Tennessee, the Volunteer State, has manysymbols.
Official symbols of the state are designated by act of theTennessee General Assembly. The earliest state symbol was the first state seal, which was authorized by the originalstate constitution of 1796 and first used in 1802.[1] The current seal design was adopted in 1987.
The General Assembly also has officially designated a stateslogan, "Tennessee—America at Its Best," adopted in 1965, and a statemotto, "Agriculture and Commerce," adopted in 1987 and based on the words on the state seal.[1]
"The Volunteer State", was originated during theWar of 1812 when many Tennesseansenlisted in the military in response to GovernorWillie Blount's call forvolunteers.[1]
| State flag | |
 | Main article:Flag of Tennessee Tennessee's state flag, adopted in 1905, has three stars representing the state's threeGrand Divisions:West,Middle, andEast Tennessee. The designer was LeRoy Reeves of the Tennessee National Guard, who explained: "The three stars are of pure white, representing the three grand divisions of the state. They are bound together by the endless circle of the blue field, the symbol being three bound together in one – an indissoluble trinity."[2] |
| State seal | |
 | Main article:Seal of Tennessee Tennessee's current state seal, adopted in 1987, is a modernized version of the seal originally designed in 1801. The seal features the words "Agriculture" and "Commerce" and the date of the state's founding. The number 16 appears as aRoman numeral, signifying that Tennessee was the 16thU.S. state. The theme of Agriculture is illustrated by images of aplow, a bundle ofwheat, and acottonplant, while the theme of Commerce is illustrated by an image of ariverboat.[1] |
| State tree | |
 | In 1947 the tulip poplar was designated as the official statetree of Tennessee. The General Assembly act stated that it was chosen "because it grows from one end of the state to the other" and "was extensively used by thepioneers of the state to construct houses, barns, and other necessary farm buildings."[1] |
| State flowers | |
  | Tennessee has two state flowers. Thepurple passionflower (Passiflora incarnata) is the state'swildflower and theiris is the state's cultivated flower. In 1919, theTennessee General Assembly passed a resolution providing for a state flower to be chosen by avote of the state's school children, with the process to be overseen by a five-member commission. The resolution stated "That the flower which shall be named by the school children and certified by the commission shall be recognized as the State flower." Shortly after the resolution was enacted, a newspaper listed children's favorite flowers as includingdaisy,elder bloom,goldenrod,red clover,rose,sunflower,water lily,wild rose, andviolet. However, after the votes were counted, the commission announced that the school children had selected the passion flower, making it the state flower.[3] The purple passionflower, calledocoee by theCherokee and colloquially known as "maypop", isnative throughout the state and was reported to be abundant. By the early 1930s,flower gardening was growing in popularity,garden clubs were being organized, andNashville had become known for the iris. Gardeners campaigned to have the iris designated the state flower, and in 1933 the General Assembly adopted a resolution stating "The State of Tennessee has never adopted a State Flower" and designating the iris as the "State Flower of Tennessee."[3] Because the General Assembly had designated the iris as the state flower without rescinding the previous designation of the passion flower, the state essentially had two state flowers until 1973. In that year the General Assembly resolved the confusion by designating the passion flower the state wildflower and the iris the state cultivated flower.[4] The act naming the iris as the state flower did not specify a particular color or variety of this diverse plant. However, according to theTennessee Department of State the purple iris is generally considered to be the state flower.[5] |
| State fruit | |
 | In March 2003, the General Assembly enacted chapter 154 of the Public Acts, designating thetomato as the official statefruit of Tennessee.[5] As of 2003, tomatoes were the state's largest fruit crop.[6]Grainger County and theRipley area inLauderdale County are principal areas for tomato production.[6] The legislation to designate the tomato was sponsored by state Representative Dennis Roach ofRutledge, in Grainger County.[7] No particular variety of tomato is specified.[7][8] |
| State food | |
| Hotslaw was designated an official state food in 2024, by the 113th General Assembly.[9][10] | |
| State birds | |
 | Tennessee has two state birds. Themockingbird (Mimus polyglottos) was designated the state bird by the General Assembly in 1933. It had been selected earlier that year in an election conducted by theTennessee Ornithological Society.[1] Thebobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus), also known as the partridge, was designated as the official stategame bird by the General Assembly in 1988.[1] |
| State fish | |
  | Tennessee has two statefish. The official state sport fish, designated in 2005, is thesmallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu), a sought-after game fish.[11] The state commercial fish, designated in 1988, is thechannel catfish,Ictalurus lacustris, which is found in most Tennessee streams and many lakes and is widelystocked and reared in farm ponds.[1] |
| State wild animal | |
_2.jpg) | Theraccoon (Procyon lotor) became the official state wild animal in 1971.[1] |
| State horse | |
 | TheTennessee Walking Horse was designated the official statehorse by the 101st General Assembly in 2000.[1] |
| State reptile | |
 | Tennessee's statereptile is theeastern box turtle (Terrapene carolina), designated in 1995.[1] |
| State amphibian | |
 | In 1995 theTennessee cave salamander (Gyrinophilu palleucus) was designated official stateamphibian by the 99th General Assembly. This is a largesalamander that lives in streams inlimestonecaves in the southernCumberland Plateau and theNashville Basin.[1][12] |
| State insects | |
 | Tennessee has designated four differentinsects as official state symbols. The firefly or lightning bug (Lampyridae family) and the insect known asladybeetle, ladybug, or ladybird beetle,Coccinella septempunctata, were designated state insects by Public Chapter 292 of the Acts of 1975. The firefly speciesPhotinus pyralis is the most familiar firefly species in the state.[1] In 1990, Public Chapter 725 designated thehoneybee (Apis mellifera) as the official state agricultural insect.[1] Most recently, in 1995 thezebra swallowtail,Eurytides marcellus, was designated Tennessee's officialbutterfly by Public Chapter 896 of the 99th General Assembly.[1] |
| State rocks | |
  | The Tennessee General Assembly has designated two different types ofsedimentary rock as official state rocks.[1] Theagate was designated as the state's first official rock in 1969. A form ofcryptocrystallinequartz (chalcedony) that is regarded as a semiprecious gemstone, agate is found in several areas in the state.[1] Collecting localities are found inHawkins County (golden tone agate),Greene County (agatizedoolites),Bedford County (carnelian, blue, ivory, pink, finely banded, dendritic, moss, iris and Fairburn style agate), andShelby County (Lake Superior type agate and agatizedcorals andsponges).[13] Limestone, common throughout the state, was declared the official state rock in 1979.Tennessee marble, a limestone quarried in East Tennessee, is used as a building stone.[1] |
| State fossil | |
| Pterotrigonia thoracica was designated official state fossil in 1998, by the 100th General Assembly.[1] | |
| State rifle | |
| TheBarrett M82/M107 was designated official state rifle in February 2016 by House Joint Resolution 231.[14][15] | |
| State artifact | |
| "Sandy", a 18.5 in (47 cm),c. 1250-1350siltstone statue made by theMississippian culture, depicting a kneeling man.[16] excavated from theSellars Farm site, the artifact was designated the official state artifact in 2014 by House Bill No. 2443, and is on display at theMcClung Museum of Natural History and Culture.[17] | |
In 2024, ten literary works with varying degrees of connection to the Volunteer State were designated as official Tennessee state books:[18]
In 2003, a resolution of the 103rd General Assembly designatedsongwriting as an official state art form.[1] In keeping with this designation, Tennessee has elevenofficial state songs:[1][19]
Additionally, arap song by Joan Hill Hanks ofSignal Mountain, entitled "A Tennessee Bicentennial Rap: 1796-1996", was designated the state's "Official Bicentennial Rap" song in 1996. It was written "to provide a fun and easy way for citizens and students to learn and retain some of [the] state's history."[19]
Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree byBrenda Lee, which was recorded inNashville's Music Row at theQuonset Hut Studio, became the official holiday song of Tennessee in 2024.[24][25]
Apoem entitled "Oh Tennessee, My Tennessee" was designated the official state poem by the 88th General Assembly in 1973. The poem was written byU.S. Navy AdmiralWilliam P. Lawrence while insolitary confinement in aprisoner of war camp inNorth Vietnam.[1]
In 1980 the General Assembly designated thesquare dance as the state's official statefolk dance, which it described as "a uniquely attractive art form that remains a vibrant and entertaining part of Tennesseefolklore."[1]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)