When Mississippi seceded from the union the Confederate
States of America did not exist. And so, like other southern neighbors, Mississippi
became a sovereign state. Initially, Mississippians flew the Bonnie Blue Flag, an 1810
flag depicting a single white star on a blue field. January 26, 1861, the Mississippi
secession convention adopted an official Mississippi state flag. Referred to as "The
Magnolia Flag" the first official Mississippi state flag depicted a Magnolia tree on a
white field. This Mississippi state flag also incorporated the Bonnie Blue image in the
canton corner. Though Mississippi flew the flags of the Confederate States of America
from 1861 to 1865, the Magnolia Flag actually remained the "official" Mississippi state
flag for 33 years. In February, 1894, the current Mississippi state flag was adopted by
the Mississippi legislature. Because it had been so difficult to distinguish the Stars
and Bars from the Stars and Stripes in battle, a new Mississippi state flag came into
being. Designed by General P.G.T. Beauregard after the battle of Manassas, the so-called
"Southern Cross", the Confederate Battle Flag, became a ubiquitous and potent symbol of
the Confederate States. The Confederate Battle Flag consisted of a blue cross (saltier)
edged in white on a red background. Thirteen white stars on the cross represented the
Confederate states. In 1894, Mississippi adopted the present state flag, replacing the
Magnolia Flag adopted in 1861.
The new state flag consists of a "union square" in the canton corner and a field divided
into three bars of equal width. The Confederate Battle Flag in the canton corner is
referred to as the "union square." The thirteen white stars on the cross (saltier) are "…corresponding
with the number of the original States of the Union." The Mississippi State Flag
consists of the same three bars of the first Confederate flag, the Stars and Bars, but
the top stripe is blue.
These three bars represent the "…national colors." On January 12, 2001, the
Governor of Mississippi signed House Bill 524. This bill was precipitated by a series of
design proposals intended to remove the representation of the Confederate Battle Flag
from the canton corner of the current state flag. The legislature and the Governor
decided to put an end to the controversy over the Mississippi state flag and passed a
law that would put the design of the Mississippi State Flag to a vote. This vote would
determine whether the Mississippi state flag that had flown over Mississippi for 107
years would continue to fly over the state or whether a new design would be raised over
the state capitol. The vote was scheduled for April 17, 2001. The new Mississippi state
flag design was similar to the 1894 design except that the canton corner color was
changed from red to blue and the representation of the Confederate Battle Flag was
replaced with 19 small white stars surrounding one large white star. The 19 small stars
represented the number of states that were already part of the Union when Mississippi
joined in 1817. The large white five-pointed star in the center represented the state of
Mississippi. When all the votes were counted the message was clear. The 107 year old
Mississippi State Flag would continue to fly over the state. The vote, nearly 2-1, sent
a clear message that Mississippians valued the historic symbolism of the 1894 state
flag.
