Proud American Symbols

The official national colors of the United States are red, white, and blue and seen on our flag and our national seal.

Red is a symbol of valor and bravery
White symbolizes purity and innocence
Blue signifies vigilance, perseverance, and justice

According to legend, George Washington interpreted the elements of the flag this way: the stars were taken from the sky, the red from the British colors, and the white stripes signified the secession from the home country. However, there is no official designation or meaning for the colors of the flag.

Currently the stars are considered a symbol of the heavens and the divine goal to which man has aspired from time immemorial; the stripe is symbolic of the rays of light emanating from the sun.

On July 4, 1776, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson were given the task of creating a seal for the United States of America. The delegates of the Constitutional Convention believed an emblem and national coat of arms would be evidence of an independent nation and a free people with high aspirations and grand hopes for the future.

The Great Seal was finalized and approved six years later on June 20, 1782. The seal reflects the beliefs and values that the Founding Fathers wanted to pass on to their descendants.

Principles & Values
In the center of the seal is an bald eagle, our national bird. It holds in its beak a scroll inscribed "E pluribus unum", which is Latin meaning "out of many, one" and stands for one nation that was created from 13 colonies. In one claw is an olive branch, while the other holds a bundle of thirteen arrows. The olive branch and arrows "denote the power of peace and war."

A shield with thirteen red and white stripes covers the eagle's breast. The shield is supported solely by the American eagle to denote that Americans should rely on their own virtue. The red and white stripes of the shield represent the states united under and supporting the blue, representing the President and Congress. The color white signifies purity and innocence; red, hardiness and valor; and blue signifies vigilance, perseverance, and justice. Above the eagle's head is a cloud surrounding a blue field containing thirteen stars, which forms a constellation. The constellation denotes that a new State is taking its place among other nations.

Spiritual Side
The seal's reverse side is sometimes referred to as the spiritual side. It contains a 13-step pyramid with the year 1776 in Roman numerals at the base. At the top of the pyramid is the Eye of Providence and above is the motto "Annuit Coeptis", meaning "It [the Eye of Providence] is favorable to our undertakings" or "He favors our undertakings." Below the pyramid, a scroll reads, "Novus Ordo Seclorum", meaning "New Order of the Ages." It refers to 1776 as the beginning of the American new era.

The Great Seal can be seen on the back of a one-dollar bill. The Secretary of State is the official custodian of the seal. It is only attached (affixed) to certain documents, such as foreign treaties and presidential proclamations.

The exact origins of Uncle Sam as a symbol for the United States are unknown. But he was introduced in a Troy, New York, newspaper article on September 7, 1813. A meat-processing plant owner named Sam Wilson began stamping the meat sold to the United States Army during the War of 1812 with the letters "U.S." The meat-packers at his plant called Sam Wilson "Uncle Sam," and the story was that the initials "U.S." really stood for "Uncle Sam" Wilson rather than "United States." The nickname stuck, and from then on everything belonging to the United States government began to be called "Uncle Sam's."

In 1961, Congress passed a resolution that recognized Samuel Wilson as the inspiration for the symbol Uncle Sam.

Source: BensGuide, www.simonandschuster.net
Image: Library of Congress by James Montgomery Flagg

In 1986, the rose was designated the official flower of the United States of America, by President Ronald Reagan.

Proc. No. 5574. Nov. 20, 1986, 51 F.R. 42197, provided:

Americans have always loved the flowers with which God decorates our land. More often than any other flower, we hold the rose dear as the symbol of life and love and devotion, of beauty and eternity. For the love of man and woman, for the love of mankind and God, for the love of country, Americans who would speak the language of the heart do so with a rose.

We see proofs of this everywhere. The study of fossils reveals that the rose has existed in America for age upon age. We have always cultivated roses in our gardens. Our first President, George Washington, bred roses, and a variety he named after his mother is still grown today. The White House itself boasts a beautiful Rose Garden. We grow roses in all our fifty States. We find roses throughout our art, music, and literature. We decorate our celebrations and parades with roses. Most of all, we present roses to those we love, and we lavish them on our altars, our civil shrines, and the final resting places of our honored dead.

The American people have long held a special place in their hearts for roses. Let us continue to cherish them, to honor the love and devotion they represent, and to bestow them on all we love just as God has bestowed them on us.

The Congress, by Senate Joint Resolution 159 [Pub.L. 99.449, Oct. 7, 1986, 100 Stat. 1128, which enacted this section], has designated the rose as the National Floral Emblem of the United States and authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation declaring this fact.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, RONALD REAGAN, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim the rose as the National Floral Emblem of the United States of America.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twentieth day of November, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and eighty-six, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and eleventh.

RONALD REAGAN