Brief History of the Minnesota State Flag

Have you ever stopped to wonder about the history of the flag flying outside your local government building? The flag of Minnesota is a striking representation of our state, but it wasn’t always that way. In fact, the current flag is the result of a design competition held in 1957. Let’s take a look at how the Minnesota flag came to be.

The very first Minnesota flag was designed in 1858 by WILLIAM LAWRENCE, a pioneer who would later become the first lieutenant governor of the state. His design consisted of a simple blue background with a white star in the center. This original design was used until 1893, when the state legislature decided that a new flag was needed to represent Minnesota at the World’s Fair in Chicago.

A contest was held to find a new design, and the winner was LESTER KEENAN, a 14-year-old student from Winona. His design featured a field of blue representing the state’s sky, with a gold band across the center representing Minnesota’s prairies. In the center of the band was a red rose, symbolizing Minnesota as “The Land of 10,000 Lakes.” This design was used as the official state flag until 1957.

By 1957, it was clear that Keenan’s design needed to be updated to reflect Minnesota’s growing population and changing landscape. A new contest was held, this time with over 1,200 entries received. The winning design came from RAY DAVIS, an artist from Saint Paul. His design features three vertical stripes of blue and gold, with a white snowflake in the center stripe. This is the flag that flies over Minnesota today.

The current Minnesota flag is the result of two separate design competitions held 50 years apart. The first competition resulted in a simple but elegant design by WILLIAM LAWRENCE, while the second competition yielded RAY DAVIS’s more complex but still beautiful flag. Whether you prefer Lawrence’s original design or Davis’s more modern take, there’s no denying that the Minnesota flag is one of the most unique and recognizable flags in America.