Jeff R. Bridgman American Antiques

6-FOOT SHIP’S COMMISSION PENNANT WITH A 5.5” HOIST AND 13 STARS IN 2 STAGGERED ROWS, LIKELY PRODUCED FOR A PRIVATE VESSEL, circa 1892-1910 Commission pennants are the distinguishing...

33 STARS IN A MEDALLION CONFIGURATION ON A LARGE SCALE ANTIQUE AMERICAN PARADE FLAG, AN EXTREMELY RARE EXAMPLE, OREGON STATEHOOD, 1859-1861 This 33 star American parade flag, printe...

42 STARS ON AN ANTIQUE AMERICAN FLAG WITH A WAVE CONFIGURATION OF LINEAL COLUMNS, AN UNOFFICIAL STAR COUNT THAT REFLECTS THE ADDITION OF WASHINGTON STATE, MONTANA, AND THE DAKOTAS, c...

EXCEPTIONAL ANTIQUE AMERICAN FLAG WITH 38 GLAZED COTTON STARS, IN 3 DIFFERENT SIZES, ARRANGED IN A BEAUTIFULLY GRAPHIC, DOUBLE-WREATH STYLE MEDALLION, WITH TRIANGLES OF 4 STARS IN ...

38 STAR ANTIQUE AMERICAN FLAG WITH AN EXTREMELY RARE DOUBLE-WREATH CONFIGURATION THAT FEATURES A SQUARE OF FOUR STARS BOTH INSIDE AND OUT, ON A BEAUTIFUL, CORNFLOWER BLUE CANON THAT ...

RARE AND BEAUTIFUL 38 STAR ANTIQUE AMERICAN FLAG, AN INDIAN WARS PERIOD FLANK GUIDON OF THE 4th U.S. INFANTRY, WITH A MEDALLION CONFIGURATION SURROUNDING THE NUMERAL “4,” AND EXTRAORDINARY PRESENTATION FROM LEGITIMATE USE; REFLECTS THE PERIOD WHEN COLORADO WAS THE MOST RECENT STATE TO JOIN THE UNION, circa 1876-1889: 38 star flank guidon of the Indian Wars period, made of silk, with 38 embroidered, silk stars surrounding an embroidered numeral “4”. The stars are arranged in a beautiful, double wreath configuration, with a flanking star in each corner. Expertly hand-sewn throughout, with tiny stitches, the striped field and canton were rolled over, around a cotton lining, to form an open sleeve. The “4” identifies the intended unit as the 4th U.S. Infantry. Infantry guidons of this sort were attached to a wooden staff, inserted through the sleeve and, in this instance, affixed with metal tacks. The pole fit down into the barrel of a rifle or musket, which, when shouldered by a soldier, displayed the flag and marked the end of the flank. Two were typically carried, one each to the left and right. This helped in the formation of troops and was a visual aid for officers. Colorado became the 38th state on August 1st, 1876. This was the year of our nation’s 100-year anniversary of independence. Per the Third Flag Act of 1818, stars were not officially added until the 4th of July following a state's addition. For this reason, 37 remained the official star count until July 4th, 1877. Flag-making was a competitive venture, however, and no one cared what was official, not even the military, where the matter of practicality generally outweighed flag protocol. As soon as it was suspected that a new state was coming, stars were added by the makers of flags, both public and private. Some would have begun adding a star for the 38th state before it even entered the Union, in the early part of 1876, and almost none would continue to produce 37 star flags, when their competitors were making 38’s. It is of interest to note that some flag-makers were actually producing flags in the 39 star count in 1876, especially in printed cotton examples (called parade flags or hand-wavers), to reflect the anticipated addition of two new states instead of one, though only Colorado came. No further states followed until 1889. Manufacture of 38 star flags would have ceased in the fall of that year, when four new states entered in a period of just a week-and-a-half. The numeric identification signifies the intended unit as the 4th U.S. Infantry. Interestingly enough, this regiment was particularly active in Colorado. One of its most notable actions involved a conflict with the Ute Indians. In September of 1879, Indian Agent N. C. Meeker, of the White River Agency (Colorado), became involved in a dispute with Northern Utes and requested assistance from the Army. In response, Major T. T. Thornburgh's column of some 200 men, including parts of the 5th Cavalry and 4th Infantry, set out from Fort Steele, Wyoming to assist. On September 29th, the force was attacked and besieged in the Red Canyon, by 300 to 400 Ute warriors. Thornburgh was killed in the melee. His command was finally relieved by elements of the 9th Cavalry, a Buffalo soldier...

13 STAR ANTIQUE AMERICAN PARADE FLAG, WITH A 3-2-3-2-3 CONFIGURATION OF STARS, AN EXTREMELY SCARCE AND UNUSUALLY LARGE VARIETY, MADE circa 1876-1899 13 star American national parade...

13 STARS IN THE BETSY ROSS PATTERN ON A SMALL-SCALE ANTIQUE AMERICAN FLAG MADE SOMETIME BETWEEN APPROXIMATELY 1910 AND THE 1926 SESQUICENTENNIAL OF AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE 13 star fla...

VOTES FOR WOMEN PARADE TEXTILE IN PURPLE AND GREEN, OF A TYPE WORN AS SASHES AND WAVED AS NARROW PARADE BANNERS, MADE IN HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT BY CALHOUN PRESS FOR THE WOMEN'S POLITI...

38 STARS IN A RARE AND STRIKING CIRCLE-IN-A-SQUARE MEDALLION, WITH AN ENORMOUS CENTER STAR, MADE FOR THE 1876 CENTENNIAL CELEBRATION BY HORSTMANN BROTHERS OF PHILADELPHIA, A MAJOR MI...

48 STARS CANTED TO THE RIGHT AND LEFT IN DANCING ROWS, A RARE VARIETY OF ANTIQUE AMERICAN PARADE FLAG IN A LARGE SCALE, 1912-1918 OR PERHAPS EARLIER, REFLECTS ARIZONA & NEW MEXICO ST...

44 STAR ANTIQUE AMERICAN FLAG WITH AN HOURGLASS ARRANGEMENT ON A DUSTY BLUE CANTON; REFLECTS THE ERA WHEN WYOMING WAS THE MOST RECENT STATE TO JOIN THE UNION, 1890-1896 Wyoming was ...