A Farewell Tribute to Alaska - Where the Sea Breaks its Back
ALAXSXAQ. This unpronounceable Aleut word translates literally to "the object toward which the action of the sea is directed". The Aleuts are an island-dwelling sea-oriented people who were aware of endless ocean waves breaking upon the solid shores of a "Big Land". This word eventually became ALASKA.
The story of how Alaska acquired its state flag is a touching one. In 1926, a thirteen-year-old Aleut orphan named Benny Benson entered his design in a contest for a flag of what was then the Territory of Alaska. He was in the seventh grade. He won the contest and his design was officially adopted by the Alaska legislature the following year and Benny Benson went down in history. With his submission he included the following words: "The blue field is for the Alaska sky and the forget-me-not, an Alaska flower. The North Star is for the future State of Alaska, the most northerly of the Union. The dipper is for the Great Bear -- symbolizing strength" Benny Benson - age 13, 1913 - 1972.
In 1935 Marie Drake wrote a poem about the flag. Later Elinor Dusenbury put those words to music and in 1955 the territorial legislature adopted "Alaska's Flag" as the official 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's 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
Alaska became the 49th state of the Union on January 3rd, 1959. On July Fourth of that year, when the flag first flew over the capital city of Juneau, Benny Benson proudly carried the flag that he designed 33 years before as he led the parade that preceded the ceremony.
ALAXSXAQ. This unpronounceable Aleut word translates literally to "the object toward which the action of the sea is directed". The Aleuts are an island-dwelling sea-oriented people who were aware of endless ocean waves breaking upon the solid shores of a "Big Land". This word eventually became ALASKA.
The story of how Alaska acquired its state flag is a touching one. In 1926, a thirteen-year-old Aleut orphan named Benny Benson entered his design in a contest for a flag of what was then the Territory of Alaska. He was in the seventh grade. He won the contest and his design was officially adopted by the Alaska legislature the following year and Benny Benson went down in history. With his submission he included the following words: "The blue field is for the Alaska sky and the forget-me-not, an Alaska flower. The North Star is for the future State of Alaska, the most northerly of the Union. The dipper is for the Great Bear -- symbolizing strength" Benny Benson - age 13, 1913 - 1972.
In 1935 Marie Drake wrote a poem about the flag. Later Elinor Dusenbury put those words to music and in 1955 the territorial legislature adopted "Alaska's Flag" as the official 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's 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
Alaska became the 49th state of the Union on January 3rd, 1959. On July Fourth of that year, when the flag first flew over the capital city of Juneau, Benny Benson proudly carried the flag that he designed 33 years before as he led the parade that preceded the ceremony.
