Columbia, Tennessee

The flag of Columbia, Tennessee is a blue background with a red wavy shape with a horizontal wave of blue and red stripes and a white five-pointed star in the upper left corner. The flag was designed by local resident and business owner Bryson Leach.
== History ==
In January 2023, city leaders began the process to adopt a flag for Columbia, something the mayor showed an interest in since his first term in office. It wasn't until recently when a local high school student contacted the Mayor about the flag that it sparked conversation about a design competition that would turn the flag idea into a reality. The Columbia Flag Project lasted from January 23 to March 15, 2023.
City leaders wanted this to be a community-inspired project from design to selection. Citizens were first invited to submit their design ideas and provide a narrative explaining why they chose their particular design. Flag design guidelines were provided from the North American Vexillological Association that emphasized the importance of simple designs with minimal, but meaningful use of colors and symbols. There were 41 qualifying designs submitted, which were reviewed by the Columbia Arts Council from April 1 to April 15, 2023. They narrowed the field to three finalists: Bryson Leach, Amanda Byrd and George Vrailas. Then those three designs were shared online and the community was asked to vote for their favorite with Bryson Leach’s design garnering the most votes.Columbia Flag by the City of Columbia, TN
==Symbolism==
The flag symbolizes Columbia's interwoven history, diversity, and leadership, among its citizens and its place in the world. It features a two-toned field of blue over red, representing Columbia's presidential history while paying homage to the state of Tennessee and its flag. A horizontal wave of blue and red stripes across the middle represents the Duck River, with the weaving of red and blue representing Columbia’s diversity and its place in Civil Rights history (starting in 1946). The white star in the upper left corner represents Columbia as the county seat and its place in technological, industrial, civic and community leadership.
==Unknown flag ==
An unknown flag, claiming to be a flag of Columbia, Tennessee was found from a photo, which was a red background with a seal containing the inscription "COLUMBIA, TENNESSEE / 1808". The City of Columbia, Tennessee responded that they didn't have and never had a city flag, even when the photo was sent to them. The Assistant City Manager and the City Historian researched through the city files and claimed that the City governing body never adopted any flag and never authorized use of any flag that was supposed to represent the city. The status of this flag is uncertain.Columbia, Tennessee (U.S.) on FOTW
==References==
Category:United States Cities
Category:Tennessee
Category:Blue background
Category:Red
Category:Blue
Category:White
Category:Star
Category:Five-pointed stars
Category:2023
Category:Proportions 2-3