West Virginia was formed in 1863 from Virginia and is made up of 55 counties home to 1.9 million people. The state flag features the seal with a white field and blue border representing purity and the Union. The Great Seal was designed by local artist Joseph H. Diss Debar and features the state motto "Montani Semper Liberi." The state flower is the Rhododendron which grows wild in the mountains, and the state bird is the Cardinal, also the bird of Virginia. The current governor is Earl Ray Tomblin of Logan County.