Sculptor, Medalist. He is best remembered for his design of the Washington quarter that was first released for circulation in 1932. Born in Newark, New Jersey, he worked as an apprentice to his father who was a sculptor and marble cutter. He worked briefly for sculptor Truman Howe Bartlett in Boston, Massachusetts, followed by the Perth Amboy Terra Cotta Works in New Jersey. In 1885 he became an assistant to the renowned sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens while attending classes at the Art Students League in New York City. Five years later he travelled to Paris, France and studied under Henri Chapu at the Academie Julian and later under Jean-Alexandre-Joseph Falguiere at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. During this time he collaborated with artist Frederick William MacMonnies on the sculpture "Columbian Fountain" for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, Illinois, followed by the monumental clock for the Main Reading Room of the Library of Congress (1902). In 1911 he became an Associate of the National Academy of Design in New York City. He won the American Numismatic Society's J. Sanford Saltus Award in 1921 for Outstanding Achievement in the Art of the Medal. In December 1924 the US Congress approved a plan to establish the George Washington Bicentennial Commission to honor the 200th anniversary of President George Washington's birthday in 1932 and six years later, the group (now called the George Washington Bicentennial Committee) established a competition for artists and sculptors for the new design and over 100 entries were submitted, including one by Flanagan. The Commission selected the entry by Laura Gardin Fraser (wife of buffalo nickel designer James Earl Fraser) however, In March 1931 Congress passed new legislation to issue a quarter coin to commemorate Washington with new design changes, and another competition was held. In November of that year Flanagan's design was initially accepted by US Treasury Secretary Andrew W. Mellon. The decision was protested and after consideration by Mellon's replacement, Ogden L. Mills in April 1932, Mellon's choice was not overruled and the US Mint began circulating Flanagan's quarter design the following August. His original design of the Washington quarter continued to be used through 1998, after which the new US State, US Territories, and District of Columbia series were added to the reverse side, followed by the National Park series. His other notable works include a medal for the Hudson-Fulton Celebration (1909), the official medal of the Panama-Pacific International Exposition (1915), the Verdun Medal (1916, a gift of the US to France that commemorated the World War I Battle of Verdun), and the Aphrodite-Swift Runners Medal (1932). He died in New York City, New York at the age of 87.