Probable Patriotic Confederate First National Flag 

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American History

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Jun 10, 2016 - Jun 11, 2016

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• Lot Description
  Probable Patriotic Confederate First National Flag 
  
  Likely cotton, 36.375 x 25.375 in., hand-sewn flag constructed on one side with seven white polished cotton stars. Hoist edge appears to be loosely woven wool bunting. 
   
  The Confederate First National flag first flew on March 4, 1861 over the capitol building in Montgomery, Alabama. Designed by the Committee on Flag and Seal, chaired by William Porcher Miles of South Carolina, the banner not only represented to the rest of the world a new nation but also would serve as the first battle flag for its troops and navy. Additionally, the flag would see use at forts, military posts and related sites as well as on blockade runners that brought goods into the nascent Confederate States of America.
  
  Its description carried by telegraph to newspapers across the South as well as the North, examples of the flag were hoisted on flag poles within a day of its initial hoisting in Alabama, not only in the then seven states of the Confederacy but also in states that would eventually secede. Some examples were even flown in the North by Southern sympathizers.
  
  In addition to serving as a political and military flag, the First National was also used for patriotic purposes. Many Southern homes made such flags to hang on a wall in their houses or to fly over their businesses. Period newspapers made note in particular of local business that had made and soon hoisted these flags. Less covered were those for homes, but some examples have been found over the years not only in documentation but also in the period press as well as diaries.
  
  While no comparative study of these flags has been done, the patriotic banners seem to be broken down in to two classes. The first are the smaller, so-called “Bible” flags; that is small flags sewn for use in Bibles and other books. Often these would be made and issued to men going off to war by their wives or sweethearts. Since not all of the flags of this class are that small, perhaps the better name would be “personal flags” as some were also large enough to fly on a tent for example. A famous picture of a well known Georgia unit exists with such a flag attached to the top of a tent with several soldiers before it.
  
  The next group would be simply patriotic banners sewn for home use. Some were captured from homes during the war, including one in Fredericksburg, Virginia. This flag was made like a typical First National; that is both sides could be clearly seen including stars. Others, however, seem to be constructed differently with only a single side showing. That is the case with the flag that is the subject of this letter.
  
  Construction Details
  
  The flag is constructed on one side only, with the reverse side being entirely red. The material appears to be cotton. The only color variance on the reverse side is a bit of the blue from the canton folded over and sewn down.
  
  On the obverse side, a blue canton and white bar were cut from different cloth and sewn to the red backing. These also appear to be cotton. Typically for First National flags, the canton and bars would be sewn together with flat fell seams to create a whole flag. In both cases the edges of these pieces are well tucked under showing great skill and sewing technique for these are very clean and straight. The two red bars are the backing itself.
  
  The canton bears seven white polished cotton stars sewn only on the obverse side before the canton had been attached to the flag itself. The loop stitches that were used to sew the stars to the canton do not appear to have penetrated through the canton to the red backing which is further evidence that the stars were sewn on before the canton was attached to the red portion. This can only be fully determined by removing the canton itself however. The reverse side has stitching somewhat outlining a few of the stars.
  
  It has been my experience that stars are usually sewn along the outer edges to the canton or cross using loop stitches staying within the outer edge of the stars themselves. Usually there’s far more stitches used in this manner. What was noticeable is that there are not that many thread loops to attach the stars to the canton and the stitches go into the star and canton across the outer edges of the stars.
  
  The flag has a hoist edge that appears to be a loosely woven wool bunting (single ply?). Its style suggests that it was designed to be sewn over forming a sleeve for a pole to run through it as it is certainly wide enough for one. The edges are trimmed with red bunting, probably for reinforcement. Thus, the flag would be hung vertically rather than horizontally if it indeed is a patriotic banner.
  
  The upper, lower and fly edges are folded over and sewn as flat fell seams to prevent exterior edges from fraying.
  
  The sewing techniques seem consistent with Confederate flags of the Civil War period.
  
  The thread appears to be an “S” twist style, quite common in making flags in the mid-19th Century. However, the magnification I used to look at it was not powerful enough to get into deeper details. For confirmation or alteration of this, sewing techniques and the cloth used, please consult a textiles expert with a mid-19th Century flags back ground.
  
  Dimensions
  
  The flag overall measures 25.375 inches on the hoist by 36.375 inches on the fly. This is not large enough for use as a unit color which lends to my belief that the flag was for personal and/or patriotic uses only.
  
  The canton measures 14.25 inches by 16.75 inches. The seven stars measure between 3 inches and 3.25 inches across the points within each star making them not entirely perfect in size.
  
  As for the three bars, the upper red bar measures 8.75 inches wide; the middle white bar is 7.875 inches wide while the lower red bar is 7.875 inches.
  
  The hoist edge is 2.5 inches wide and the red trim for it measures .25 inches in width.
  
  The upper, lower and fly edge seams measure .1875 to .25 inches wide.
  
  The bit of blue from the canton that is folded over on the reverse side measures .375 inches.
  
  Conclusion
  
  Based on its construction and size, it is my opinion that this flag was intended for personal use only and even more likely to hang as a patriotic banner in a Southern home or business during the war. The lack of a proper reverse side lends much credence to this theory as well as how the flag was constructed. I can only recall one other flag in my years of examining Confederate First National flags that was constructed in a similar style.
  
  Patriotic and personal flags of this size are rare especially when compared to the very large number of First National flags found in museums and private collections. There are more of the “Bible” sized personal flags based on my experience. That makes this an interesting example along with its unique construction.
  
  The flag comes from an extensive collection of Confederate arms and documents from the late M. Clifford (Cliff) Young.
  
  Greg Biggs 
  Military Historian 
  April 27, 2016
  
  Provenance: The M. Clifford (Cliff) and Lynne B. Young Confederate Blockade Runner Collection
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