Ohio State Flag

History of the Ohio State Flag:  Ohio became a state in 1801 but had no official flag for almost 100 years. Usually, a variety of Civil War regiment flags were used. These flags were generally in a swallowtail design (also known as a burgee). In the 1860s, two generals designed a flag that they hoped would be the state flag. They placed the state seal on a field of white and flew the flag above the Ohio State Arsenal. However, in 1861, just months before the Civil War, a speech given by James Garfield moved everyone in attendance to only have their soldiers march under the stars and strips of the federal flag. The generals decided to end their push for a state flag. It wasn't until 1901 that the idea of a state flag was revisited. Cleveland architect, John Eisenmann, was asked to design an Ohio exhibition for the Pan-American Exposition. His flag designed for the exhibit was approved in 1902 and still stands as the official state flag. Description of the Ohio State Flag:  The burgee design of Ohio's state flag contains five red and white stripes and a blue triangle at the hoist. Within the blue triangle are 17 stars and a white disc with a red center. The triangle of blue at the hoist represents the hills and valleys of Ohio. The stripes represent the roads and waterways. The white and red disc represents the first letter of Ohio and also alludes to Ohio's nickname of the Buckeye state. The 13 stars grouped around the disc represent the original 13 states, while the four stars added to the tip of the triangle bring the count to 17; Ohio was the 17th state to enter the Union.