All for Our Country: Nevada’s True State Motto and this year’s Nevada Day Parade theme
While some may believe that Nevada’s state motto may be Battle Born, this is a common misconception. Battle Born is a saying that came from the fact that the statehood of Nevada was ratified at the end of the Civil War, which gave President Abraham Lincoln the votes he needed to free slaves in the doomed confederacy and across the nation.
The true motto of Nevada is “All for Our Country,” which, interestingly, was born out of the same circumstances as the more often used Battle Born.
Prior to Nevada reaching statehood, the Territory of Nevada had its own seal and motto, and as the soon-to-be state prepared for ratification, the Constitutional Convention came together to formalize everything from what was on the seal to what Nevada would stand for.
The previous territory motto was Volens et Potens, a latin phrase meaning Willing and Able, which was then replaced by All for Our Country.
There is no recorded history of the reasoning behind choosing All for Our Country, but it is undeniably a pro-Union sentiment. The much wordier motto of The Union Must and Shall be Preserved was considered during the National Convention of 1863.
Without the civil war, and Lincoln’s re-election, Nevada would not have been allotted its statehood – at least, not in 1864. The state held an overwhelmingly pro-Union stance, especially considering that for many boomtowns, African-Americans were not only free citizens, but there was very little segregation. In Virginia City, for example, Black students attended the Fourth Ward school alongside White students without issue.
Both the state seal and the more-often used Battle Born – which flies on every Nevada state flag – were formalized during the second National Convention of 1864. Soon after, Nevada was officially introduced into the Union as the 36th state.
Keep an eye out for the official Nevada Day Magazine being handed out on parade day along the parade route for this and other stories!