Grand Old Flag
Duncan Virostko, Museum Asistant
“The stars that redeem the night from darkness, and the beams of red light that beautify the morning, have been united upon its folds. As long as the sun endures, or the stars, may it wave over a nation neither enslaved nor enslaving.” ~ Henry Ward Beecher, 1865
In Dunham Tavern’s vast collection is a very special flag, usually kept in storage with the exception of special events, one which represents not just a nation or a time period but a nearly-lost trade which once employed numerous highly skilled men and women.
Recently, it was on display at the Declaration Exploration event, as an original example of a very rare flag from the United States’ earliest period of expansion.
25 Star Flag, Ca. 1836.
The 25 star flag dates from between July 4, 1836 and July 3, 1837. The 25th star had been added to represent Arkansas, and within a year Michigan would join the Union as the 26th state. As the flag only lasted one year in use, and predates the Civil War, it is an exceedingly rare flag.
The flag is not a military banner, but rather a private expression of patriotism. Military flags were generally made from silk, used for its strength and lightweight. The result were flags that were useful on the battlefield but expensive, and which today seldom survive due to the shattering of antique silks. In contrast, civilian flags like ours were made from a more common and affordable range of materials: wool bunting, linen, or light weight cotton. By happy accident, far more of these flags have survived intact to present day, since they do not shatter with age. Our 25 star flag appears to be made of lightweight cotton which was typical for the 1820s & 30s, earlier flags having been more often made of linen. As sewing machines had not yet been invented when our flag was made, it was made entirely by hand. The flag features fabric stars, done as a double applique: two pieces of fabric representing stars attached to opposite sides of the fabric. This is in contrast to the rarer single applique technique, which entailed cutting a star shaped hole in the flag, then applying a fabric star over it such that both the front and reverse of the fabric of the star was visible through the flag. Single applique would have required greater skill, but saved on fabric.
Our 25 star flag may have actually begun life as a 21 star flag, dating from July 4, 1819 – July 3, 1820. The flag shows evidence of up to four stars having been moved from their original positions. The places where these stars were would otherwise conflict with the presently existing stars in several different rows, so it seems unlikely to be a simple repair. It was also common in the early United States to simply add new stars to a design if a new state were admitted, because flags were large and expensive pieces of hand sewing work. Thus, it seems to be the result of the original flag maker laying out a new pattern of stars, modified to accommodate the new additions of Illinois, Alabama, Maine & Arkansas.
Pre Civil War flags are rare not only because of their great age, but also because of attitudes surrounding the flag. The labor and materials required to make a large flag at the time was significant, meaning the average American was unlikely to own a flag no matter how patriotic they were. Furthermore, the United States enjoyed thirty years of peace between 1815 and 1846, between the end of the War of 1812 and beginning of the Mexican-American War. Thus few military flags were produced during the period. The vast majority of flags produced in that period were instead intended for use on the many merchant ships that plied the oceans, lakes, and rivers of the early United States. Flags also commonly flew at public buildings, like courthouses, as they do today. Another use of flags, and quite likely the use that our flag saw in its lifetime, was as a centerpiece of patriotic celebrations.
As a powerful symbol of the United States, and its growth and expansion, the flying of flags was often part of celebrations such as the Fourth of July, and would have been treasured by their owners but seldom flown. The long active life, addition of stars, and careful patching which has been done to our flag reveals its purpose as a treasured symbol which saw only occasional use, because it was so precious to its original creator. It is an embodiment not just of the labor but the patriotism of unknown American women.
Both men and women, of all backgrounds, contributed to the creation of the US flag. Contrary to popular belief, Betsy Ross had no hand in the design or construction of the earliest American flags. The spurious claim originated from her grandson William J. Canby in 1870, around the centennial of the United States, no doubt for purposes of self promotion. In actual fact, Betsy Ross was an upholsterer, from whom George Washington purchased bed curtains. She did not make American flags until after the Revolution, in 1811 when she produced 50 for the U.S. Arsenal on the Schuylkill River. She did produce flags, of a completely different an triangular design, for Pennsylvania state gunboats in 1777 however.
The flag design which is often attributed to her, with the 13 stars in the canton arranged in a circle, was just one of many variants of the American flag. The Flag Act of 1777, which established the design of the American flag, stated “Resolved, that the flag of the United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field representing a new constellation.”. It did not specify any particular arrangement of the thirteen stars, thus allowing for artistic interpretation by individual flag makers. Interestingly, the act itself was the result of a request by the Indigenous allies of the United States to be presented with a flag to express their allegiance, the cost of which was paid for with 3 Wampum belts.
William Barton (1754-1817)
According to William Barton, a Pennsylvania lawyer who was one of several designers of the Great Seal of the United States, and a noted expert on heraldry, the colors of the United States flag each have deep meanings. Writing in 1780, Barton remarked of his design “the colors or tinctures of the pales are those used in the Flag of the United States. White, signifies purity, innocence; red, hardiness and valor…Blue is the ground of the American uniform, and this color signifies vigilance, perseverance, and justice.”. These meanings were unlikely to have been at the forefront of the original flag’s adopters, however. The red and white striped flag had already been flown as a symbol of the United Colonies, sometimes with a Union Jack in it’s canton, and the blue of the canton itself not only suggested a night sky in which the “new constellation” had been formed, but also mirrored existing British flags in color.
Francis Hokpinson (1737-1791), ca. 1785.
One of the earliest designers to work on the US flag was Francis Hopkinson, in his capacity as chairman of the Navy board of the Marine Committee of the Continental Congress, equivalent to the Undersecretary of the Navy today. The principal use of national flags at this time was the identification of the ship's national identity. A “false flag” was a permissible ruse in war to avoid attack or surprise an enemy, but ships were required by custom to “show their true colors” before firing on one another.
Hopkinson specified that the outer stripes of the flag be red for naval flags, so as to increase their visibility at sea, when they would be viewed at extreme distance. My corollary, Hopkinson seems to have preferred a version of the flag with white outer stripes for the national flag as used on land. Ultimately, however, the design Hopkinson intended only for use aboard ships became the preferred style of strip arrangement.
Some early flags were produced by Rebecca Flower Young of Philadelphia, PA. Her flag shop was located on Walnut Street in Philadelphia, and in 1781 she was contracted by the commissary general for making "Continental Standards". That same year, she publicly advertised her flag making skills in the Pennsylvania Packet, offering ‘All Kinds of Colors”. After the Revolution, she would also make the national colors for the 1st American Regiment, the predecessor of today’s 3rd Infantry Regiment which serves as a ceremonial unit of the Army, recreating its early history and escorting the President.
The American flag was so admired by the Chinese when it first appeared flying from the masts of The Empress of China in 1784 that is was called the “Flower Flag” (花旗). The ship, originally built as a privateer during the revolution, appeared in the waters off Canton bearing a cargo of tea and representatives of the new nation’s government, marking the beginning of diplomatic and trade relations between the two nations. The ship would return to the United States with a cargo of fine china, and George Washington himself would purchase a set for his home, Mount Vernon. It is ironic that, in alluding to the beauty of the flag, the Chinese accidentally also referenced the middle name of one of its creators!
Mary Young Pickersgill (1776-1857)
Rebecca Flower Young’s daughter, Mary Young Pickersgill, would go on to make the Star-Spangled Banner, of Fort McHenry fame, carrying on her mother’s trade. The work of stitching the 400 sq ft flag was such that it required the labor of Mary Pickersgill, her daughter, several other women, and potentially Rebecca Young as well. Also assisting was 13 year old African American indentured servant Grace Wisher. Like the nation it represented, the Star Spangled Banner was the work of a diverse group of people. Although its significance is principally military, the flag nonetheless is also representative of the pre-industrial economy in which women played an integral part.
“Old Glory”
The epitaph “Old Glory” in reference to the flag is one with a shockingly early origin. It was coined by William Driver, a sea captain from Salem Massachusetts. He was presented by his mother with the gift of a flag on his 21st birthday, March 17th, 1824, in recognition of his becoming a captain and taking command of the ship Charles Doggett. The flag was a 24 star one, and accompanied Driver on many voyages around the world. On one of his adventures in the South Pacific, in 1831, Driver encountered 65 descendants of survivors of the HMS. Bounty in Tahiti, and rescued them, bringing them to Pitcairn Island. When he returned home to Salem, he discovered that of the six ships that had departed port on the same day as his own, only Driver’s had avoided sinking. Driver became convinced that God had saved his ship in order to rescue the HMS. Bounty survivors. On all his journeys, the flag had always accompanied him, and so he took to calling it “Old Glory.”. “It has ever been my staunch companion and protection,” Driver wrote, “Savages and heathens, lowly and oppressed, hailed and welcomed it at the far end of the wide world. Then, why should it not be called Old Glory?”
The Pitcairn incident drew national attention, and helped popularize the name Driver had given his flag. Driver retired from the sea in 1837 following his wife Martha's death from throat cancer, and moved his family to Nashville, Tennessee to be with his brothers. Driver’s flag was subsequently repaired and expanded as part of a family project in 1860, to include ten more stars in the canton, and an anchor. Unfortunately, Diver’s family was split by the Civil War, with two of his sons becoming Confederate soldiers, much against his wishes. Diver was repeatedly harassed by Confederate officials and sympathizers. He turned away one committee sent by the traitorous Gov. Isham Harris by stating: “Gentlemen...if you are looking for stolen property in my house, produce your search-warrant !”. This was sufficient to turn the cowards away, but strong language could only buy Driver temporary peace. Drastic measures were needed.
The design of “Old Glory”, as revised ca. 1860. Originally a 24 star flag made ca. 1824, it was repaired and revised in 1860 by the Driver family to include ten new stars and William Driver added an anchor to commemorate his nautical career.
Eventually, he and his loyal daughters conspired to hide the flag by sewing it inside a coverlet. There, the flag remained safe until 1862, when Tennessee was liberated by Union forces. Driver then went to the capitol building in Nashville and, seeing the colors of the 6th Ohio Volunteer Infantry flying there, offered to Gen. William “Bull” Nelson the use of “Old Glory”. Gen. Nelson accepted his offer, and Driver dramatically cut open the coverlet he was carrying to reveal the hidden flag. “This is the flag I hope to see hoisted on that flagstaff in place of the damned Confederate flag set there by that damned rebel governor, Isham G. Harris!” Driver declared, tears forming in his eyes. “I have had hard work to save it; my house has been searched for it more than once.”. The flag was run up to the cheers of the 6th Ohio, which subsequently adopted the motto “Old Glory”.
The flag flew only briefly over the capitol, as bad weather threatened to destroy it, and was then returned to Driver. Driver would fly the flag again from his house during the Confederate siege of Nashville in 1864, leaving his house to join in the defense of his adopted hometown. He would subsequently serve as the Provost Marshall of Nashville. He would go on to live to age 83, passing away March 3rd, 1886. His beloved flag, the original “Old Glory”, was subsequently given by his descendants to the Smithsonian, where it remains on display at the National Museum of American History.
Today, as in history, the United States flag represents many things to many different peoples. It serves both the practical purposes of identifying ships at sea, aircraft, military bases, public buildings, and many other things as belonging to the United States and its citizens, and a symbolic purpose as an expression of patriotism. The rare 25 star flag in Dunham Tavern reflects the love and dedication of talented seamstresses, and their family, for the new and growing nation between 1819 and 1836. It is in its own way a mirror of the United States: much loved, well-worn, oft-patched, a little tattered, and yet despite its great age still able to evoke our tenderest feelings. It is the product of many hands, including those who history has had an unfortunate tendency to overlook. Yet it is an enduring emblem for the revolutionary ideals of Liberty, Life, and the Pursuit of Happiness. This 249th Independence Day calls upon us not simply to celebrate our shared past, but to reflect on our future. What can we do to live up to our ideals as a nation, and continue to be a “new constellation” that provides light in a darkening world? What can we do to protect our fellow Americans from the malgovernance and hatred that threatens their rights? As we reflect, we ought to draw upon our past. Our ancestors met great challenges in their own time, and a few of them set examples in which we can find not only strength but guidance. Ordinary people have always had the potential for extraordinary courage, and it is through that courage that our nation has continued to endure—beneath our Grand Old Flag.
Sources:
http://www.rareflags.com/RareFlags_Collecting_Fabrics.htm
"The Truth About Betsy Ross". www.history.org.
Canby, William (March 1870). "The History of the Flag of the United States". Betsy Ross and the American Flag.
Miller, Marla R. (June 2016). "Citizen Seamstress". The American Legion. Vol. 180. Indianapolis: The American Legion. pp. 32–36.
Betsy Ross House: The Flag". historicphiladelphia.org.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Barton_(heraldist)
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Leepson, Marc; DeMille, Nelson (May 30, 2006). Flag: An American Biography. St. Martin's Griffin. p. 33.
Williams, Earl P. Jr. (October 2012). "Did Francis Hopkinson Design Two Flags?" (PDF). NAVA News (216): 7–9.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/2141/rebecca-young
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/2140/mary_young-pickersgill
"Chinese Etymologies". Kendall's Expositor. Vol. 3, no. 14. Washington, D.C.: William Greer. June 27, 1843. p. 222
Sally Jenkins, How the Flag Came to be Called Old Glory, Smithsonian Magazine (October 2013).
Raising of the Original Old Glory, Essex Institute Historical Collections, Vol. 47
https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/object/nmah_463145
