River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1891-01-29

EMBLEMS OF THE STATES.
Coats-of-lAms of the commemorative of
North America.

|
north America.
Each State in the American Union
has its distinctive coat-of-arns or seal.
! Unlike the arms of most European
countries American State emblems are
not based upon some peculiar fact in
| history or story or tradition. but are, in
nearly every case, deliberately chosen
or made up. As animals figure upon
most coats-of-arms it is interesting to
/ observe what sort of animals have been
| chosen by the American Common
wealths for their emblems.
Quite naturally the eagle leads all the
rest. 1t is found upon the arms of no
| fewer than eleven States and one Ter
ritory. These are New York, Pennsyl-
vania, Maryland, Alabama. Mississippi,
.'rlxansas, Missouri, Michigan, Illinois,
/ Iowa, Oregon and New Mexico. New
Mexico, indeed. has two eagles-one of
which evidently represents the eagle of
! the United States and the other that of
| Mexico.
The deer-or some variety of the
| antelope-and the buffalo are also
favorite animals with the American
| Commonwealths Name has an antelope
upon her arms. Vermont bears deer's
head and eow-the deer symbolizing
the States past, perhaps, and the cow
its present Michigan, in addition to
its eagle, has two antelopes, and Idaho
an antelope's head and antlers.
Indiana was the first State to put the
buffalo upon its arms. And he is appro-
priateiy represented as running away.
lie has since been repr esented in much
tho same guise upon the arms of Kansas
and North Dakota.
New Jersey has a horses head, and
Pennsylvania two horses in addition to
her eagle and lion under Liberty's
feet. Upon the arms of Kansas and
South Dakota horses are shown work
ing at the pillow. and on those of Min
nesota and North Dakota horse i, rid
den by retreating Indian.
Other emblems are the bears of Mis-
souri, and California, the pelican of
Louisiana, Wisconsin's badger, Della
wares OK, West Virginia's cattle lin
landscape), Utah's bees. Several of the
newest States have decorated their arms
with an animal quite unknown to her
aldry-the Iron horse" The locomo-
tive is borne upon the shield of Nevada,
West Virginia and Wyoming, the steam
boat upon the arms of Tennessee and
South Dakota, and both the steamboat
and the locomotive upon those of Ne
braska and Montana.
The coat of arms of Idaho has a rep
resentation of the moon. Upon the
State shield is seen river. upon which
a steamboat is sailing, winding away
through chain of mountains; and over
the mountains hangs the crescent moon.
AS the horns of the crescent are toward
the left and the moon is near the hori-
zon, the scene depicted must be after
sunset. Other nations and States have
shown the sunrise upon their arms. but
Idaho is probably first in representing
an evening scene.
Missouri also has crescent upon its
arms, but it is not represented in con-
nection with landscape
There is tendency among the peo-
pie of the States to set up, by a sort of
gradual development among them
selves. certain State emblems of their
own, which generally have no reference
to the officially adopted arms of the
State. Some of these emblems were, i'm
the beginning, assigned to them in de
rision by the people of other States, and
have been adapted in good faith in
spirit of good-natured defiance of criti-
cism.
In the civil war many of these en-
hlems We're worn by the soldiers from
the several States, and have been worn
since by Grand Army men and other
National associations at their reunions.
On such occasions the men of Maine
wear pine cone or branch, those of
Vermont a cedar sprig, those of Rhode
Island n clam-shell, and those of Con-
necticut a wooden nutmeg
The chosen emblem of New Jersey on
such occasions is great mosquito; of
Pennsylvania, bucks tail; of Ohio,
buckeye. or horse chestnut; of Michi-
gan, wolverine; of Wisconsin; badg-
er, and of California, a bear-Detroit
Free Press.