Philly's stuck with its current city flag — for better or worse
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Now you know what Philly's official city flag looks like. Photo courtesy of Partners For Civic Pride
Philadelphia dropped the ball on either showcasing its 131-year-old city flag or overhauling it entirely ahead of our big 2026 moment.
Why it matters: Philly is about to be thrust onto the world stage this year thanks to its full state of can't-miss events, from celebrations of America's 250th birthday to the MLB All-Star Game.
- A prominent city flag would have been a powerful visual for the million tourists set to trek to Philly.
Flashback: A push to redesign the flag hit a fever pitch in 2023 amid growing public input and a City Council proposal for a task force to develop a plan for adopting a new flag.
- Haters of the current design have said it breaks the rules of what's considered a "good" flag — it's too busy, complicated and unrelatable.
- Cities with so-called "good" recognizable flags include Chicago, DC, and Denver.
Yes, but: Those efforts in Philly to design a new flag fizzled, and no recommendations ever came out of City Hall.
Friction point: The biggest hurdle for redesigning Philly's flag is likely that it's considered the first official city flag in the U.S.
- "You really shouldn't mess with the first city flag in America. It's like trying to fix the crack in the Liberty Bell," Brenda Exon, executive director and founder of the pro-city flag group Partners for Civic Pride.
History lesson: Adopted in 1895, Philly's flag sports bars of azure blue and yellow with a coat of arms that incorporates the city seal held by two women.
- The city's motto on the flag — Philadelphia Maneto — translates to "Let Brotherly Love Continue."
- Plus: The flag includes four key symbols: Peace, represented by a garland; justice (scales); prosperity (cornucopia); and hope (anchor).
State of play: A move is afoot to further promote and popularize the current city flag — likely making it even more difficult to redesign.
- But promotions for Philly's milestone 2026 moments are already well underway.
Zoom in: Partners for Civic Pride is lobbying City Council to pass an ordinance to officially recognize the city's flag as the first in the U.S. and mark March 27 Philly Flag Day, Exton tells Axios.
- The flag's top issue is that it's little known but is nonetheless a historical artifact with a powerful, unifying message.
- "It's a true Philly thing — the first of its kind," she says.
Meanwhile, Councilman Mark Squilla is working with other legislators, along with the Parker administration, to move this proposal forward, spokesperson Anne Kelly tells Axios.
The other side: Ted Kaye, secretary of North American Vexillological Association, the largest organization of flag enthusiasts and experts in the world, tells Axios that Philly's current city flag misses the mark because it is neither simple nor memorable.
But Kaye — who has consulted on flag redesigns for cities and states across the country — suggested a few tweaks for Philly's flag.
- Keep blue and yellow bars, which are distinctive and compelling.
- Swap out the coat of arms for a simple design of the Liberty Bell — "It's an unmistakable symbol of Philadelphia."
Winners: The mark of a good flag, Kaye joked, is when flags start trending as a tattoo — like DC's and Chicago's.
- "They get used as tattoos because they're great graphic symbols of a place," he said.