Flag of Connecticut

The flag of the U.S. state of Connecticut is a white baroque shield with three grapevines, each bearing three bunches of purple grapes on a field of royal blue. The banner below the shield reads "Qui Transtulit Sustinet," Latin for "He who transplanted sustains," Connecticut's state motto. The flag dimensions are in length and in width.

Statute The 2024 Connecticut General Statutes, § 3-107 defines that the flag shall be:

History The first mention of a state flag was in 1838, It was carried by a local sheriff during the New Haven Centennial parade.The daily herald, April 20, 1838, p.2 Its design was never described.

In 1845, Mr. Hamltion of the state senate introduced a bill outlining a state flag. It was an American flag with the state's coat of arms on it. The bill passed the house with $100 (approximately $4,344) being set aside for the project. The flag was only flown when the house was in session.New-Haven daily herald, May 27, 1845, p.2

In 1851, the state legislature gave funds to a local sheriff to procure a new state flag.New-England religious herald, May 17, 1851, page 2

During the American Civil War the state senate adopted a new flag. It 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 the Old State House.In 1869, a new state flag was flown over state house. It was described as: "It is twenty feet by thirty feet. A white shield in the centre bears Connecticut coat of arms, the stars being grouped around it."Worcester daily spy, July 13, 1869, p.4

On June 18, 1887, Governor Lounsbury displayed a state flag during a parade in New Haven.Morning journal and courier, June 18, 1887, p.2 Its design is unknown. Another one was flown in August at Camp Lounsbury in Niantic containing a white field.Morning journal and courier, August 25, 1887, p.2

In 1893, a party was being held in the city of Trenton, New Jersey celebrating the unveiling of the Trenton Battle Monument. The city was patriotically decorated and in the New Jersey state house flew 13 state flags belonging to the original 13 colonies. Connecticut's state flag had a white field with a pine tree in the middle and the state motto "Qui Transtulit Sustinet." It was based off the Pine Tree Flag from the American revolution.The Jersey City news, October 19, 1893, p.1

In 1897, the Connecticut General Assembly approved a new flag after it was introduced by Governor Owen Vincent Coffin in 1895. Abby Day Slocomb, the regent of the Anna Warner Bailey chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, submitted the design.The Willimantic journal, June 25, 1897, p.7The daily morning journal and courier, August 17, 1897, page 1

Origin The design comes from the seal of Saybrook Colony, designed by George 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, and Hartford) (or possibly the three separate settlements, Connecticut Colony, Saybrook Colony, and New Haven Colony, which had been absorbed into Connecticut by that time) and rearranged the wording and position of the motto.

Gallery

Flying the flag at half staff Customarily, the flag of Connecticut is flown at half-staff when the federal flag is, which may be ordered by the President or the Governor. According to 2007-R-0624, only the governor 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, upon the death of a former governor or serving member of the state legislature, or for an event of great sorrow for Connecticut.

Other flags

In 1891, the Governor held a large state Military parade in Niantic. During the precession a group of troop carried a guidon with the state coat of arms.New-York tribune, August 22, 1891, p.2

During the Spanish-American War, the state organized two regiments of infantry (1st & 3rd) and three artillery batteries. The infantry carried the Stars 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.CONNECTICUT NATIONAL GUARD FLAGS IN THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR ERA

In 1900, the New York Society of Sons of the Revolution sent the historic Nathen Hale schoolhouse to the Connecticut Society Sons of the Revolution. One year later, members of the society got permission to move and restore the building. To celebrate the restoration, the society invited Governor McLean and some companies of the National Guard to celebrate. The men carried with them a state flag and a state banner. The banner design was not described, but it most likely flew vertically.

In 1912, state delegates when to the Democratic National Convention in Baltimore, they carried with them a state banner. It was made of blue silk and bore the words "Our choice of president-Simeon E. Baldwin," and the coat of arms in the middle incorrectly bearing oak leafs instead of grapevines. At the top of it was a triangle with the word "Connecticut." The whole thing measured 8 feet long, it also bore some scars from other delegates trying to tear it from the bearers.Norwich bulletin, July 6, 1912, page 2

Historical flags used in Connecticut

Flag of Connecticut

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