3 September is Australian National Flag Day. On that day in 1901, Prime Minister Edmund Barton announced the winners of the federal flag competition, and a huge blue ensign was flown over the dome of the Royal Exhibition Building in Melbourne — then the seat of the federal parliament. Roughly 32,800 entries; five near-identical designs shared first place. The flag we salute now descends from that Commonwealth blue ensign.
Live wording that slides the first flying to Sydney, or ties it directly to the Centennial Park Constitution ceremonies of 1 January 1901, muddles two different days in two different cities. Federation day is Sydney; Flag Day’s first hoist is Melbourne. The day itself was proclaimed a national day in 1996. Before 1901 each colony flew its own badges and British ensigns — that part of the live stub is fair.
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