Bruce Blackburn designed the official logo of the 1976 United States Bicentennial, the predecessor celebration to America250.
The emblem featured a white five-pointed star inside a stylized red, white, and blue star. It was surrounded by the words “American Revolution Bicentennial 1776–1976,” creating a compact symbol that could work on flags, souvenirs, postage, and government displays.
Blackburn was a graphic designer who later became known for co-designing NASA’s modernized “meatball” insignia. The bicentennial emblem helped make the 1976 celebration visually recognizable across the country and appeared on an early 1971 postage stamp.
The logo was more than a decorative mark. Licensing rules controlled its commercial use, and NASA painted the emblem on the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center in 1976. It remained there until 1998, when it was replaced by a NASA insignia.