Milwaukee’s symbol of pride and unity.
The People's Flag
of Milwaukee
The sun rising over Lake Michigan symbolizes a new day. The light blue bars in its reflection represent the city’s three rivers (Milwaukee, Menomonee, Kinnickinnic) and three founding towns (Juneau Town, Kilbourn Town, Walker's Point). Gold represents our brewing history and white represents peace.
Declared the People's Flag of Milwaukee on June 14, 2016.
Rated highest among four other finalists, as determined by over 7,000 citizens in on online rating poll.
Professional designers and facilitators engaged hundreds of students in workshops across the city. Months of social media communications invited amateurs and professionals alike to enter their flag designs. The result was over 1,000 stunning entries!
Five expert judges gathered on April 23, 2016 and narrowed down the entries to 45 semifinalists and five finalists. Following the announcement of the five finalists at City Hall on May 14, 2016, Milwaukeeans rated each on a 0–10 scale to determine the highest rated entry.
Reminding us to look forward.
It's time for a new Milwaukee flag.
A message from John Gurda
Milwaukee Historian
People's Flag Initiative Judge
Milwaukee has just completed one of the most ambitious public design processes in its history. Hundreds of residents submitted more than one-thousand ideas for a new city flag—one to replace the banner that was adopted in 1954 and largely ignored thereafter. In a poll open to everyone, the clear winner was Robert Lenz’s “Sunrise over the Lake.” It is already the People’s Flag, and I urge the Common Council and Mayor Barrett to make it the city’s official banner.
Our old flag has a certain retro charm, but it looks backward to a vanished past. The 1954 design is basically an inventory of items our grandparents considered important, a time capsule of artifacts from a dead generation. Milwaukee is ripe for a new design, and “Sunrise over the Lake” fills the bill admirably. Boldly patterned, rich in symbolism, and memorably simple, the flag is a fitting symbol of a city ready to face a new day with clarity and confidence.
– John Gurda
More than a flag.
A symbol worthy of our pride.
Lightweight
printed flag
Low-cost, high-quality flag
in three standard sizes
Premium
sewn flag
All sizes available,
produced locally by Flag Center
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