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The Illinois state flag was created in 1915 after a campaign by the Daughters of the American Revolution. The winning design featured the state seal on a white field. In 1970, the flag was updated to include the word “Illinois” thanks to the efforts of a Vietnam veteran.
The history of the Illinois state flag began as an idea from a member of one of the state chapters of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR). Although Illinois was admitted to the Union in 1818, nearly 100 years later no state flag had been officially designated. Beginning in 1912, Mrs. Ella Lawrence began a campaign through Illinois DAR chapters to have the legislature officially adopt a state flag. In 1915, she saw her campaign end in success with the acceptance of a draft and the final passage of legislation adopting a flag for the state. Years later, in 1970, some changes were made to the initial project; a second flag was then named the official flag of the state of Illinois, replacing the original one.
After being elected Regent of the State of Illinois for the DAR in 1911, Mrs. Lawrence attended the organization’s annual national conference in Washington, DC. Back home, she ran a contest through local DAR chapters to design the official state flag of Illinois, offering a $25 US Dollar (USD) prize to the chapter that came up with the best concept. During the next two years, 35 entries were presented for consideration by a panel that included the Illinois Secretary of State. The winning entry for the Illinois state flag consisted of the state seal, originally adopted in 1819, on a white field; it was finally approved by the legislature in 1915.
Interestingly, again as a result of the actions of one of the state’s citizens, the design of the Illinois state flag was changed in the late 1960s. In 1969, an Illinois native serving in Vietnam took note of the many state flags that hung in the cafeteria where he ate each day. Of all these flags, the Illinois state flag has had its origin most consistently questioned. This was due to the fact that the state name was not part of the project.
Upon his return home, Chief Petty Officer Bruce McDaniel expressed his concern about this omission in the flag’s design to his representative in the state legislature and requested that the design be changed to include the word “Illinois.” Subsequently, his representative agreed to sponsor that bill, which was passed by the legislature and signed into law in 1970. Other than this single change, the Illinois state flag has remained unchanged since its adoption in 1915.
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