| OCR Text |
Show American Flags j Tbo fact that some sixty odd sizes and shapes of American flags were found In 'use In the various government govern-ment departments has actuated an executive ex-ecutive order, dated May 29, standardizing stand-ardizing the form and size of all our national flags. The flags, and union, jacks of all departments, with certain cer-tain exceptions in the army and navy, na-vy, must now conform to specifications. specifica-tions. Talcing the hoist, or, width, as 1, the fly, or length Is 1.9; the holm of the union, 7-13; the fly of Hip un Ion .76, and tho'wldth of each stripe 1-13. There are twelvo prescribed sizes, from 1.31 foot to 20 foot hoists hut the 19 foot flag Is to be the standard. stan-dard. The American flag collections of the United States natlonnl museum Include some Interesting examples of our flag Indicative of Its development In several historical porodB, Its many changes and Its gradual standardization. standardiza-tion. It is Interesting to note that during the revolution the flag had thirteen stars; In the war of 1812, fifteen; In the Mexican war twenty-nine; In the civil war, thirty-five; in the Spanish American war, forty-flva and today forty-eight. The American flag Is among the oldest national flags, being be-ing older than the present Hrltlsh union Jack, the French tricolor and tho flag of Spain, and many years ) J-W older than the, flags of Germany and fW Italy, some of which, like those of other countries, are personal flags or those of reigning families. Thero nro no early colonial flags, such as were used by tho Individual colonics and mllltla regiments before tho flag of the United States was established es-tablished by congress on June 14, 1777, now celebrated as Flag Day. This act required that the flag of tho United States bo thirteen stripes, alternate al-ternate red nnd white; that tho union bo thirteen stars, whlto In blue field, representing a new constellation, constella-tion, but did not define how many points tho Btnrs should have, how they should bo arranged, nor make provision for additional ones. The navy Immediately adopted this flag, but tho army was much slower to net. Representative of the early Mars and stripes typo, thero Is a twelvo stnr Hag said to havo been used by John Paul Jones during the wnr of tho revolution. It measures 10 1-2 feet by C 1-4 feet, nnd was presented pre-sented to Lieut. JameB Dnynrd Stafford, Staf-ford, United States navy, on December Decem-ber 13, 1784, by tho marine committee commit-tee of the continental congress as n reward for meritorious services during dur-ing tho revolution, going later to tho Smithsonian Institution aa a girt of Mrs. Harrier It. Terry Stafford. Another flag of very highest historic his-toric valuo Is tho original "Star Spangled Banner," which flew over Fort McHcnry in Baltimore during the bombardment on September 13-14 1814 and was the Inspiration for Key's anthem. It now hangs In the rotunda of tho new National Museum building where tho models In competition com-petition for tho Key memorial are now on display. This Fort McIIenry flag Is of tbo fifteen stars-and-strlpefe type, adopted by an act approved by President Washington Jonuary 13, 1794, which took effect May 1, 1795 after the admission of Vermont and Kentucky. It measures about thirty feet square. Is much battered and torn, with one star missing, but this great historic souvenir has lately been preserved by quKlng It on heavy ljnen cloth, and remains one of the country's most precious relics. From 1795 this form continued a'&'thc standard flag until President Monroe's administration, when congress enacted enact-ed that It should thereafter be of thirteen thir-teen stripes, with tho addition of a star for each new state, commencing July 4, 1818. It seems that the army never carried car-ried the national flag In battle.though wo have record of Its use as a garrison gar-rison flag from abput 178Jxor 1789, to 1834, until lft Bodies of troops carried during this period, and before be-fore it, what was known as national colors, or standards, of blue, with the crms of the United States emblazoned emblazon-ed thereon, comprising an caglo surmounted sur-mounted with a sumber of stars, And with the designation of the uody of tioops, as Infantry, artillery, etc., Inscribed In-scribed on a scroll. In 1834 tho artillery ar-tillery were given the Kght of carrying" car-rying" tbo Stars and Stripes, as recorded re-corded by tho war department regulations, regu-lations, tho Infantry and cavalry still using tho national arms, with an added add-ed scroll In the eagle's beak bear ng tho words E plurlbus unum. Theso flags remained the colors of tho Infantry In-fantry until 1841 nnd the cavalry until un-til as late aB 1S87 when tney were ordered to employ tho Stars and Stripes. So many styles and forms of tho Stars and Stripes flag wero In existence exist-ence in 1837 that certft'n foreign governments gov-ernments found it necessary to mnko inquiry of this government Just what tho oinclnl flng was, resulting In the publication In 1852 of a careful study of the subject by h'm who later be-enmo be-enmo General Schuyler Hamilton. Tho history of our flag indicates Hint tho Stars nnd Stnpes wns not carried by troops In bnttlo until the period of the Mexican war, 1846-47. Several flags of this period are In tho museum collections. Among them Is n flag of thirteen stripes and stars carried throughout the war by the battel on of tolunteors which enlisted en-listed from Maryland and tho District Dis-trict of Columbia, and the flag of company I, Fourth regiment of lndl-nna lndl-nna Infnntry, of thirteen stripes with an eaglo In the field. Ten flags of tho collection pertain to tho civil wnr: The garrison flag of Fort MoultH e, S. C, lowered as the -command evacuated that fort to asssmblo at Fort Sumter, December 26, 1860; a boat flag flown by Commander Com-mander Charles 8. Boggs, United States navy,, when ho left the gunboat gun-boat Voruna, sunk 'In an engagement between n confederate flotilla and the union fleet under Admiral Farragut below New Orleans, April 24, 1862; a signal flag of white cloth with painted stars and stripes; headquarters headquar-ters flag of Major General llcnjamln F. Butjer, United States volunteers, flown at Fortress Monroe, Virgin' a, in 1861; the flag "raised at New Orleans Or-leans by its 'citizens upon tho occupation occu-pation of the ctfy by tbo union for-ices for-ices under Major General Butler on May 1, 1862; tho remains of tho flag carried In tio ' three days fight at Salem Holgtits, Vlrgnla, May 3G, 1(63, when 'three color sergeants wero killed, though tho banner never faltered fal-tered or fell to tho ground; General Hazen's garrison flag, hoisted at Fort McAllister, Georgia, After the sur-tender sur-tender of the fort to tho union army. December 13, 18C4; tho flag flown on the United States steamship Keors-ago Keors-ago when she sank the Alabama, deposited de-posited In the national museum by Lieut. Herbert Wlnslow, son of Itear Admiral Herbert Wlnslow, commander comman-der of the Kearsage during this notion; no-tion; headquarters flag of Major General E. O. Ord, United States army, ar-my, flown In Richmond, Vn., In 1865 end tho flag of the First Pcnnsyjya-nla Pcnnsyjya-nla volunteers, found In thi capital at Richmond In 1865 by Major General Gen-eral Ord. -. |
