Colorado State Flag: History, Design, Trivia

DATE FIRST USED   Colorado State Flag June 5, 1911 NICKNAME(S) None DESIGN ELEMENTS Horizontal tri-band featuring equal-sized stripes of blue-white-blue from top to bottom. A red "C" with a diameter two-thirds the flag's width sits one-fifth the length of the flag from the hoist. The inside of the "C" is composed of a gold disk. Symbols: The letter "C" represents the state of Colorado and its citizens, Coloradans. The gold disk represents the sun. Colors: Blue, white, red, and gold. The colors represent the state's landscape. Blue symbolizes Colorado's skies, white is for the snowcapped mountains, red represents the earth, and gold represents sunshine. The shades of blue and red are the same as those used in the national flag. Proportions: 2:3 Variations: An unofficial variant with a centered "C" is reportedly sometimes seen. HISTORY The area that's now Colorado has had a number of flags over time. Conquistadors, notably Francisco Vázquez de Coronado, passed through the area and staked claims with the Spanish flag. About one hundred years later, Robert de LaSalle claimed part of Colorado for the French. Part of the modern state came under the U.S. flag after the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. State boundaries didn't exist until 1861. Parts of Colorado were part of the District of Louisiana and the Territory of Louisiana—as well as part of Missouri, Utah, New Mexico, Nebraska, Kansas, and Colorado Territories—and any flags these areas used would have flown. In 1876, Colorado became a state but did not adopt a state flag. Until 1907, the U.S. flag was the only official flag flying in Colorado. In 1907, the state adopted a banner, which was the state seal on a blue background. This only flew until 1911, when the Colorado General Assembly approved a new state flag similar to the modern flag. It featured the same blue-white-blue stripes and a red "C" with a yellow center. The "C" was much smaller, though, and fit within the flag's white stripe. Andrew Carlisle Carson, who also wrote a book called Colorado, Top of the World, designed the flag at the behest of the local Daughters of the American Revolution chapter. Although the flag's specifications were clearly written into law, there has been confusion about several of the flag's design elements over the years. First, there was some controversy over the flag's exact colors. In 1929, the red and blue were clearly defined as the same red and blue on the U.S. flag. Legislators chose not to address another issue with their flag at that time, though. A variant with a much larger "C" than on the flag designed by Carson had been commercially manufactured through an error. This might have been easy to correct, but, as it turned out, Coloradoans liked the flag with the large "C" better than the legal version and continued to demand it. In 1964, the General Assembly addressed the discrepancy and made the version with the large "C" the standard legal design. PROPER USES The state flag flies whenever and wherever the state of Colorado is publicly and formally represented. Citizens may also fly the flag as they see fit. Generally, the flag should be handled with care and respect and never deliberately marked or torn. Flags that become dirty or tattered through normal use must be replaced and disposed of privately and respectfully. As with all state flags, the U.S. flag and other national flags take priority over the state flag. LEGENDS, CONTROVERSIES, AND TRIVIA Carson's original flag description mentions Colorado's columbine flowers, which are a much lighter shade of blue than the one used in the current flag. Some Coloradans maintain that the correct blue for the flag should be much lighter to reflect this. Controversy about the specific size of the "C" was resolved by 1964 legislation by the General Assembly, which stipulated its diameter. The General Assembly also stated that the distance of the "C" from the hoist should be one-third the entire length of the flag. In spite of that, older variations with a centered "C" occasionally still fly. Colorado's flag law also specifies that intertwined cords of silver and gold with matching tassels should be attached to the flag. However, most flags do not adhere to this standard. Carson proposed that the "C" on the flag he designed could also stand for the state's nickname, the Centennial state. Red represents earth on the Colorado flag because of the minerals in the state's soil, which often give the ground and landscape a strong reddish cast. The Colorado River was named "colored" by early Spanish explorers because of the slightly reddish river silt. Today the river's alternate name is the Red River. -World Trade Press