Missouri State Flags - Made In USA

Missouri Flag

On March 22, 1913, nearly 100 years after achieving statehood, Missouri adopted an official flag. The flag was designed by Mrs. Marie Elizabeth Watkins Oliver, wife of former State Senator Robert B. Oliver. The Olivers’ nephew, Sen. Arthur L. Oliver, introduced a bill to the General Assembly in 1909, 1911 and again in 1913 when it was finally adopted. The flag consists of three horizontal stripes of red, white and blue: the three colors of the United States flag. The Missouri coat of arms is centered over the stripes and encircled by a blue band containing 24 stars, which denotes that Missouri was the 24th state to join the Union.

Marie Oliver’s original flag was donated to the Missouri Secretary of State (SOS) in 1961 by the Olivers’ son Allen. The flag is silk with a hand-painted coat of arms. It was displayed in the Capitol Building from 1961 to 1980 when it was removed because of its fragile condition. Eight years later, SOS Roy Blunt, with the help of a penny drive by Missouri’s elementary school students, sent the flag to a conservator for restoration and conservation. Today, the SOS is proud to display the original state flag permanently in its lobby in Jefferson City.

Source: https://www.sos.mo.gov/symbol/flag