Whitney Smith

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Whitney Smith Jr. (February 26, 1940 – November 17, 2016) was an American vexillologist. He coined the term vexillology, which refers to the scholarly analysis of all aspects of flags.<ref name="ftn">Template:Cite news</ref> He was a founder of several vexillology organizations. Smith was a Laureate and a Fellow of the International Federation of Vexillological Associations.

Early life and educationEdit

Whitney Smith Jr. was born on February 26, 1940, to Mildred and Whitney Smith.<ref name="nyt"/> As a youth, he lived in Lexington<ref name=people>Template:Cite news</ref> and Winchester, Massachusetts.<ref name="nyt" /> Smith credited his interest in flags to his memories of Massachusetts Patriots' Day celebrations and a gift of The Golden Encyclopedia when he was about 6 years old.<ref name=people/>

At Harvard, he studied political science and received a bachelor's degree in the field in 1961. During his time at Harvard, Smith designed the flag of Guyana after corresponding with Guyanese premier Cheddi Jagan via mail.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He received his doctorate in political science at Boston University in 1968;[1] political symbolism was the subject of his dissertation.<ref name="nyt" />

CareerEdit

File:Flag of Guyana.svg

Smith designed the proposal for the flag of Guyana which, after modification and addition of black and white, was adopted in 1966. It is also known as The Golden Arrowhead.

File:Flag of Antarctica (Smith).svg

Smith also designed this flag as a proposed flag of Antarctica. Antarctica has no government or sovereign ruler and the flag has not been adopted in an official capacity by any organization.

Smith had his first article published at age 18. By 1960, he was consulting with the Encyclopædia Britannica.<ref name=people/>

Smith worked with Klaes Sierksma to organize the First International Congress of Vexillology (Muiderberg, Netherlands) in 1965.<ref name="nyt" /> They joined Louis Mühlemann in founding the International League of Vexillologists and were members of its Governing Board on September 5, 1965, and operated until September 3, 1967. The league was replaced by the International Federation of Vexillological Associations (known by its French acronym FIAV) with Smith as vice-president of the Provisional Council as of September 3, 1967. In 1969, Smith moved from being FIAV Provisional Council vice-president to being the first Secretary-General of FIAV.<ref name=fiav>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Smith was also responsible for founding the North American Vexillological Association (NAVA) and the Flag Heritage Foundation.<ref name="nyt" /> On August 28, 1981, he was elected the second Secretary-General for Congresses, ending his multiple terms as FIAV Secretary-General. Smith served in that office until he returned to the FIAV Secretary-General position on September 29, 1983.<ref name=fiav/>

Smith quit his full-time professorship at Boston University in 1970. By 1985, he had written 19 books.<ref name=people/>

On July 5, 1991, Smith was named by the FIAV a Laureate of the Federation<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and left the office of FIAV Secretary-General.<ref name=fiav/> He was given the honor of Fellow of the Federation on July 27, 2001.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

In 2006 he was the joint author of The American Flag: Two Centuries of Concord & Conflict

In 2013 he transferred The Flag Research Center's library and archives to The Dolph Briscoe Center for American History.<ref name="ftn"/>

On November 17, 2016, Smith died from complications of Alzheimer's disease at the age of 76.<ref name="nyt">Template:Cite news</ref>

BibliographyEdit

Smith wrote 27 books on the subject of flags,<ref name=cah>Template:Cite press release</ref> notably Flags Through the Ages and Across the World, The Flag Book of the United States, and Flag Lore of all Nations.<ref name="nyt"/>

He was the designer of the national flag of Guyana, 21 Saudi Arabian navy flags<ref name=people/> and served as a vexillographer (flag designer) to a number of governments and organizations. In 1981, Smith was part of a committee that developed the flag of Bonaire<ref name=cah/> and assisted in the design of the flag of Aruba.<ref name="nyt"/>

Smith also wrote over 250 articles for the Encyclopædia Britannica.<ref name="nyt"/>

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ReferencesEdit

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External linksEdit

A Guide to the Dr. Whitney Smith Flag Research Center Collection at Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin
The Flag Bulletin #234 Template:Cbignore In Memoriam: Whitney Smith

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