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The Guam Flag was approved on July 4, 1917

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The Guam Flag was approved on July 4, 1917

On July 4, 1917, Gov. Roy C. Smith approved the plan for the Guam flag, and two days later, the flag was unveiled for the first time at a Hagåtña parade.

The blueprint shows a tree and proa (canoe) in front of a silhouette of Two Lover's Point and specifies the flag's colors. There are several possible inspirations of the flag's design, including a photograph from Gov. Robert E. Coontz's collection from 1912, and the works of local artist Francisco Feja and Helen Paul, the wife of a U.S. Navy officer. The center of the flag features the Guam Seal.

Taken from the center portion of the Guam Flag, Governor Roy C. Smith approved the design as the "Official Coat of Arms" for the territory of Guam on July 4, 1917. April 4, 1930 was the formal adoption date of the official Seal of the Territory of Guam, under the administration of Governor Willis W. Bradley Jr. who changed it from one with an eagle on it.

The Seal was designed in the city of Agana from a scene where the diverted Agana River formerly empties into the Philippine Sea in a spot known as the Navy Yard Reservations. Following a disastrous typhoon which left only a coconut tree standing, this setting inspired the design for the official Seal of Guam. The shape of the Seal represents the shape of the slingstone which the ancient Chamoru warriors employ as an implement for defense. That iconic shape cradles and protects the rest of the features within the seal. At the heart of the seal is the coconut growing in the unfertile sand which depicts determination. Although partly uprooted during the recent typhoon, as if in utter defiance to all adversities, this tree with trunk partly bent, turned its open fronds to receive illumination from the heavens and continue its growth.

Find out more here: http://ns.gov.gu/seal.html