Lisa sent this card from the United States. She's from Little Rock, Arkansas. The card showed the state flag of Arkansas. This is also the first state flag I received from the USA.
Arkansas is a state in the south-central region of the United States. Napoleon Bonaparte sold French Louisiana to the United States in 1803, including all of Arkansas, in a transaction known today as the Louisiana Purchase.
The Louisiana Purchase (1803) was a land deal between the United States and France, in which the U.S. acquired approximately 827,000 square miles of land west of the Mississippi River for $15 million. The Louisiana Purchase was by far the largest territorial gain in U.S. history. Stretching from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains, the purchase doubled the size of the United States.
Lisa mentioned she is from Little Rock, Arkansas. She said former US President Bill Clinton is also from Arkansas and that he used to be the Governor.
The back of the postcard also had some facts about the flag. It said the flag was adopted in 1913 and was designed by a lady; Miss Willie K. Hocker. The reason for the 25 stars surrounding the name of the state is that Arkansas was the 25th state to have been admitted to the Union.
Evolution of the Arkansas state flag over the years :
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1 - Original design by Miss Willie Hocker.
2 - First official flag of the State of Arkansas.
3 - Used from 1923 until 1924.
4 - Flag of Arkansas from 1924 to 2011, when exact colours were specified. |
The 3 large stars below "ARKANSAS" have three separate meanings:
- The three nations to which Arkansas has belonged (France, Spain, and the U.S.)
- The Louisiana Purchase, which brought Arkansas into the U.S., was signed in 1803.
- Arkansas was the third state (after Louisiana and Missouri) formed from the Louisiana Purchase.
The large star above "ARKANSAS" commemorates the confederacy. Arkansas is the only diamond-producing state in the nation, hence the diamond shape on the flag.
Lisa wrote --
"February 12, 2019
Hello from Little Rock, Arkansas in the Southern US. Former President Bill Clinton is from Arkansas - he used to be our Governor. etherea 'Lisa' "
She stuck 2 stamps - a 1 dollar stamp and a 15-cent stamp.
The 15-cent stamp belongs to a set of six issued to commemorate National Letter Writing Week, which was held February 24 through March 1, 1980. Each stamp focuses attention on the importance of letter writing. This stamp is inscribed with the statement "Letters Lift Spirits".
The 1-dollar stamp has red and blue intersecting lines on a white background. This stamp was designed to look like a billowing flag. The colours red, white and blue are strongly associated with American patriotism.
The postmark clearly read "Little Rock AR 722". This was a surprise as most of the American postcards are marked digitally unlike this one.
Labels: Flag, History, Postcard, United States
