Maine’s Flag Could Be Getting a Revamp, but is That a Good Idea?

You know the Maine state flag, right?

It's got the coat of arms featuring the word "Dirigo" and, according to the state of Maine website, "is placed on a blue field of the same shade of blue in the flag of the United States."

It's been around since 1909. But that could all change soon.

There's a new bill titled "An Act to Restore the Former State of Maine Flag," and sponsored by Representative Sean Paulhus, D-Bath, that wants to do exactly what it sounds like. Change the Maine flag back to the state's first flag.

According to originalmaine.me, the original flag was introduced in 1901 and featured a "green pine tree and blue star on a buff, or tan, colored field."

Interestingly, this conversation in the Maine legislature of change also seems similar to the 1901 flag design proposal on the state license places.

A February press release from the Maine Department of the Secretary of State highlighted this new plan for the license plates, which would change the chickadee design that began in 1999.

Deputy Secretary Curtis said that “Mainers across the state have embraced the 1901 flag and we think they’ll love the new plate design as much as we do.”

But will they? Do Mainers want the flag and license plate to change? Should they? Do people even care one way or the other?

One person commented on a Maine Department of the Secretary of State Facebook post about the changes that they "Like it for the plates, but hope we keep our current state flag as is."

Another person commented that they were not a fan of the change: "Too plain. Not an improvement. The 1901 flag was terrible. Why revive it?"

At the same time, a Mainer seemed to like the change, stating, "I'd be in the favor of this. A homage to the working class of our great state."

If anything, it's certainly caused quite a conversation of opinions.

Guess time will tell if these proposed changes become the new real deal for Maine.

What do you think? Love the new design? Hate it? Let us know!