ZFC Item Section - 26 Star U.S. Flag Michigan joins to the Union.

Exhibit PDFs

Washington University 2004 Presidential Debate Poster

Exhibits Title information is available upon specific request. Additional information available upon request to researchers, writers and others demonstrating special circumstances. In some situations, information may not be available.
Exhibition Copy	First Presidio Exhibit (ZFC0634) "GRAND LUMINARY" TWENTY-SIX-STAR UNITED STATES FLAG Date: About 1837-1845 Medium: Printed on silk Comment: When Michigan entered into the Union as its thirteenth "free" state and its twenty-sixth overall state on January 26th, 1837, it complimented Arkansas' admission as the thirteenth "slave" state and twenty-fifth state into the Union in June of the year before. These two admissions retained the balance that had been established in Henry Clay's "Missouri Compromise" of 1820. By that Compromise Missouri had entered the Union in August of 1821 as a slave state to balance the admission of Maine as a "free" state in March of 1820. The balancing act would continue until 1850. The twenty-six-star flag became the eighth official flag of the United States and remained in official service for thirteen years. During its "reign" the flag would be transformed into a political campaign device during the election of 1840, and four years later during the "Kensington Riots" in Philadelphia it would be embraced by the "Know Nothing Movement" as a symbol of their anti-foreign, anti-Catholic campaign. Provenance: Acquired by the Zaricor Flag Collection (ZFC0634) in 2002 from the Mastai Flag Collection of New York City through auction at Sotheby's. Second Presidio Exhibit, 2003 - Gallery II (ZFC0634) 26-Star United States Flag Date: 1837-1845 26 Stars: July 4, 1837-July 3, 1845 (Michigan statehood January 26, 1837) Medium: Printed silk Comment: Printing color on silk or cotton fabrics initially employed wooden blocks that were hand-cut in order to leave a raised surface bearing the desired pattern. That design would be covered with ink or dye and pressed down on a piece of fabric, leaving an impression made by the raised section of the block. Finding wood the surface of which was sufficiently porous to hold the right amount of dye proved difficult and too little or too much dye could result in a ruined impression. An alternate technique used the raised area to press down on the fabric to prevent the dye from penetrating into the pressed-upon surface; this process was known as press-dyeing. Another technique covered the raised surface with wax or some similar substance that was applied to the fabric, causing it to resist the dyes added afterward; this was known as "resist-dyeing." Neither system worked very well with fabrics until improvements were effected and patented by John Holt in the period 1865-1870. Nevertheless presentable, inexpensive flags were made by these processes in the two decades before Holt's improvements became available. Provenance: Acquired by the Zaricor Flag Collection (ZFC0634) in 2002 from the Mastai Flag Collection through auction at Sotheby's of New York City. Chicago Meeting - December, 2003 (ZFC0634) 26-Star United States Flag Date: 1837-1845 26 Stars: July 4, 1837-July 3, 1845 (Michigan statehood January 26, 1837) Medium: Printed silk Comment: Printing color on silk or cotton fabrics initially employed wooden blocks that were hand-cut in order to leave a raised surface bearing the desired pattern. That design would be covered with ink or dye and pressed down on a piece of fabric, leaving an impression made by the raised section of the block. Finding wood the surface of which was sufficiently porous to hold the right amount of dye proved difficult and too little or too much dye could result in a ruined impression. An alternate technique used the raised area to press down on the fabric to prevent the dye from penetrating into the pressed-upon surface; this process was known as press-dyeing. Another technique covered the raised surface with wax or some similar substance that was applied to the fabric, causing it to resist the dyes added afterward; this was known as "resist-dyeing." Neither system worked very well with fabrics until improvements were effected and patented by John Holt in the period 1865-1870. Nevertheless presentable, inexpensive flags were made by these processes in the two decades before Holt's improvements became available. Provenance: Acquired by the Zaricor Flag Collection (ZFC0634) in 2002 from the Mastai Flag Collection through auction at Sotheby's of New York City. Presidential Debate - Washington University at St. Louis October, 2004 (ZFC0634) 26-Star United States Flag Political Campaign Parade Flag (1837-1845) This "Grand Luminary" flag is a fine example of an early mass produced flag that the industrial revolution made possible for the average citizen. Printed on cotton these flags were widely used in the presidential campaign of 1840. In that election Martin Van Buren faced the Whig party candidate, William Henry Harrison. Harrison, a patrician and soldier, was presented to the people as "Old Tippecanoe", who had been born in a log cabin and drank hard cider like common folk. In an appeal to emotional and patriotic issues, national politics were ignored. Harrison's campaign was the first to make wide use of the US flag in his party's successful run for the presidency. The flag features a "Grand Luminary" starfield, wherein all the small stars form a large single star-emblematic in the union of states. A design that was popular for most of the 19th century.
Exhibition Images	Washington University 2004 Presidential Debate Poster

Exhibits

Title information is available upon specific request. Additional information available upon request to researchers, writers and others demonstrating special circumstances. In some situations, information may not be available.

Exhibition Copy

First Presidio Exhibit
(ZFC0634)
"GRAND LUMINARY" TWENTY-SIX-STAR UNITED STATES FLAG
Date: About 1837-1845
Medium: Printed on silk
Comment: When Michigan entered into the Union as its thirteenth "free" state and its twenty-sixth overall state on January 26th, 1837, it complimented Arkansas' admission as the thirteenth "slave" state and twenty-fifth state into the Union in June of the year before. These two admissions retained the balance that had been established in Henry Clay's "Missouri Compromise" of 1820. By that Compromise Missouri had entered the Union in August of 1821 as a slave state to balance the admission of Maine as a "free" state in March of 1820. The balancing act would continue until 1850. The twenty-six-star flag became the eighth official flag of the United States and remained in official service for thirteen years. During its "reign" the flag would be transformed into a political campaign device during the election of 1840, and four years later during the "Kensington Riots" in Philadelphia it would be embraced by the "Know Nothing Movement" as a symbol of their anti-foreign, anti-Catholic campaign.
Provenance: Acquired by the Zaricor Flag Collection (ZFC0634) in 2002 from the Mastai Flag Collection of New York City through auction at Sotheby's.

Second Presidio Exhibit, 2003 - Gallery II
(ZFC0634)
26-Star United States Flag
Date: 1837-1845 26 Stars: July 4, 1837-July 3, 1845 (Michigan statehood January 26, 1837)
Medium: Printed silk
Comment: Printing color on silk or cotton fabrics initially employed wooden blocks that were hand-cut in order to leave a raised surface bearing the desired pattern. That design would be covered with ink or dye and pressed down on a piece of fabric, leaving an impression made by the raised section of the block. Finding wood the surface of which was sufficiently porous to hold the right amount of dye proved difficult and too little or too much dye could result in a ruined impression. An alternate technique used the raised area to press down on the fabric to prevent the dye from penetrating into the pressed-upon surface; this process was known as press-dyeing. Another technique covered the raised surface with wax or some similar substance that was applied to the fabric, causing it to resist the dyes added afterward; this was known as "resist-dyeing." Neither system worked very well with fabrics until improvements were effected and patented by John Holt in the period 1865-1870. Nevertheless presentable, inexpensive flags were made by these processes in the two decades before Holt's improvements became available.
Provenance: Acquired by the Zaricor Flag Collection (ZFC0634) in 2002 from the Mastai Flag Collection through auction at Sotheby's of New York City.

Chicago Meeting - December, 2003
(ZFC0634)
26-Star United States Flag
Date: 1837-1845 26 Stars: July 4, 1837-July 3, 1845 (Michigan statehood January 26, 1837)
Medium: Printed silk
Comment: Printing color on silk or cotton fabrics initially employed wooden blocks that were hand-cut in order to leave a raised surface bearing the desired pattern. That design would be covered with ink or dye and pressed down on a piece of fabric, leaving an impression made by the raised section of the block. Finding wood the surface of which was sufficiently porous to hold the right amount of dye proved difficult and too little or too much dye could result in a ruined impression. An alternate technique used the raised area to press down on the fabric to prevent the dye from penetrating into the pressed-upon surface; this process was known as press-dyeing. Another technique covered the raised surface with wax or some similar substance that was applied to the fabric, causing it to resist the dyes added afterward; this was known as "resist-dyeing." Neither system worked very well with fabrics until improvements were effected and patented by John Holt in the period 1865-1870. Nevertheless presentable, inexpensive flags were made by these processes in the two decades before Holt's improvements became available.
Provenance: Acquired by the Zaricor Flag Collection (ZFC0634) in 2002 from the Mastai Flag Collection through auction at Sotheby's of New York City.

Presidential Debate -
Washington University at St. Louis
October, 2004
(ZFC0634)
26-Star United States Flag Political Campaign Parade Flag (1837-1845)
This "Grand Luminary" flag is a fine example of an early mass produced flag that the industrial revolution made possible for the average citizen. Printed on cotton these flags were widely used in the presidential campaign of 1840. In that election Martin Van Buren faced the Whig party candidate, William Henry Harrison.
Harrison, a patrician and soldier, was presented to the people as "Old Tippecanoe", who had been born in a log cabin and drank hard cider like common folk. In an appeal to emotional and patriotic issues, national politics were ignored. Harrison's campaign was the first to make wide use of the US flag in his party's successful run for the presidency. The flag features a "Grand Luminary" starfield, wherein all the small stars form a large single star-emblematic in the union of states. A design that was popular for most of the 19th century.

Exhibition Images

Washington University 2004 Presidential Debate Poster

PDF for Publications

American Flags

Publications Title information is available upon specific request. Additional information available upon request to researchers, writers and others demonstrating special circumstances. In some situations, information may not be available.
Publication Images	Book Cover Publisher Info Obverse Cover Frontispeice Frontispeice detail Frontispeice detail 2 Page 172/173
Flag Books	The Stars and The Stripes - Mastai