 | |
| Use | Civil andstate flag  |
|---|---|
| Proportion | 3:4 |
| Adopted | September 9, 1897; 128 years ago (1897-09-09) |
| Design | A white shield with three grapevines on a field of royal/azure blue. |
.svg) Azure blue variant | |
Theflag of the U.S. state of Connecticut is a whitebaroque shield with threegrapevines, each bearing three bunches ofpurplegrapes on a field ofroyal blue. The banner below the shield reads "Qui Transtulit Sustinet,"Latin for "He who transplanted sustains,"Connecticut's state motto. Theflag dimensions are 5.5 feet (1.7 m) in length and 4.33 feet (1.32 m) in width.[1]
The first state flag was adopted during theAmerican Civil War. The flag was described as: "The field of the flag adopted was a deep blue, and the three vines, which had been on the Connecticut flag from the outset, were on a groundwork of white." Its nickname was Blue Peter, and it was usually hanging in the halls of theOld State House.[2]
In 1897, theConnecticut General Assembly approved a new flag after it was introduced by GovernorOwen Vincent Coffin in 1895.[1]Abby Day Slocomb, the regent of theAnna Warner Bailey chapter of theDaughters of the American Revolution, submitted the design.[3][4]
The design comes from the seal ofSaybrook Colony, designed byGeorge Fenwick when it was established in 1639. That seal depicted 15 grapevines and a hand in the upper left corner with a scroll reading "Sustinet qui transtulit." When the Connecticut Colony bought Saybrook in 1644, the seal transferred to the Connecticut Colony. On October 25, 1711, the governor and legislature changed the seal. They reduced the number of grapevines from 15 to three, to represent the three oldest settlements (Windsor,Wethersfield, andHartford)[5] (or possibly the three separatesettlements,Connecticut Colony,Saybrook Colony, andNew Haven Colony, which had been absorbed into Connecticut by that time) and rearranged the wording and position of the motto.
![Digital reconstruction of the state flag flown during the Civil War[2]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3a1860s_or_Civil_War_Connecticut_state_flag.png)
Customarily, the flag of Connecticut is flown at half-staff when thefederal flag is, which may be ordered by the President or the Governor.[6] According to 2007-R-0624, only thegovernor of Connecticut may decide that the state flag should be flown at half-staff, though the right is a power of office and not a law.
Typically, the state flag is flown at half-staff upon the death of a Connecticut resident serving in the armed forces,[7] upon the death of a former governor or serving member of thestate legislature, or for an event of great sorrow for Connecticut.[8]
During theSpanish-American War, the state organized two regiments of infantry (1st & 3rd) and three artillery batteries. The infantry carried theStars and Stripes bearing the name of the regiment on the stripes. Their regimental flag was blue with the state coat of arms in the center and the name of the regiment placed above in gold.[9]
In 1900, the New York Society of Sons of the Revolution sent the historicNathen Hale schoolhouse to the Connecticut Society Sons of the Revolution.[10] One year later, members of the society got permission to move and restore the building. To celebrate the restoration, the society invitedGovernor McLean and some companies of the National Guard to celebrate. The men carried with them a state flag and a state banner.[11] The banner design was not described, but it most likely flew vertically.
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