Hello, Our library installed the flagpoles at a new branch in a triangle
formation with the single pole to the back. If I am not mistaken this
is backwards. My first question is am I right about this? My second
question is, If these can't be moved what would be the proper way
to display the American, state and city flags? I told them American
to the viewers left, state to the viewers right and city to the rear.
We don't want the Cub Scouts protesting out front.

Thanks

John Pollock

[american_flag_uk]

whoever told you that info is right

the front is a more prominent position in this example so the least imprtant flag goes at the back - the city flag

then front left and front right as you look a the building the US flag on the left the state flag on the right
the flagpoles are not installed wrong
if the poles where the other way round with the single at the front the US flag would go on it and state flag on back left city flag on the back right

they just have positioned them differently but not wrong

[Peter Ansoff]

Just by the by, this is yet another of those things that is not covered in the flag code. I guess the principle is that the flags on the poles in front (closer to the viewer) have precedence over the ones farther back.

Combining the flag code rules with common usage, the general rules of precedence for flag display would seem to be:

1. High to low
2. Front to back (from the viewer's perspective)
3. Left to right (again, from the viewer's perspective)
4. North/east to south/west if the display is to be viewed from both sides.

A footnote is needed to complete the definition: regardless of rule 1, flags of equivalent "stature" (e.g., national flags) are always displayed at the same height. When rules 2 through 4 are applied to flags of equivalent stature, they are given precedence in alphabetical order or another generally recognized order of precedence (e.g., admission dates for US state flags).

Of course, one can imagine all sorts of crazy combinations of the above rules, but I think that they'd cover most real-world situations.

Peter Ansoff