The Kansas State Flag

The Kansas state flag, adopted by the Kansas State Legislature as the official state flag in 1927, is a rectangle of dark blue silk with the state seal at its center. Above the seal is the state crest, a sunflower resting on a twisted bar of blue and gold. The word "Kansas," added in 1961, is below the seal in gold, block lettering.

The history of the state is written in the flag. Thirty-four stars in the constellation on the state seal signify Kansas as the 34th state admitted to the Union. Rolling hills identify the terrain near Fort Riley, and a steamboat represents navigation when the Kansas River was used to deliver supplies to Manhattan and Fort Riley. Indians hunting bison, teams of oxen and a pair of prairie schooners suggest the advance of the frontier, while plowed fields before a log cabin represent agriculture.

The bar of twisted blue and gold that is part of the state crest represents the Louisiana Purchase. The sunflower, which appears as if it were "torn from its stalk," is the official state flower. It is said that the "open fankness of the sunflower is indicative of the fearlessness with which Kansas meets her problems and solves them."

The flag was first displayed in 1927 at Fort Riley by Governor Ben Paulen in the presence of troops from Fort Riley and the Kansas National Guard.

There are few formal guidelines for the state flag; however, custom and some state laws dictate certain procedures. State law provides that the flag is to be used "on every and all occasions, when the state is officially represented."

The state flag is generally displayed with the U.S. flag. In any display of flags, the U.S. flag occupies the higher or most honored position. It is followed by the state flag and then by any city of society flags. The state flag should be the same size or smaller than the U.S. flag with which it is displayed.

Kansas state flags may be purchased from the Office of the Secretary of State.

Information provided by the Office of the Kansas Secretary of State