Flag of Florida

What the flag looks like

A white field with a red saltire (diagonal cross), with the round state seal at the center where the arms cross.

What it means

The seal shows a Seminole woman scattering flowers, a sabal palm, a steamboat and a rising sun; the red cross was added in 1900.

How to remember it

Florida is Alabama's red X with a round seal planted in the middle where the bars cross.

Fun facts

• Governor Francis Fleming is said to have pushed for the red cross in the 1890s so the plain white flag would not look like a flag of surrender.
• The seal was revised in 1985, swapping a coconut palm for the state's sabal palm and correcting the Seminole woman's headdress.

Florida at a glance

Nickname

The Sunshine State

Statehood

1845

Capital

Tallahassee

Region

South Atlantic

Population

22 million

Area

170,312 km²

Flag adopted

1985

Flags often confused with Florida

• Alabama: Alabama and Florida are both a red saltire on white. Alabama's is plain; Florida has the round state seal where the arms cross.