St. Francois County, Missouri: History
=== Seal ===
A former county seal, used from 2018 to 2022, was posted on the subreddit r/CrappyDesign where it received considerable attention and was covered by local and national news organizations. It was criticized for being "overdone" and "amateurish," though some said they felt it stood out and was "spontaneous."
The 2018 seal was designed during a weekend deadline by county commissioner Harold Gallaher and incorporated components from an older 1982 seal designed by a high school student in needlework. The seal was unanimously approved by the county commission and was used on government signage and vehicles.
The seal featured clip art-style images of a bald eagle atop the American flag, a pickaxe and shovel, a Bible and Christian cross, and an outline of the county. It also featured the phrase "In God we trust" and the founding date of the county.
In response to the attention it received, the county held a contest to redesign the seal. Gallaher requested that the redesign make reference to the parks in the county as well as include elements from the old seal. The county received 264 or 282 entries from 33 counties and 35 states, of which three finalists were chosen. Some included the St. Francois County Courthouse and referenced the county's mining history. The winning design was submitted by Bryan Finch, a graphic designer from Farmington, Missouri, a city in St. Francois County.