Before 1943 the people of North Carolina voted the chickadee as their state bird, but it never became law. Massachusetts claims the small bird. The brilliant red colored Cardinal was voted to be the state bird in 1943. With one glimpse of a Cardinal in your backyard you can understand why the bird represents seven states. The bird has a song that sounds similar to a flute. It grows to be eight to nine inches long, has a wingspan of ten to twelve inches wide, and weighs one to two ounces. You can see the beautiful Cardinal all year long in North Carolina, because it does not migrate to warmer climates.
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The Dogwood is a small tree in comparison to the Oak and Maple tree, usually growing no taller than 30 feet. The bark has a rough surface. You can see this tree with its beautiful blossoms all over the state. That is one reason why the flowering Dogwood became North Carolina's state flower in 1941. In the spring it produces a small greenish-white or yellow flower surrounded by large, white or pink leaves. The leaves contain calcium. The Dogwood blooms from early spring into the summer months.
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In 1943 the North Carolina government made the Pine Tree their state tree. The tree is grown in most parts of the state, making it its most common tree. The Pine Tree holds a very important place in North Carolina's history. In the colonial times, naval stores needed resin, turpentine, and wood to sell to merchants and the navy for their shipbuilding. The Pine Tree produced these products, therefore making the tree an important part of the state's economy. Today the tree supplies North Carolina with many different types of wood products such as furniture. Pine trees are also known as evergreens.   These trees are huge in size, some reaching over 100 feet in height.  They have needles instead of leaves, and produce pine cones instead of flowers.   Cone bearing trees are called coniferous.  The needles can be short and thick to long and thin.  Also, some can have sharp points!  Unlike trees with leaves, they do not loose their needles in the fall.  
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North Carolina established its first state flag in 1861 which was carried by its troops during the American Civil War along with the Confederate flag. Many years after the war in 1885, General Johnstone Jones, a Confederate general, introduced the bill to approve the flag that is used today. The flag's colors are red, white, and blue to match our nation's flag. The top half is red, and the bottom half is white. A wide blue stripe runs down along the left side. North Carolina's initials (NC) appear on this stripe with a white star between them to show that it is one of the 50 states. There are two important historical dates that also appear on the blue stripe. April 12, 1779 is the date of the Halifax Resolution that gave permission to the North Carolina delegates to approve the United States Declaration of Independence. Delegates were representatives of their colony or state. The other date May 20, 1775 is the date of the Mecklenberg Declaration of Independence that declared them as a free and independent people from foreign powers.
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