35 Star U.S. Largest Surviving Civil War Flag.

35 Star U.S. Flag from Erie Rail Road Depot, Jersey City, N.J. - Largest surviving Civil War era Flag.
This huge (30' x 43') wool flag flew over the Erie Railroad's central depot in Jersey City, New Jersey, during the Civil War; which was a central departure point for thousands of troops. It is thought to be the largest surviving Civil War flag extant. Dating from 1863 to 1865 this flag is also thought to be the same flag illustrated flying at half-staff in one of the plates from the Obsequies of Abraham Lincoln in the City of New York by David T. Valentine, and published in New York 1866, as an account of the funeral of President Abraham Lincoln in April of 1865.

At 30' x 43' it is larger than the more famous "Star Spangled Banner" at the Smithsonian Institute. Because of its large size this flag is rarely displayed. Mammoth flags of this stature that date from the Civil War are quite rare. One reason is that large flags like this were often cannibalized to make smaller flags in the post war era. Another is that unscrupulous dealers cut up period flags for the wool bunting to make ersatz "Confederate", out of period bunting flags to sell to the unsuspecting public.

This flag was formerly #78 in the acclaimed flag collection of noted antique dealer Mr. Boleslaw Mastai and his wife Marie-Louise d'Otrange Mastai, formerly of New York City, and later Amagansett, Long Island. Their collection was the result of fifty years of collection, research and study by the late husband-wife team. Mastai, started collecting in the mid 20th century and amassed the greatest private flag collection known in the United States; which he detailed in his ground breaking book The Stars and The Stripes; The American Flag from Birth of the Republic to the Present, published by Alfred Knopf, New York 1973; which was hailed as a revolutionary depiction of the American Flag both as art and social history.

Exhibition History:
Exhibition History
Moraga Room
2003 Presidio of San Francisco, CA

Publication History:
Mastai, Boleslaw and Marie-Louise D'Otrange, The Stars and The Stripes: The American Flag as Art and as History from the Birth of the republic to the Present, Knopf, New York, 1973. Pp. 146-147.


Provenance:
• Erie Rail Road Depot, Jersey City, N.J, 1863/65.
• Acquired by Mr. & Mrs. Boleslaw & Marie-Louise d'Otrange Mastai, New York City, and Amagansett, NY, The Mastai Collection, until 2002.
• Sold via Sotheby's Auction in New York City to the Zaricor Flag Collection, 2002.
Deaccessed Heritage Auctions - 13 November 2023 - Auction 6276
Deaccessed Heritage Auctions - 13 November 2023 - Auction 6276



ZFC Significant Flag

Sources:

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Madaus, Howard M. - Whitney Smith, The American Flag: Two Centuries of Concord and Conflict, VZ Publications, Santa Cruz, 2006.

Mastai, Boleslaw and Marie-Louise D'Otrange, The Stars and The Stripes: The American Flag as Art and as History from the Birth of the republic to the Present, Knopf, New York, 1973.

35 Star Flag - (1863-1865) (U.S.), Flags of the World, 11 November 2011, from: http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/us-1863.html

Valentine, David T., Obsequies of Abraham Lincoln in the City of New York, Under the Auspices of the Common Council, New York, Edmund Jones & Co., 1866.

Image Credits:
Zaricor Flag Collection
Boleslaw Mastai


(Formerly in the Mastai - Early American Sub-collection.)Sub-collection.)

Hoist & Fly
Width of Hoist	386
Length of Fly	516.5

Union/Canton
Width of Union/Canton	197
Length of Union/Canton	202.5

Stars
Comments on Star Measurements	Stars are cut away on the reverse and are only 19". Star pattern is 7-7-7-7-7
Size of Stars	21

Stripes
Width of 1st Stripe	27
Width of 3rd Stripe	27
Width of 8th Stripe	28
Width of Last Stripe	27
Size of Hoist	2.25

Frame
Is it framed?	no

Stars
Number of Stars	35
How are the stars embeded?	Single Applique
Are there stars on obverse?	yes
Are there stars on reverse?	yes
Comments on Stars	Reverse
Star Pattern	Stars are cut away on the reverse and are only 19". Star pattern is 7-7-7-7-7

Stripes
Number of Stripes	13
Color of Top Stripe	Red
Color of Bottom Stripe	Red
Has a Blood Stripe?	no
Comments on Stripes	Several lower stripes patched or replaced with newer fabric.

Nationality
Nation Represented	United States

Fabric
Fabric	Wool
Comments on Fabric	Bunting

Stitching
Stitching	Machine

Thread
Type of Thread	Needs Analysis
Thread Material	Needs Analysis

Weave
Type of Weave	Plain

Attachment
Comments on Method of Attachmen	Rope also had thimbles and 15 small reinforcing grommets evenly spaced along the hoist header. Rope through header
Method of Attachment	Roped-header

Applica
Applique Sides	Single Faced = Mirror Image Reverse

Documentation
Documents	All original documents and drawings are held in the Zaricor Flag Collection Archives.
Drawings	All original documents and drawings are held in the Zaricor Flag Collection Archives.

Condition
Condition	Good
Damage	Used, worn, fabric separation, stained with holes and numerous repairs both by hand and machine.
Displayable	yes

Date
Date	1863-1865

Exhibits
Exhibition Copy	Moraga Room, Presidio of San Francisco, 2003

Publications
Publication Images	Cover Frontispeice Frontispeice detail Frontispeice detail 2 Page 146 Page 147
Flag Books	The Stars and The Stripes - Mastai