts, 1806, 10, 10 – October 18, 1867 , - style="vertical-align:center;text-align:center;" , Flag of the Russian Empire (black-yellow-white)

, , {{Dts, 1858, 06, 11 – October 18, 1867 , - style="vertical-align:center;text-align:center;" , rowspan="9" , United States of America , , rowspan="2" , The Department of Alaska (United States Army) , , Flag of the United States (1867-1877)

, , {{Dts, 1867, 10, 18 – July 3, 1877 , - style="vertical-align:center;text-align:center;" , Flag of the United States (1877–1890)

, , {{Dts, 1877, 07, 4 – July 3, 1890 , - style="vertical-align:center;text-align:center;" , rowspan="4" ,

District of Alaska The District of Alaska was the federal government’s designation for Alaska from May 17, 1884 to August 24, 1912, when it became Alaska Territory. Previously (1867–1884) it had been known as the Department of Alaska, a military designation ...

, ,

, , {{Dts, 1890, 07, 4 – July 3, 1891 , - style="vertical-align:center;text-align:center;" , Flag of the United States (1891–1896)

, , {{Dts, 1891, 07, 4 – July 3, 1896 , - style="vertical-align:center;text-align:center;" , Flag of the United States (1896–1908)

, , {{Dts, 1896, 07, 4 – July 3, 1908 , - style="vertical-align:center;text-align:center;" , Flag of the United States (1908–1912)

, , {{Dts, 1908, 07, 4 – July 3, 1912 , - style="vertical-align:center;text-align:center;" , rowspan="2" , Territory of Alaska , , Flag of the United States (1912–1959)

, , {{Dts, 1912, 07, 4 – July 9, 1927 , - style="vertical-align:center;text-align:center;" , Flag of Alaska

, , {{Dts, 1927, 07, 9 – January 3, 1959 , - style="vertical-align:center;text-align:center;" , State of Alaska , Flag of Alaska

, , {{Dts, 1959, 01, 3 – present

References

{{Reflist, 2

External links

Catalog of the "Eight Stars" exhibit
at the

Alaska State Museum The Alaska State Museum is a museum in Juneau, Alaska, United States. The museum's collections include cultural materials from the people of the Northwest Coast (Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian), the Athabascan cultures of Interior Alaska, the Inupia ...

(PDF) {{US state flags {{Alaska {{DEFAULTSORT:Flag Of Alaska

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...

Symbols of Alaska