LOUISIANA, USA (KNOE 8 News) - The image of a pelican and her chicks in the nest has been used on Louisiana's flag and seal since the early days of statehood. So, who came up with the idea for the symbol of Louisiana?
"Our state flag and seal was designed by Governor Claiborne, the first state governor. The legislature authorized him to come up with a design."
Terry Jones, history professor at ULM tells us in Old Louisiana, the state's Catholic majority was familiar with the pelican's use as a religious symbol.
"If you look back at the early Christian imagery of the Roman Empire, pelicans were often used as a symbol for Christ. There was a legend that in starvation times the pelican mother would actually pluck meat and blood from its breast to feed it's chicks."
Over the course of the years, it was discovered that an important part of the imagery on the flag had been overlooked and was missing from our banner.
"Originally the flag had pictured drops of blood on the pelican's breast. This had been omitted in the past few years. Just recently an eighth grade Louisiana student convinced the legislature to put the blood drops back in and we unveiled a new flag last year."
In the third installment of our series, we'll talk with Professor Jones about how some of our laws remain a legacy from the early colonizers of the state.
