Based on Benny Benson's design, Alaska's official flag originated from a 1926 American Legion-sponsored territory-wide contest for schoolchildren. Benny, a thirteen-year-old seventh-grader of Russian-Aleut and Swedish descent, attended the Territorial School in Seward and lived at the Jesse Lee Mission Home. His design was officially adopted by the Alaska Territorial Legislature on May 2, 1927, and was praised for its simplicity, originality, and symbolism.
Benny explained the symbolism behind his flag: the blue field represented Alaska's sky and the forget-me-not, the state's flower; the North Star symbolized Alaska's future as the northernmost state in the Union; and the Big Dipper represented the Great Bear, a symbol of strength.
Marie Drake, a Territorial Assistant Commissioner of Education, echoed Benny’s explanation in a poem she wrote in 1935.
This poem, first published in the October 1935 issue of the School Bulletin, celebrated the flag’s imagery. Elinor Dusenbury, who had fallen in love with Alaska while living at the Chilkoot Barracks, composed music for the poem out of homesickness after leaving Alaska. In 1938, she played the song for Marie Drake in Juneau, and it quickly gained popularity.
The song "Alaska's Flag" was officially adopted by the Territorial Legislature in 1955 and became Alaska’s state song when the territory achieved statehood in 1959.