List of Michigan state symbols

The following is a list of symbols of the U.S. state of Michigan. Bills to designate state symbols in Michigan are referred to the Government Operations Committee in either chamber.^[1]

Location of the state of Michigan in the United States

State symbols

Type	Symbol	Adopted	Image	Note
Bird	American robin Turdus migratorius	1931	[1]
Coat of Arms	Coat of Arms of the State of Michigan	1835[2]
Fish	Brook Trout Salvelinus fontinalis	1988		In 1965, the trout was named the official state fish; this was specified as the brook trout in 1988.[1]
Flag	Flag of the State of Michigan	1911
Flower	Apple Blossom[note 1] Malus sp.	1897[3]		A garland of 44 flowers representing the 44 states was made for the World's Columbian Exhibition of 1893 with the Apple Blossom representing Michigan. This inspired Michigan's Legislature to make it official in 1897.[1]
Fossil	Mastodon Mammut americanum	2002[1]
Game Mammal	White-Tailed Deer Odocoileus virginianus	1997[1]
Gem	Isle Royale greenstone Chlorastrolite	1972[1]
Motto	Si quaeris peninsulam amoenam circumspice (Latin for "If you seek a pleasant peninsula, look about you") [4]	1835
Native Grain	Manoomin Zizania palustris and Zizania aquatica	2023[5][6]
Reptile	Painted turtle Chrysemys picta	1995[1]
Seal	Great Seal of the State of Michigan	1835
Soil	Kalkaska soil series	December 1990[1]
Song	"My Michigan"	1937	[1]	The resolution passed by the Michigan House of Representatives specified "My Michigan" as "the official state song," but this was changed upon introduction in the state senate to "an official song." Because the state failed to purchase the copyright from the song's authors, the song is rarely performed today.
Stone	Petoskey Stone Hexagonaria pericarnata	1965	[1]
Tree	Eastern White Pine Pinus strobus	1955[7][8]
Wildflower	Dwarf Lake Iris Iris lacustris	1998	[1]

Other symbols

• United States quarter dollar - Michigan 2004

See also

• List of U.S. state, district, and territorial insignia
• Outline of Michigan

Notes

1. The legislation mentions sweet crabapple (Malus coronaria) as an example.

References

1. Gibbons, Lauren (April 4, 2019). "The surprising stories behind Michigan's state symbols". MLive.com. Retrieved April 4, 2019.
2. "SOS - Coat of Arms". www.michigan.gov. Archived from the original on 2011-12-24.
3. "Michigan's State Symbols".
4. "Michigan's State Facts". Retrieved May 10, 2020.
5. "State Facts and Symbols". Retrieved September 16, 2024.
6. McWhirter, Sheri (2023-12-01). "Do you know what manoomin is? Michigan's state native grain". mlive. Retrieved 2024-09-16.
7. State Tree, Act 7 of 1955, Michigan Legislature, 2002, retrieved November 10, 2019
8. 2.31 State tree, Michigan Legislature, 2002, retrieved November 10, 2019

External links

• Michigan's State Symbols