FORTISVEX Alaska State Flag 4x6 Feet Nylon - Made in USA with Brass Grommets

A 4x6 foot flag is the first size that really needs a flagpole in the ground. It is too large for a standard house bracket, and that is the honest reason to step up to it rather than any question of appearance.

This is the Alaska state flag at 4x6 Feet in nylon, made in the United States, finished with brass grommets.

Built to the Alaska flag specification

The Alaska flag is set out in the Alaska Statutes on state emblems, which specify the gold as the color of natural yellow gold and the blue as matching the United States flag. It is eight gold stars on a dark blue field, seven forming the Big Dipper and the eighth, larger and set upper right, being Polaris.

Designed by thirteen-year-old Benny Benson through an American Legion territorial contest in 1926 and 1927 that drew 142 entries, unanimously adopted by the territorial legislature 2 May 1927, first flown 9 July 1927, and retained at statehood in 1959.

We reproduce it to that specification rather than to an approximation of it. If you are going to fly a state’s colors, they should be the state’s colors.

What is on it and what it means

Benson wrote the meaning himself. The blue field is for the Alaska sky and the forget-me-not. The North Star is for the future of the state. The dipper is for the Great Bear, symbolizing strength.

What most listings get wrong

Seven stars make the Dipper and the eighth is Polaris, not an eighth Dipper star. Benson was of Aleut, Russian and Swedish descent and was living at the Jesse Lee Home in Seward when he drew it.

It was designed by a child and adopted without a single dissenting vote.

The fly end is where every flag fails

A 4x6 foot flag carries well over half again the area of a 3x5 foot flag, so it catches proportionally more wind and the fly end works harder for it. Four rows of lock stitching, and it needs all four.

Lock stitching means each stitch is knotted into the next, so a broken thread stops where it broke. A chain stitch, which is faster and cheaper to sew, unzips along the whole seam from one break. Row count is the other half of it: 4 rows does not mean 4 times the strength, it means 3 backups.

The part that takes all the load

The heading is heavy duty white and reinforced, an inch and a half wide, with two solid brass grommets and tooth washers. At twenty four square feet the load on those two points is real.

Commercial grade nylon

Nylon is the right cloth for most sites. It is light enough to fly in a gentle breeze, it sheds water rather than holding it, and it dries fast, which matters because a flag that stays wet stays heavy and works its seams harder. The ink is UV resistant and field tested. Sun is what takes a flag’s color, slowly and unevenly, and the ink is the part that decides how long it holds.

A design that reproduces cleanly

Two colors and eight stars. Nothing here degrades badly, which is part of why it is one of the highest rated flag designs in the country.

For what it is worth, the North American Vexillological Association surveyed 72 state, provincial and territorial flags in 2001 and rated them from zero to ten. The Alaska flag placed 5, at 7.96 out of 10.

Will it fit my flagpole?

It suits an in-ground flagpole of eighteen to twenty five feet. On a six foot house bracket it will drag and wrap.

Where the step up starts to cost you

Going from a 3x5 foot flag to a 4x6 foot flag is where buying cheap begins to be expensive. The extra area means more force at the fly end and more load on the grommets, so a 4x6 built to a budget fails faster than a 3x5 built the same way. This is the size where construction stops being a nicety.

Specifications

• Size: 4x6 Feet
• Area: 24 square feet
• Material: 100 percent nylon
• Fly end: 4 rows of lock stitching
• Heading: heavy duty white, reinforced, 1-1/2 inch
• Finish: Brass Grommets
• Ink: UV resistant, field tested
• Made in the United States by FORTISVEX

Which size do I need?

The rule behind both tables below is that a flag’s length should run about a quarter to a third of the flagpole’s height. Where two sizes both fit, the smaller one flies more often and lasts longer, and the larger one reads from further away.

If you know your flagpole height, start here.

• 6 Feet house bracket: 2x3 Feet or 3x5 Feet
• 15 to 20 Feet flagpole: 3x5 Feet or 4x6 Feet
• 20 to 25 Feet flagpole: 4x6 Feet or 5x8 Feet
• 25 to 35 Feet flagpole: 5x8 Feet or 6x10 Feet
• 35 to 45 Feet flagpole: 6x10 Feet or 8x12 Feet
• 45 to 60 Feet flagpole: 8x12 Feet or 10x15 Feet
• 60 to 80 Feet flagpole: 10x15 Feet or 12x18 Feet
• 80 Feet and above: 15x25 Feet and larger, engineered to the flagpole

If you know your flag size, start here.

• 2x3 Feet: 4 to 8 Feet bracket or garden flagpole
• 3x5 Feet: 6 Feet bracket, or 15 to 20 Feet in-ground flagpole
• 4x6 Feet: 18 to 25 Feet in-ground flagpole
• 5x8 Feet: 25 to 35 Feet flagpole
• 6x10 Feet: 30 to 40 Feet flagpole
• 8x12 Feet: 40 to 50 Feet flagpole
• 10x15 Feet: 50 to 60 Feet flagpole
• 12x18 Feet: 60 to 80 Feet flagpole
• 15x25 Feet: 80 Feet and above
• 20x30 Feet, 20x38 Feet, 30x50 Feet, 30x60 Feet and 50x80 Feet are available to order

We carry the full range whether or not every size appears on this website. If the size you need is not listed, we can still supply it.

About the back of the flag

A printed flag reads correctly from the front and reversed from the back. That is normal and it is true of almost every flag flown in the country. A flag that reads correctly from both sides is a double sided flag, built as two flags sewn together with a liner between them, and it costs roughly twice as much and weighs roughly twice as much. Unless the statute for a particular state requires it, single sided is the standard and the right choice.

Flying it with the United States flag

The United States Flag Code, Title 4, Section 7, governs this. No other flag goes above the United States flag, or to its right when on the same level, which is the viewer’s left. On two flagpoles of the same height the United States flag takes the viewer’s left and both flags should be the same size. If the flagpoles differ in height, the United States flag goes on the taller one. On a single flagpole carrying two flags the United States flag goes at the top. The Flag Code is advisory for civilians and carries no penalty, but it is the standard every institution follows.

Buy two and they both last longer

Fly one for a month, then swap. Two flags rotated monthly will outlast three flags flown to destruction, because cloth recovers when it rests and the fly end stops taking the same abuse in the same place. Take it down in severe weather; a flag left up through a real windstorm can take more damage in one night than in six normal months. And watch the fly end rather than the middle, because a few minutes with a needle when the fraying starts buys another season.

For cities, counties, schools and agencies

We supply state flags to municipalities, school districts, fire and police departments, courthouses and state agencies. Tax exempt accounts are handled through the tax exempt page. For quantities, replacement schedules or sizes not listed, use the contact page.

Why buy it from us

We are a small American company and we stock what we sell. Every flag here is made in the United States, printed in UV resistant ink, and finished to the construction described above rather than to a price point. We would rather sell you one flag that lasts than three that do not. Free shipping on orders over twenty five dollars.