Louisiana's official flag was adopted in 1912, one hundred years after Louisiana became a state. The flag has a blue background (symbolizing truth) with a white pelican mother feeding her three chicks in a nest (the pelican is an old symbol of protection - an old legend tells of a mother pelican tearing flesh from herself to feed her young; this pelican represents the state protecting the people and their land). The ribbon reads "Union, Justice, and Confidence."

Louisiana was the 18th state in the USA; it became a state in 1812.