{"id":2256,"date":"2015-05-28T09:15:56","date_gmt":"2015-05-28T13:15:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/?p=2256"},"modified":"2025-04-18T10:05:18","modified_gmt":"2025-04-18T14:05:18","slug":"rhode-island-flag-took-decades","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/rhode-island-flag-took-decades\/","title":{"rendered":"Rhode Island took decades to get flag"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Seal<\/a>In 1664, when it was a British colony, Rhode Island quickly came up with a one-word slogan: \u201cHope.\u201d Then things slowed down. It just squeaked onto the list of the first states in the Union, and it took forever to design a state flag. Even then, R.I. couldn\u2019t make up its mind.<\/p>\n

Rhode Island became the 13th state 225 years ago \u2013 on May 29, 1790. Nearly nine decades later, it finally came up with a state flag. Then came a change\u2026and then another.<\/p>\n

Maybe its original tardiness about its flag was due to Rhode Island\u2019s size: It\u2019s the smallest state but has the longest name. It\u2019s officially the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations.<\/p>\n

\"Rhode<\/a>
Rhode Island’s seal, fancifully drawn to capture hope amid a storm.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

According to the state\u2019s website (www.ri.gov<\/a>), \u201cThe Rhode Island General Assembly first adopted a Seal for the colony containing an anchor with the word \u2018Hope\u2019 above it on May 4, 1664.\u201d That seal would be employed again when it finally came time for a state banner.<\/p>\n

According to The Encyclopedia Britannica, \u201cRhode Island\u2019s first nonmilitary state flag was adopted on March 30, 1877. Its white background corresponded to the facings on state militia uniforms worn during the Revolution. The flag\u2019s anchor and motto were represented in Rococo style and encircled by blue stars corresponding to the number of states in the Union.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
An envelope from the Civil War included the Rhode Island seal. (Library of Congress)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

That version lasted only until 1882, when it was superseded \u201cby a simpler design \u2013 a blue field with a yellow anchor surrounded by a ring of 13 yellow stars, corresponding to the rank of the state among those ratifying the U.S. Constitution.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rhode Island, however, was still not content. Fifteen years later, the encyclopedia explains, \u201cthe current flag was substituted. Its juxtaposition of colors is contrary to heraldic custom because yellow on white is very difficult to distinguish, particularly when the flag is flying or seen under unfavorable lighting conditions.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Rhode<\/a>With its shifted star colors and altered background hues, the Rhode Island flag has a colorful history. And its penchant for changing flags makes one wonder when the next one will be coming down the pike \u2013 which, by the way, is the word the state\u2019s flag law uses instead of flagstaff.<\/p>\n

Being very specific, the law declares that \u201cthe pike shall be surmounted by a spearhead and the length of the pike shall be nine feet (9′), not including the spearhead.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In 1664, when it was a British colony, Rhode Island quickly came up with a one-word slogan: \u201cHope.\u201d Then things slowed down. It just squeaked onto the list of the first states in the Union, and it took forever to design a state flag. Even then, R.I. couldn\u2019t make up its mind. Rhode Island became… continue<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":2258,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[43,3,293,218],"class_list":["post-2256","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-history-lessons","tag-civil-war","tag-history","tag-rhode-island-flag","tag-state-flag"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Rhode Island flag took decades<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"With its shifted star colors and altered background hues, the Rhode Island flag has a colorful history.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/rhode-island-flag-took-decades\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" 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