A unique flag greets visitors walking into the headquarters of the National Society of the Sons of Utah Pioneers (SUP). This flag features thirteen red and white stripes and a blue square canton in the top left corner with thirteen white stars surrounding an American bald eagle. The eagle is painted over an earlier beehive image. A grizzly bear standing on its hind legs is painted over the red and white stripes in the center of the flag. This design appears on both sides of the flag. The words “Life Guards” and “Always Ready” also appear on both sides of the flag but in slightly different positions. On the front of the flag, the words “Always Ready” are mostly centered under the grizzly bear, but “Always Ready” is left-justified on the back side of the fabric.
The story of what is perhaps the oldest Utah flag still in existence—the Utah...
