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The state flag,
adopted in 1905, has three stars representing East, Middle, and
West Tennessee. On the state seal, a plow, a sheaf of wheat, and a
cotton plant symbolize the importance of agriculture. The
riverboat represents commerce. The date 1796 is the year the first
state Constitution was approved. The current state seal came into
use during the term of Governor William G. Brownlow (1865-1869)
and was officially adopted in 1987.
Tennessee is one of the states that link the North and the South
of the United States. Life in West and Middle Tennessee resembles
life in the Deep South. East Tennessee is similar to parts of the
North. Even during the American Civil War (1861-1865), Tennessee
loyalties were divided between the North and the South. Tennessee
was the last Confederate state to leave the Union, and the first
to return. |
