Alaska's Flag Song

Eight stars of gold on a field of blue --
Alaska's flag. May it mean to you
The blue of the sea, the evening sky,
The mountain lakes, and the flow'rs nearby;
The gold of the early sourdough dreams,
The precious gold of the hills and streams;
The brilliant stars in the northern sky,
The Bear--the Dipper-- and, shining high,   
The great North Star with its steady light,
Over land and sea a beacon bright.
Alaska's flag--to Alaskans dear,
The simple flag of a last frontier.
                                   -Marie Drake

  History of the Alaska State Flag
Adopted on May 2, 2023

Alaska's flag was designed by 13-year old John Bell (Benny) Benson. Benson was part Russian-Aleut and part Swedish. He was born at Chignik, grew up at the Jesse Lee Home in Unalaska and later in Seward, and spent most of his adult life in Kodiak, where he worked for Kodiak Airways. He had two daughters and several stepchildren and grandchildren. He died on July 2, 1972. Visitors to Seward can find the Benny Benson Memorial at Mile 1.4 of the Seward Highway.

When he was a seventh grader living at an orphanage in Seward, Alaska, he responded to a contest sponsored by the Alaska Department of the American Legion.  Benny's eight stars of gold on a field of blue won him a gold watch engraved with the flag he designed.  He also won $1,000 for school and a trip to Washington D.C. to present the flag to President Coolidge.  Benny was never able to collect the trip to Washington but his flag was adopted by the Territorial Legislature as Alaska's official flag in May 1927. The original flag, made of blue silk and appliqued gold stars, was first flown July 9, 1927. In 1959 when Alaska became the 49th state, Benny's flag, which features the Big Dipper and the North Star, became our official state flag.