More than 1,000 ideas submitted for a new Illinois flag

A call to come up with potential designs of a new state flag for Illinois has drawn more than 1,000 submissions.

Last year, Senate Bill 1818 -- named after the year Illinois became a state -- created a commission to evaluate the state’s current flag, and decide whether or not it is time to design a new one. 

Last month the commission began accepting submissions from the public for a new state flag. The commission worked with schools and libraries to encourage residents and students to take part.

The commission will look through the designs submitted, and will chose a total of 10 to be put up for a public online vote in January.

Once that voting is completed, the designs will be presented to the General Assembly, which will first decide whether or not to move forward with a new flag, and if so choose the new design.

According to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Illinois’ first state flag was adopted in 1915, and it looked very similar to the way the banner looks today. The original flag was tweaked in 1969 with the word “Illinois” added to the bottom.

Several other states have made revisions to their flags in recent years, including Utah, Georgia, Mississippi, Louisiana and South Carolina.