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Each state in the country has customarily adopted a state Flag. Since the colonial Days of 1775
each state designed their flags
to help distinguish the ideas and tradition of that particular state. The original Utah State Flag was adopted by the State Legislature in 1896 and revised in 1913 and bears the state seal. On the seal, adopted in 1896, the beehive on the shield stands for hard work and industry. The date 1847 is the year the Mormons came to Utah. A bald eagle, the United States national bird, perches atop the shield and symbolizes protection in peace and war. The sego lily is a symbol of peace and a U.S. flag appears on each side, symbolizing Utah's support to the nation. The Utah State Flag, as we know it today, was originally designed for the battleship Utah in 1912. It was later made the official flag of Utah when Governor William Spry signed House Joint Resolution I in 1913. |
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Utah State Motto "Industry" officially became the State Motto on March 4, l959. "Industry is associated with the symbol of the beehive. The early pioneers had few material resources at their disposal and therefore had to rely on their own "industry" to survive. The word "industry" appears on both the State Seal and the State Flag. Utah State Emblem The beehive became the official state emblem on March 4, 1959. Utahans relate the beehive symbol to industry and the pioneer virtues of thrift and perseverance. The beehive was chosen as the emblem for the provisional State of Deseret in 1848 and was maintained on the seal of the State of Utah when Utah became a state in 1896. |
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Utah State Astronomical Symbol, Beehive Cluster (also known as M44) The state astronomical symbol is the Beehive Cluster located in the constellation of Cancer the Crab. Look at the upper right corner of the map above and locate Cancer and just below is M44. Again, the Salt Lake Tribune in their January 22,1996 article, stated that Lawmakers passed House Bill 140 which designated a dim group of stars known as the Beehive Cluster as Utah's state astronomical symbol. A fact sheet about the bill gave the following reasoning for this designation. "This symbol, composed of a 'hive of stars,' transposes our beehive symbol to a new and grand level as we enter our second century as a group of people living in a place where we can still see, with our own eyes, the beautiful and dim features of the starry universe." M44, called Praesepe, or the Beehive, is located in the middle of the constellation Cancer, the Crab. It is one of the most prominent clusters, visible to the naked eye, but better viewed with binoculars and telescopes reveal hundreds of stars. |
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Utah State Centennial Star, Dubhe The star, Dubhe, one of the seven bright stars composing the Big Dipper of the constellation Ursa major, is designated as the state centennial star. Dubhe differs from other stars in the Big Dipper by having an orange hue. According to an article in the Salt Lake Tribune, January 22,1996, the star Dubhe (rhymes with tubby) in the Big Dipper was named the state centennial star because the light emitted from the star takes 100 years to reach us and, of course, 1996 was Utah's Centennial. Dubhe's 100 year light distance means it is 588 trillion miles from Earth. |
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Another interesting note: Polaris, the brightest star in
Ursa Minor (Little Dipper) can be easiest found by using Merak and Dubhe in Ursa Major as pointers. When asked if the state really needed a state star and astronomical symbol, Rep. Marda Dillree, R-Farmington, sponsor of the bill, suggested that perhaps not but Utah has a diverse population with a multitude of interests. |
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The Utah State Flower By an act of the Utah State Legislature, approved on March 18, 1911, the sego lily was declared to be the State floral emblem. Kate C. Snow, President of the Daughters of Utah Pioneers, in a letter dated April 17, 1930, says that "between 1840 and 1851" food became very scarce in Utah due to a crop-devouring plague of crickets, and that "the families were put on rations, and during this time they learned to dig for and to eat the soft, bulbous root of the sego lily. The memory of this use, quite as much as the natural beauty of the flower, caused it to be selected in after years by the Legislature as the floral emblem of the State." The sego lily was made the official state flower after a census was taken of the state's school children as to their preference for a state flower. The sego lily, Calochortus nuttalli, has white, lilac, or yellow flowers and grows six to eight inches high on open grass and sage rangelands in the Great Basin during the summer months. |
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The Utah State Animal The Rocky Mountain elk, Cervus canadensis, became the official state animal in 1971. A member of the deer family, the elk lives in close association with the deer and moose throughout much of Utah. Mature bulls stand up to 60 inches at the shoulder and may weigh over 700 pound. Elk are plentiful on most mountain ranges in Utah. |
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Utah State Insect, the Honey Bee Utah State Bird, the California Gull Utah State Song, "Utah, We Love Thee" Utah State Fish, the Bonneville Cutthroat Trout Utah State Fossil, the Allosaurus |
Utah's Official State Fruit, The Cherry Utah's Official State Cooking Pot, The Dutch Oven |
Utah State Grass, Indian Ricegrass Utah State Tree, the Blue Spruce Utah State Gem, the Topaz Utah State Mineral, Copper Utah State Rock, Coal |