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	Washington University at St. Louis October, 2004 (ZFC0696) 26-Star United States Flag "Grand Luminary Star Pattern" (1837-1845) This flag represents a design whose popularity spanned nearly the entire 19th century. The Grand Luminary star pattern represented the idea of the national motto "E Pluribus Unum"- From Many, One. Each star is separate and distinct, yet all work together to create a unified pattern and a "Union" of states. In 1818, sea captain Samuel Reid, petitioned Congress to officially adopt this design, but it was never ratified. The design, however, caught the imagination of the people and we now have these wonderful surviving flags from a period long past. Due to this flag's large size, it is likely that it was used either on a ship or a commercial building. It was during the presidential campaign of 1840 that the U.S. flag was for the first time associated with a specific candidate in presidential politics. William Henry Harrison's success in that election guaranteed that such practices would continue. Star Spangled Banner Flag House American Maritime Flags of the 19th Century Ships and coastal installations (both governmental and private) require flags that can be identified from great distances. Recognition was achieved during the nineteenth century by providing these vessels and facilities with flags that were especially large. Exhibited here are several American flags related to such vessels or facilities from the period 1818 to 1893. They are all large bunting flags. Generally speaking, a "large" flag is one that is too unwieldy to be carried by one person if the flag is attached to a staff meant to be carried by single individual. Until 1854 in the British Army, and until 1895 in the American Army, military colors carried by units on foot were made of silk and measured no more than 6 feet on the staff by 6 feet 6 inches on the fly. Those dimensions-essentially a flag with an area encompassing slightly more than four square yards of cloth-were deemed the maximum size for transport by an individual on a staff. Most of the flags in this exhibit exceed those parameters. Due to their size, large flags such as these are difficult to display and are seldom sought by collectors. Museums often relegate them to perpetual storage. This exhibit is unusual, therefore, in that it displays so many of these flags in one place. This exhibit is sponsored by the Veninga-Zaricor family and Good Earth® Teas, Santa Cruz, CA; The Flag Center, Presidio of San Francisco, CA; and the Star-Spangled Banner Flag House, Baltimore, MD.
Exhibition Images	Washington University 2004 Presidential Debate Poster

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 Copy	Druckman, Nancy, Jeffery Kohn, The American Flag: Designs for a Young Nation, New York, Abrams, 2003.P.23.

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.