Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Milwaukee. It’s a pretty nice town, I hear. Light rail and all that. And a Ferris Wheel? Wow! Oh, wait. That’s a cog. But at least they have a stalk of barley for beermaking. Other than that, there’s a whole lot of junk on this flag. A steeple, city hall, and Indian’s head in profile, a ship, a factory and County Stadium, which was torn down in 2000. This flag actually was designed by a committee. In the 1950s, the town put out a call for flag designs. A city alderman wasn’t satisfied with any of the entries, so he took elements from the best (apparently the 14 best) and combined them into this gem. It was voted one of the five worst flags in North America by the North American Vexillogical Association. City council put out a new call for flag designs, but ended up sticking with this one because it was unsatisfied with the rest. It has to be said: Milwaukee, for all its charm and Laverne and Shirley lore, is full of citizens who are horrible flag designers. Maybe the worst in the nation.