New Jersey State Flag

The New Jersey state flag is the official civic flag of New Jersey. A buff-colored field covers the background. The state coat of arms appears in the center showing two women supporting a shield.

The shield displays three plows. A horse head sits above in a helmet. Two ribbons curve below with the motto Liberty and Prosperity and the date 1776. Courthouses, state offices, and schools across New Jersey display this flag. For a comparison with a neighboring state, the New York state flag follows a similar coat-of-arms tradition but uses a blue field rather than buff.

The flag represents New Jersey's agricultural heritage and commitment to freedom. The three plows symbolize agriculture as the foundation of New Jersey's early economy. Each plow represents one of the state's main agricultural regions and the same identity behind the Garden State nickname.

Liberty holds a pole with a liberty cap. She represents freedom and independence. Ceres holds a cornucopia filled with harvest. She represents abundance and prosperity through agriculture, echoing New Jersey's state motto.

The buff color honors George Washington and New Jersey troops. Continental soldiers from New Jersey wore buff-colored uniforms during the Revolution. The date 1776 marks the Declaration of Independence.

New Jersey adopted its state flag in 1896. The legislature approved a design featuring the state coat of arms on a buff field. The coat of arms itself dated to 1777. Neighboring New York formalized its own flag five years later in 1901 — see the New York state flag history to understand how two adjacent states with nearly identical heraldic traditions ended up with such different color choices.

The 1896 law formalized what had been unofficial practice for decades. New Jersey militia units had carried buff-colored flags with the coat of arms since the early 1800s. No single designer is credited. The flag emerged from military tradition.

The buff color came from General George Washington's choice for New Jersey Continental Line uniforms. Washington selected buff and blue as his army's colors. New Jersey regiments wore buff facings on their blue coats. The state preserved this color connection when adopting the flag, now documented on New Jersey's state colors page.

The flag uses buff, blue, gold, green, brown, and white. Buff forms the field. Blue appears in Liberty's clothing and details. Gold shows in Ceres' cornucopia. Green depicts vegetation. Brown colors the plows. White highlights the ribbons and clothing; for a broader palette comparison see U.S. state colors.