Flag of Minnesota facts for kids
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| Use | Civil and state flag |
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| Proportion | 3:5 |
| Adopted | May 11, 2024 |
| Design | A light blue field with a dark blue obtuse angular figure on the hoist bearing a white eight-pointed star |
| Designed by |
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The state flag of Minnesota is a special symbol for the state. It has a light blue background that reminds us of Minnesota's many lakes and rivers. On the left side, there's a dark blue shape that looks like the state of Minnesota itself. Inside this dark blue shape, there's a white eight-pointed star. This star represents the North Star, which is also a part of Minnesota's motto, "L'Étoile du Nord" (The Star of the North). This star design is also found in the Minnesota State Capitol building.
Minnesota has had four official flag designs since 1893. The first three flags showed the state's old seal. This seal featured a pioneer farmer and a Native American warrior on horseback. Over time, people felt the old flags were too complicated and looked too much like other state flags. There were also concerns about how the old seal showed Native American people. These reasons led to calls for a new flag design.
In 2022, the Minnesota Legislature (the state's law-making group) created a special team called the State Emblems Redesign Commission. Their job was to suggest new designs for the state flag and seal. After getting many ideas from the public, the commission chose the current flag design in December 2023. This new flag became official on May 11, 2024. Many people like the new flag because it is simple and unique.
Understanding the Flag's Design
What the Law Says
Minnesota law (statute 1.141) officially adopted the design chosen by the State Emblems Redesign Commission as the state flag. The details of the flag's look are explained in the commission's report from January 1, 2024.
Commission's Description
The commission's report describes the flag like this: "On its left side, the flag contains a dark blue background with a white, 8 point star. One of the points of the star points north. The dark background is in the shape of the outline of the State of Minnesota. The remainder of the flag is a solid, bright blue." The report also includes drawings and instructions to show exactly how the flag should look.
How the Flag is Used
The Minnesota flag is flown over the Minnesota State Capitol building from sunrise to sunset. When the flag is put away, it should be folded in a similar way to the national flag.
Folding History
Before 2010, Minnesota's flag didn't have an official way to be folded. In 2010, rules were made for folding the 1983 flag. The way to fold it for storage was like the U.S. flag. However, the way to fold it for display was very detailed and confusing. These old folding rules were removed when the new flag was adopted in 2024.
Flag Shape and Colors
The flag has a shape where its width is 3 units for every 5 units of length. This is called an aspect ratio of 3:5. The dark blue part of the flag is shaped like the state of Minnesota itself. The white star on the flag is an eight-pointed star, just like a design found on the floor of the Minnesota State Capitol rotunda.
The flag uses three main colors: dark blue, light blue, and white.
- Dark blue stands for the night sky.
- Light blue represents Minnesota's many waters, like its lakes and rivers.
- White symbolizes Polaris, the North Star.
The commission's report also gave specific color codes for the flag.
| Name | RGB, or Web color | CMYK | Pantone | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Web color | R | G | B | Hex code | C | M | Y | K | ||
| White | 255 | 255 | 255 | |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | White | |
| Night Sky Blue | 0 | 45 | 93 | |
100 | 86 | 35 | 31 | 648 | |
| Water Blue | 82 | 201 | 232 | |
59 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 305 | |
History of Minnesota's Flags
The 1893 Flag
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In 1891, Minnesota decided to have an exhibit at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair. A group of women volunteers, called the Women's Auxiliary Board, decided to design a state flag because Minnesota didn't have one yet. They held a contest, and Amelia Hyde Center won in February 1893. Her design was then officially adopted as the state flag.
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The 1893 flag had a white front side and a bright blue back side. In the middle of both sides was the state seal. It showed a farmer plowing and a Native American figure on horseback. The flag also had the state motto, "L'Étoile du Nord" (The Star of the North), and important dates like 1819 (when Fort Snelling was built), 1858 (when Minnesota became a state), and 1893 (when the flag was adopted). There were also 19 gold stars, showing that Minnesota was the 19th state to join the U.S. after the first 13 colonies.
The first flag was made of silk and embroidered by Pauline and Thomane Fjelde. It became official on April 4, 1893.
The 1957 Flag
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The flag was updated in 1957, just before Minnesota's 100th birthday as a state in 1958. The biggest change was that both sides of the flag became royal blue. This made the flag easier and cheaper to make, and it lasted longer in the wind. Also, the flowers on the flag were changed to the pink-and-white lady's-slipper, which is Minnesota's state flower.
The center of this flag had a simpler version of the state seal. Around the seal were more flowers and the years 1819 and 1893. The year 1858 was at the top. There were still 19 stars, with one larger star at the top representing the North Star. The state's name was written in red at the bottom.
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In 1957, Joseph Nelson, a former leader of the Minnesota National Guard, also suggested a different flag design. It had 19 stars forming a larger star, on a flag with red, white, and blue stripes. However, this design was not chosen.
The 1983 Flag
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In 1983, the state seal on the flag was redrawn, and the blue color of the flag was made lighter. The exact shade of blue could be a bit different depending on who made the flag.
Some changes were made to the seal itself. The Native American figure was turned to face more towards the farmer. The Mississippi River and St. Anthony Falls were added to show their importance for travel and industry. Three pine trees were also added, representing the state tree (the Norway pine) and Minnesota's three main pine regions. The flag still showed the years 1819, 1858, and 1893, the pink-and-white lady's slipper, and 19 stars.
Proposed North Star Flag
The "North Star Flag" was designed in 1988 by Lee Herold and Reverend William Becker. This flag uses green for forests, white for winter, and blue for water. A yellow star in the top left corner represents the North Star and the state's motto, L'Étoile du Nord.
Lee Herold had wanted a new state flag since he was in high school. He showed his design to state lawmakers in 1989. Even though it was popular in an unofficial contest in 2001, the North Star Flag was never officially adopted by the state.
The 2024 Flag Redesign
The 2023 Redesign Commission
In 2021, a high school student contacted State Senator Ann Johnson Stewart to suggest changing the state flag. This led to a bill being introduced in the legislature. In May 2023, as part of the state budget, the Minnesota Legislature created the State Emblems Redesign Commission. This group was given the job of suggesting new designs for Minnesota's flag and seal. The law stated that the chosen design would become the official flag on May 11, 2024.
The commission had 13 members, including people from different cultural groups in Minnesota and members of the public chosen by Governor Tim Walz. They held their first meeting in September 2023.
In October 2023, the public sent in over 2,000 flag designs and almost 400 seal designs. Many ideas included the state bird (the loon), lakes, rivers, and the North Star. Some designs were very creative, while others were simple.
On November 21, 2023, the commission met to look at the designs. They chose six final flag designs. All the finalists had a star and used blue and white colors. None of them featured the loon, as the committee felt it only represented one part of Minnesota. On December 13, the number of finalists was narrowed down to three: F2100, F944, and F1953.
- Finalists selected by the commission
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F1953 – Designed by Andrew Prekker, selected as the basis of the final design on December 15
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F2100 – Designed by John Muller, eliminated on December 15
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F944 – The "Mirror of the Sky Flag", designed by Todd and Peter Pitman, eliminated on December 15
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F29 – "Starflake", designed by Brandon Hundt, eliminated on December 13
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F1154 – Designed by Ross Bruggink, eliminated on December 13
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F1435 – Designed by Sarah Agaton Howes, eliminated on December 13
Around the time of Minnesota's redesign, other U.S. states like Utah and Mississippi also changed their flags to make them more unique.
The Final Design
On December 15, 2023, the commission decided that the final flag would be a version of design F1953. By December 19, after some changes were made, the commission chose five variations of F1953 for the final vote.
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A2 (final design)
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B2
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C2
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D2
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E2
Design A2 was chosen as the final flag on December 19, 2023. This new state flag has a light blue background with a dark blue shape of Minnesota on the left side. A simple eight-pointed white star is in the center of the dark blue shape. The commission explained that the eight-pointed star is a design used by many different cultures and also looks like the letter M. It also matches a design on the floor of the Capitol's rotunda that points north.
The new flag officially became the state flag on May 11, 2024.
See also
In Spanish: Bandera de Minnesota para niños
- List of Minnesota state symbols
