Walking on the Moon!

In a very real sense, it will not be one man going to the moon. 
It will be an entire nation, for all of us 

must work to put him there.  

~ President John F. Kennedy

July 20, 1969:

"The Eagle has landed."

Buzz Aldrin saluting the US flag on the moon. (NASA.gov)

With those words, a seemingly impossible dream became reality: Man finally was going to touch – to walk upon – that silvery, celestial orb that hangs from our night time sky. ... Way cool.

What makes this journey so collective? Why is July 20 the anniversary of when "we" walked on the moon rather than simply when "a man" walked on the moon? 

It is not a stretch to imagine how impossible such a dream must seem to a collective consciousness. Be it our first look skyward out of the proverbial cave or star gazing from skyscraper balconies, our perennial star gazing has not decreased the wonder nor the beauty of the heavens.

Where does the moon stand amidst this panoply? The moon is simply and impossibly the first celestial orb that we have touched.

The moon

The moon waxes, wanes, and blooms. It turns colors like harvest gold, copper fire, or mythical blue. It makes cloud cover glow. It is constantly changing and a constant to look upon and wonder at as we  consider the constant shifting of our own lives.

From a human, cultural perspective, that first moon walk may have been conceived by the Cold War but ultimately, it defied political system and country of origin. Instead, it took the people of this planet on that journey. 

As the first moon walker so aptly put it:

This is one small step for a man; one giant leap for mankind.

~ American astronaut Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon

The flag on the moon

Not without debate was it decided to plant a US flag upon the moon. The larger question was how to "fly" the flag under windless conditions? A simple plan was devised.

The first decision was to fly a common 3'x5' nylon American flag, the most popular size flown then as well as now. (Its manufacturer, by the way, was purposefully lost to history. In order to accomplish this, NASA sent employees out to purchase a slew of 3'x5' flags from local stores including hardware stores, Sears and so on. Who actually made the flag that would fly on the moon? They didn't want it to matter.)

sketched plans of how to "wave" the flag from the moon (NASA.gov)

In order to create the illusion of an American flag flying proudly in the wind, NASA engineers decided to fly the flag from a specially constructed flag pole. A simple, 3-part, aluminum flag pole was used that could be taken apart for the trip and reassembled once on the moon. The pole would attach to a specially constructed, horizontal type of "curtain rod" assembly at its top. The horizontal rod would allow the flag to be constantly at attention. (See above illustration.)

In order to create this discreetly, a fabric tunnel or "hem" (again, like the top of a curtain) would be sewn along the top edge of the flag. The horizontal pole would be inserted into this hem and the flag would have the appearance of flying. Simple, yes? And it was.

Did you know? 
The only time this flag actually "waved" was from the propulsion of the Apollo's take off.

The race to the moon

Getting to the moon was a national aspiration birthed by President John F. Kennedy. Kennedy made it a national goal, a national desire – an objective that embodied American know-how and industry with American spirit. 


In his speeches on the subject, Kennedy describes mankind as having great potential and the ability to do great things. He does not limit this description or belief to one nation. He also urges us to push ourselves to discover all that is great within us. 

If you are of a certain age, you grew up with these ideas, ideas that defined mankind as a noble creature, that defined the individual as capable of great good and with the responsibility to do good.

As President Kennedy says in this speech to Rice University in 1962:

We choose to do this not because it is easy, but because it is hard. Because that challenge is one we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one we intend to win.  

In his State of the Union speech on May 25, 1961, Kennedy first put the challenge to Congress, noting right away that this would be a long term and an expensive challenge.

Why did Kennedy believe that getting to the moon was so important? 

Why did he choose to put before us such a long-term, such an expensive, and such a seemingly impossible goal? 
What did that give to us as a nation? 

What did it give to that generation who grew up with this goal not yet in hand but soon to be within reach?

Surely, the importance was far greater than the actual getting to the moon. In the midst of the Cold War, this race helped define us as a nation. It gave us pride and purpose, and fed that quality of optimism and spirit that often has described this country and this people.

Kennedy's mission also redefined the nature of human endeavor – as led by a free world.  

So I ask you: How does it feel when you watch this man – this American, this pioneer, this brave heart – walk on the moon and share those steps with you? 

This video (courtesy of CBS News) from July 20, 1969 shows the actual moon. It is narrated by Walter Cronkite, the voice of American news at that time. The run time is approximately 2:00.

Walter Cronkite goes with us as we watch the Apollo XI launch from Cape Canaveral and then as we watch it land on the moon and see Neil Armstrong take those first historic steps. (Courtesy CBS News)

The Apollo XI crew (from left): Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, Buzz Aldrin (NASA.gov)

"We came in peace for all mankind."

Accompanying the flag that is on the moon is a plaque (written in English) that shows the planet Earth and gives the date of our landing. It is signed by four people: the astronauts who were on the voyage (Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin actually got to walk on the moon; Michael Collins, a third pilot who did not get to walk on the moon) and then-president of the United States, Richard M. Nixon.


In one of history's ironies, Kennedy first ran for president against Nixon but it was Nixon who would see Kennedy's dream come true and who would be the president whose signature is preserved on the lunar plaque.

The plaque that accompanies the flag on the moon is signed by President Nixon.

From President Kennedy's 1961 State of the Union:

To Congress and the Nation

"Our greatest asset ... is the American people." 

        

If we are to win the battle that is now going on around the world between freedom and tyranny ... it is time to take longer strides – time for a great new American enterprise – time for this nation to take a clearly leading role in space achievement, which in many ways may hold the key to our future on earth.

I believe we possess all the resources and talents necessary. But the facts of the matter are that we have never made the national decisions or marshaled the national resources required for such leadership. We have never specified long-range goals on an urgent time schedule, or managed our resources and our time so as to insure their fulfillment. ...

For while we cannot guarantee that we shall one day be first, we can guarantee that any failure to make this effort will make us last. ... But this is not merely a race. Space is open to us now; and our eagerness to share its meaning is not governed by the efforts of others. We go into space because whatever mankind must undertake, free men must fully share.

I therefore ask the Congress, above and beyond the increases I have earlier requested for space activities, to provide the funds which are needed to meet the following national goals:

First, I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the earth. 

No single space project in this period will be more impressive to mankind, or more important for the long-range exploration of space; and none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish. We propose to accelerate the development of the appropriate lunar space craft. We propose to develop alternate liquid and solid fuel boosters, much larger than any now being developed, until certain which is superior. We propose additional funds for other engine development and for unmanned explorations--explorations which are particularly important for one purpose which this nation will never overlook: the survival of the man who first makes this daring flight.

But in a very real sense, it will not be one man going to the moon--if we make this judgment affirmatively, it will be an entire nation. For all of us must work to put him there.

Secondly, an additional 23 million dollars, together with 7 million dollars already available, will accelerate development of the Rover nuclear rocket. This gives promise of some day providing a means for even more exciting and ambitious exploration of space, perhaps beyond the moon, perhaps to the very end of the solar system itself. Third, an additional 50 million dollars will make the most of our present leadership, by accelerating the use of space satellites for world-wide communications. Fourth, an additional 75 million dollars--of which 53 million dollars is for the Weather Bureau--will help give us at the earliest possible time a satellite system for world-wide weather observation.

Let it be clear ... I am asking the Congress and the country to accept a firm commitment to a new course of action, a course which will last for many years and carry very heavy costs: 531 million dollars in fiscal '62--an estimated seven to nine billion dollars additional over the next five years. If we are to go only half way, or reduce our sights in the face of difficulty, in my judgment it would be better not to go at all. ... It is a most important decision that we make as a nation. But all of you have lived through the last four years and have seen the significance of space and the adventures in space, and no one can predict with certainty what the ultimate meaning will be of mastery of space.

I believe we should go to the moon. But I think every citizen of this country as well as the Members of the Congress should consider the matter carefully in making their judgment, to which we have given attention over many weeks and months, because it is a heavy burden, and there is no sense in agreeing or desiring that the United States take an affirmative position in outer space, unless we are prepared to do the work and bear the burdens to make it successful. If we are not, we should decide today and this year.

This decision demands a major national commitment of scientific and technical manpower, material and facilities, and the possibility of their diversion from other important activities where they are already thinly spread. It means a degree of dedication, organization and discipline which have not always characterized our research and development efforts. It means we cannot afford undue work stoppages, inflated costs of material or talent, wasteful inter-agency rivalries, or a high turnover of key personnel. ...

In conclusion, let me emphasize one point: that we are determined, as a nation in 1961 that freedom shall survive and succeed – and whatever the peril and set-backs, we have some very large advantages.

The first is the simple fact that we are on the side of liberty--and since the beginning of history, and particularly since the end of the Second World War, liberty has been winning out all over the globe.

A second real asset is that we are not alone. We have friends and allies all over the world who share our devotion to freedom. ...

A third asset is our desire for peace. It is sincere, and I believe the world knows it. We are proving it in our patience at the test ban table, and we are proving it in the UN where our efforts have been directed to maintaining that organization's usefulness as a protector of the independence of small nations. In these and other instances, the response of our opponents has not been encouraging.

Yet it is important to know that our patience at the bargaining table is nearly inexhaustible, though our credulity is limited that our hopes for peace are unfailing, while our determination to protect our security is resolute. ...

Finally, our greatest asset in this struggle is the American people – their willingness to pay the price for these programs ... and, finally, to practice democracy at home, in all States, with all races.

Let it fly!

 
 

 

The Idaho state flag

In 1907, Idaho adopted a very simple design for its state flag: Centered in the middle of a dark blue field would be the official state seal and a banner declaring the state name. A gold fringe is to encircle the entire flag.

The Idaho state flag

 Although the design for the state flag has not changed, the state seal has been revised a few times since its original design when Idaho was a territory. Here is that history.

Starting Points: The State Seal

Silas D. Cochran was a clerk working in the Idaho Secretary of State's office. He is the designer of the Idaho Territorial Seal, c. 1863.


The territorial seal includes an illustration of an eagle with wings spread above a shield. Inside the shield is a mountain landscape with the sun's rays spreading outward. It bears the legend "The Union", a powerful slogan for a nation at war, occupied with counting "free" and "slave" areas as territories are granted statehood.

Idaho's first territorial seal, c. 1863

In 1866, however, then-governor of Idaho 's territory, Caleb Lyon, redesigned the seal. Lyon's design features two women surrounding a shield featuring a view of mountains and birds. An elk's antlers rise above the shield; the legend, "Salve" is below it. Salve is Latin for "hello." Lyon's seal was used until 1890, Idaho's year of statehood.

Idaho's second territorial seal, c. 1866

Celebrating Statehood

In celebration of statehood, Idaho holds a contest for the design of its State Seal. The prize is $100, a generous amount in those days, approximately $2,784 is 2012 dollars (Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis).

Miss Edward's original painting (Idaho State Historical Archives)

Miss Emma Sarah Edwards eventually is chosen as the winner. A recent graduate from an art school on the East coast and the daughter of Missouri's former governor, Miss Edwards was visiting friends on her way to California when she fell in love with Idaho and decided to stay and teach art. Miss Edwards' design became the State Seal of Idaho in 1891. Her original painting is in the Idaho State Historical Society. As for Miss Edwards, herself, she later married and became Mrs. Emma Edwards Green.

Designing her version of the State Seal

From Miss Edwards' version of events (link to state archive), she interviewed legislators to get the inside track on what they thought the seal should represent. Given her family background, she had their access – and she used it. Many of the legislators also were miners who encouraged her to include a miner in the seal – which she did.

The seal includes a woman (a virginal icon representing both liberty as well as suffrage) and a man (the miner). The elk horns and the mountains remained from Gov. Lyon's design. Above the mountains, however, Miss Edwards included a sunrise. Above the shield is the legend, in Latin, "Esto Perpetua," meaning, in perpetuity or, more aptly, Idaho forever. 

The 1957 Idaho State Seal

The Idaho State Seal was "updated" in 1957 by Paul B. Evans with some of the key images standardized or more clarified to better illustrate the state's natural resources and main industries of agriculture, mining and forestry. Technically, this design is the official state seal (www.idaho.gov).

Let it fly!

Sources used:

Idaho.gov

Federal Reserve of Minneapolis inflation calculator (www. minneapolisfed.org/community_education/teacher/calc/hist1800.cfm)

The Declaration of Independence and the Towns of Independence

Have you ever read the Declaration of Independence aloud on Independence Day? 

Reading this document on that day can make you rethink what it meant for an 18th century citizen to call a king a tyrant, and choose to stand not just for independence but for democracy. 

The Declaration is about much more than only protesting taxation without representation. It is a short but very strong statement about the rights of man and the responsibility of those who govern.

The Declaration of Independence (WhiteHouse.gov)

If you've never read the Declaration of Independence aloud, let this 4th of July be different. It won't take long and what you will find probably will surprise and maybe even shock you.

Your own copy of the Declaration of Independence

Just click here for a printer friendly version (courtesy of the National Archives) or scroll down to the bottom of this blog.

The original draft

To see the original rough or "fair" draft of the Declaration as written in Thomas Jefferson's own hand, click here.

Quick facts about the Declaration 

• 56 people signed the Declaration (see full list at bottom of blog)

• The 2nd Continental Congress first voted for independence on July 2, 1776.

• The Declaration was not completely corrected and approved until July 4, 1776.

• The first printing was made late the same day it was voted on.

• The Declaration was first publicly posted and read aloud throughout the colonies on July 5, including distribution to the Continental Army.

• General Washington read the Declaration aloud to his troops on July 9.

• The first printed copy of the Declaration is called the Dunlap Broadside after the Philadelphia printer who made the first copies. 26 copies still exist. 

• Though we know it as a declaration of independence, to the King it was a formal declaration of war.

• Signing the Declaration was an act of treason and punishable by death.

For more facts about the Declaration, visit this link to the National Archives.

How many cities are named after Independence?

It turns out, quite a few!

We think we've created a totally complete list. (Thank you, Rand McNally maps.)  If we've missed your town, let us know so we can add it.

 

Cities and towns named Independence: 
East Independence, Missouri

Independence, Alabama

Independence, California
Independence, Indiana

Independence, Illinois

Independence, Iowa
Independence, Kansas
Independence, Kentucky
Independence, Louisiana
Independence, Michigan
Independence, Minnesota (West of Duluth)
Independence, Minnesota (West of St. Paul)

Independence, Mississippi
Independence, Missouri
Independence, New Jersey

Independence, New York

Independence, Ohio
Independence, Oklahoma

Independence, Oregon
Independence, Pennsylvania
Independence, Tenessee

Independence, Texas
Independence, Virginia
Independence, West Virginia
Independence, Wisconsin

Independence Corner, New Jersey

Independence Hill, Indiana

Mount Independence, Pennsylvania

Point Independence,  Massachusetts

West Independence, Ohio

Cities and towns named after George Washington:

George Washington, c. 1782. Bio courtesy of Whitehouse.gov.

George Washington, Grant Co., Washington

George Washington Village, Virginia

Georgetown, Delaware

Georgetown, Georgia

Georgetown, Illinois

Georgetown, Indiana

Georgetown, Kentucky

Georgetown, Massachusetts

Georgetown, Michigan

Georgetown, Ohio

Georgetown, Pennsylvania

Georgetown, South Carolina

Georgetown, Texas

Port Washington, New York

Port Washington, Wisconsin

Washington, Connecticut

Washington DC

Washington,Georgia

Washington, Illinois

Washington, Indiana

Washington, Iowa

Washington, Kansas

Washington,  Massachusetts

Washington Township, Michigan

Washington, Missouri

Washington, New Hampshire

Washington, New Jersey

Washington, North Carolina

Washington, Pennsylvania

Washington, Ohio

Washington Court House, Ohio

Washington Crossing, NJ

Washington's Crossing, Pennsylvania

Washington Terrace, Utah

Washingtonville, New York

Washingtonville, Pennsylvania

Washington Center, Indiana

Washington Center, Missouri

Washington Camp, Arizona

Washington Corner, Virginia

Washington Corners, New Jersey

Washington Township, New Jersey

A full transcript of the Declaration of Independence:

IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776.

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,
When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.
He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.
He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.
He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.
He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.
He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.
He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:
For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:
For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:
For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:
For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:
For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:
For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences
For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:
For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:
For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.
He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.
He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our Brittish brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

The 56 signers and the states they represent:
Massachusetts:
   John Hancock
   Samuel Adams
   John Adams
   Robert Treat Paine
   Elbridge Gerry
Georgia:
   Button Gwinnett
   Lyman Hall
   George Walton
North Carolina:
   William Hooper
   Joseph Hewes
   John Penn
South Carolina:
   Edward Rutledge
   Thomas Heyward, Jr.
   Thomas Lynch, Jr.
   Arthur Middleton
Maryland:
  Samuel Chase
  William Paca
  Thomas Stone
  Charles Carroll of Carrollton
Virginia:
  George Wythe
  Richard Henry Lee
  Thomas Jefferson
  Benjamin Harrison
  Thomas Nelson, Jr.
  Francis Lightfoot Lee
  Carter Braxton
Pennsylvania:
   Robert Morris
   Benjamin Rush
   Benjamin Franklin
   John Morton
   George Clymer
   James Smith
   George Taylor
   James Wilson
   George Ross
Delaware:
   Caesar Rodney
   George Read
   Thomas McKean
New York:
   William Floyd
   Philip Livingston
   Francis Lewis
   Lewis Morris
New Jersey:
   Richard Stockton
   John Witherspoon
   Francis Hopkinson
   John Hart
   Abraham Clark
New Hampshire:
   Josiah Bartlett
   Matthew Thornton
   William Whipple
Rhode Island:
   Stephen Hopkins
   William Ellery
Connecticut:
   Roger Sherman
   Samuel Huntington
   William Williams
   Oliver Wolcott

Let it fly!  

The Flag of West Virginia

The flag of West Virginia, the 35th state

On June 20, 1863, West Virginia became the 35th state in the Union. A free state, West Virginia was one of several new states created prior to the Civil War with a hope to balancing Congress and thus prevent a war over slavery.

The design of the West Virginia state flag was passed in the spring of 1929. The flag has a field of white surrounded by a wide, blue border. Centered in the middle of the white field is a version of the state seal designed especially for the flag. It contains several classical elements including two banners, a garland , a baroque style implied shield, the state motto, and a symbolic depiction of the state's roots and early industry. 

The West Virginia seal as designed for its flag.

 The red banner at the top holds the state's name: State of West Virginia. Below this is a lush, green and red garland of rhododendron, the state flower. Inside this garland is a baroque style shield in the color gold. This circlet  includes the official state seal as designed for the flag along with the state motto.

The state motto is Montani Semper Liberi, Latin for "mountaineers are always free." The motto, also in a red banner, is centered inside the bottom of the gold circlet. Above this, the seal contains a picture of two men, one is a farmer and the other is a miner. Between them is a large rock with the date of West Virginia's statehood, June 20, 1863.

The Liberty cap from American and French revolutions.

Below the miner, farmer and great rock are two crossed rifles. At the juncture sits a red Liberty cap.

The Liberty cap or Phrygian cap dates to ancient Rome and is associated with the hats worn by freed slaves.

Let it fly!

Blackwater Falls in Beartown State Park, Pocahontas County, West Virginia. It doesn't get more magical than this.

The Flags of New Hampshire and Virginia

The Liberty Tree

New Hampshire and Virginia are the 9th and 10th states to join the Union. Both gained statehood during the month of June. New Hampshire's statehood date is June 21, 1788. Virginia arrived 4 days later on June 25, 1788.

New Hampshire's state flag

The flag of New Hampshire is a clean and classic design employing a field of blue with the state seal in the middle surrounded by the legend, "Seal of the State of New Hampshire 1776." The legend is further encircled by a ring of laurel leaves and nine stars to represent New Hampshire's standing as the 9th of the original 13 colonies.

The design was adopted in 1909 and has had but a single change since which was to clarify the design of the seal.

 

The flag of Virginia, like New Hampshire's flag, consists of a blue field with the official seal in the center. Specifically, it includes Virginia's coat of arms from the Continental Convention of 1776. George Mason and Thomas Jefferson's law professor, George Wythe, designed the seal.

Flag of the Commonwealth of Virginia

This coat of arms is both arresting and highly symbolic as it features Virtue, portrayed as "an Amazon" in classical Greek garb of helmet and toga. Virtue holds a spear in one hand, its point resting on the ground; and a sword in the other, pointing up. Virtue, symbolizing Virginia, has its foot resting on the seemingly dead figure of a man representing tyranny. A crown is on the ground beside the fallen tyrant. The legend reads: Sic Semper Tyrannis ("Thus always to tyrants" i.e., "death to tyrants").

Where have I heard that phrase before?

"Sic semper tyrannis" is generally attributed to Brutus after Caesar's stabbing. John Wilkes Booth uttered the phrase after shooting President Lincoln.

The First Flag of the Commonwealth of Virginia

Formally, Virginia is a commonwealth rather than a state, a designation also used by Kentucky, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania. The flag of the Commonwealth of Virginia, however, was not adopted until after Virginia seceded from the Union. In preparing for the upcoming civil war, the Virginia Convention of 1861 (the Secession Convention) first voted to repeal its ratification of the US Constitution (April 17, 1861) making it an independent state and free to adopt another constitution, that of the Confederacy. Less than a fortnight later, it voted in its official flag (April 30, 1861).

George Wyte

Changes to Virginia's flag, like New Hampshire's flag, have been minimal. They include a white fringe added to the fly in 1930, and an ornamental border of Virginia Creeper that was added around the seal in 1931. Colors were codified in 1949.

The Great Minds Link

George Wyte not only taught law to Jefferson but also Henry Clay and James Monroe. To find out more about this man, the first law professor in America, go to this link:

George Wyte bio.gov

George Mason

Who was George Mason? 

If George Wyte was our first law professor, George Mason was the mastermind behind both the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution. Mason is the framer of the forerunner to those documents, the Virginia Declaration of Rights. To read this document, go to this link:

George Mason @ Colonial Williamsburg Foundation

Let it fly!