Frankfort looks nothing like the idea of a capital: no skyscrapers, but a small town curled into a bend of the Kentucky River, ringed by hills. Its flag keeps only the bend: a broad pale blue curve crossing a midnight field, and a golden star marking the capital.
Yet this peaceful town owes its status to a rivalry. In 1792, Louisville and Lexington both claimed the title of Kentucky's capital; unable to agree, the state chose Frankfort, set between the two. The little town won by compromise, not by grandeur.
Daniel Boone, the legendary pioneer, rests in the cemetery overlooking the river. And it was here, in 1900, that Governor William Goebel was shot down in the street, the only American governor ever assassinated in office.
The flag holds to two signs: the river and the star. It flies, peaceful, above a capital whose gentleness hides more history than it reveals.