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Kentucky State Symbols, Songs, and Emblems
For the latest symbols information, visit the NETSTATE CHRONICLE.
| Designation | Symbol / Emblem | Adopted |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sources...Kentucky Department for Archives and Libraries, Kentucky's State Symbols, <http://www.kdla.ky.gov/resources/KYSymbols.htm> (Accessed January 28, 2010)
|
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| Great Seal | Find out more... | 1792 | ||||
| Bird | Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) | 1926 | ||||
| Flower | Goldenrod (Solidago spp.) | 1926 | ||||
| Flag | Find out more... | 1928 | ||||
| Fish | Kentucky spotted bass (Micropterus punctulatus) | 1956 | ||||
| Wild animal game species | Gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) | 1968 | ||||
| Kentucky Shakespeare festival | Shakespeare in Central Park of Louisville | 1984 | ||||
| Language | English | 1984 | ||||
| Fossil | Brachiopod | 1986 | ||||
| Gemstone | Freshwater pearl | 1986 | ||||
| Bluegrass song | "Blue Moon Of Kentucky," by Bill Monroe | 1988 | ||||
| Song | "My Old Kentucky Home" "My Old Kentucky Home" (Modern version) |
1928 1988 |
||||
| Butterfly | Viceroy butterfly (Basilarchia archippus) | 1990 | ||||
| Soil | Crider soil series |
1990 | ||||
| Tug-of-War championship | Fordsville Tug-of-War Championship, Ohio County |
1990 | ||||
| Kentucky Commonwealth theatre | Devou Park Summer Classics Theatre of Covington (Ceased operations at the end of the 1992 season.) | 1992 | ||||
| Arboretum | Bernheim Arboretum & Research Forest | 1994 | ||||
| Tree | Tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera) | 1994 | ||||
| Horse | Thoroughbred | 1996 | ||||
| Silverware pattern | Old Kentucky Bluegrass (Georgetown Pattern) |
1996 | ||||
| Covered bridge | Switzer covered bridge, Franklin County | 1998 | ||||
| Covered bridge capital of Kentucky | Fleming County | 1998 | ||||
| Mineral | Coal | 1998 | ||||
| Botanical garden | University of Kentucky Arboretum | 2000 | ||||
| Bourbon festival | The Kentucky Bourbon Festival, Incorporated of Bardstown | 2000 | ||||
| Pipe band | Louisville Pipe Band | 2000 | ||||
| Pledge | Pledge of Allegiance to the Commonwealth of Kentucky | 2000 | ||||
| Rock | Kentucky agate | 2000 | ||||
| State steam locomotive | Old 152 | 2000 | ||||
| Amphitheater | Iroquois Amphitheater, Iroquois Park, Louisville | 2001 | ||||
| Musical instrument | Appalachian dulcimer | 2001 | ||||
| Center for celebration of African American heritage | The Kentucky Center for African American Heritage, Louisville | 2002 | ||||
| Latin motto | Deo gratiam habeamus | 2002 | ||||
| Outdoor musical | "Stephen Foster - The Musical" | 2002 | ||||
| Science center | Louisville Science Center, now called the Kentucky Science Center. | 2002 | ||||
| Fruit | Blackberry (Rubus allegheniensis) | 2004 | ||||
| Military school | Millersburg Military Institute | 2004 | ||||
| Drink | Milk | 2005 | ||||
| Theatre pipe organ | The Kentucky Theatre's Mighty Wurlitzer Theatre Pipe Organ, Lexington | 2005 | ||||
| Dance | Clogging | 2006 | ||||
| Honey festival | Clarkson Honeyfest | 2006 | ||||
| Music | Bluegrass music | 2007 | ||||
| Agricultural Insect | Honeybee | 2010 | ||||
| Father of Newgrass Music | Sam Bush | 2010 | ||||
| Birthplace of Newgrass Music | Bowling Green | 2010 | ||||
| Sports car | Corvette | 2010 | ||||
| Original Kentucky soft drink | Ale-8-One | 2013 | ||||
Making laws in Kentucky
The Kentucky Legislature provides a section devoted to The Legislative Process to help us understand the legislative process and how laws are made in Kentucky.
Additional Information
Kentucky's State Symbols: from the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives.
Kentucky
Facts and Symbols
Kathleen W. Deady
Kentucky Facts and Symbols, by Kathleen W. Deady. 24 pages. Publisher: Capstone Press; Rev Upd edition (August 2003) Reading level: Grades 3-4. Interest level: Grades 3-9. Perfect for report writing! Easy-to-read text covers major Kentucky symbols such as the state flag, seal, bird, tree, flower, animal, and more. A "Fast Facts" section highlights the state's capital city, largest city, physical size, population, natural resources, farm products, and primary manufactured goods. Also included are full-page maps that introduce the concept of the map key, which is great for teaching map-reading skills.
State Names, Seals
Flags and Symbols
Benjamin F. Shearer
Barbara S. Shearer
State Names, Seals, Flags and Symbols, by Benjamin F. Shearer, Barbara S. Shearer. 544 pages. Greenwood Press; 3 Sub edition (October 30, 2001) This is one of the best, and most comprehensive, books we could find about the official state names and nicknames, mottoes, seals, flags, capitols, flowers, trees, birds, songs, and miscellaneous designations of each state. This, coupled with the 1938 Shankle book, formed the basis of our symbol library. If you're serious about your states symbols, you'll want to have this book and the one below. This book also contains information about state holidays, license plates, sports teams, universities and other trivia.
State Names, Flags, Seals, Songs, Birds, Flowers, and Other Symbols, by George Earlie Shankle. 522 pages. Reprint Services Corp; Revised edition (June 1971) Reprint of the 1938 revised edition. The first comprehensive book about our state symbols! From the preface: "This book grew out of the desire of its author to know, about his native state, a great many facts which he found exceedingly difficult to obtain. After three years of research in the Library of Congress, he is able to give to the public this storehouse of information, which could have been gathered from not library less fertile in source material..."
Visit the NETSTATE Kentucky State Book Store for additional Kentucky related books, including Kentucky Reference Books, History, Biographies and Cookbooks.
