1864 Lincoln & Johnson Presidential Campaign Parade Flag

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1864 Lincoln & Johnson Presidential Campaign Parade Flag

About the Item

1864 LINCOLN & JOHNSON PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN PARADE FLAG, RECYCLED FROM AN 1860 JOHN BELL, CONSTITUTIONAL UNION PARTY FLAG, WITH 35 STARS ARRANGED IN A UNIQUE VARIANT OF A "PENTAGON" OR "HEART" MEDALLION:

35 star American national parade flag, printed on glazed cotton, made for the 1860 presidential campaign of Constitutional Union Party candidate John Bell, but recycled in 1864 for the re-election of incumbent Republican Abraham Lincoln. The text that originally appeared in the stripe field was printed in the same blue ink as the canton and read as follows: "For President, John Bell. For Vice President, Edward Everett. The Union and The Constitution."

Bell gathered almost 10 percent of the 1860 vote, which constituted the most ever received by an independent party candidate. In 1864, the names of bell & Everett were clipped from the body of the textile. Strips of cotton were printed with Lincoln's name and that of his running mate, Andrew Johnson, and appliquéd in their place.

Lincoln appears to have been one of the few 19th century American presidential candidates to have recycled overprinted parade flags. The reasoning for doing so is quite clear, given the shortage of raw material during wartime. Two other recycled flags made for Lincoln & Johnson are known, one of which was made from a Bell & Everett flag and the other from an 1860 flag of Southern Democrat candidates John Breckinridge & Joseph Lane. One also exists from the 1860 campaign of Northern Democrat Stephen Douglas, which was later recycled by Lincoln's 1864 opponent, General George B. McClellan. Because I have owned all four of these flags, I have had the pleasure to study them in some detail.

The flag in question here is very similar to the Breckinridge example, which is documented in two important texts. It appears in "Threads of History: Americana Recorded on Cloth, 1775 to the Present", by Herbert Ridgeway Collins (1979, Smithsonian Press), as item 331 on p. 171. It also appears in "Political Buttons, Book III 1789-1916: A Price Guide to Presidential Americana" by Theodore L. Hake (Hakes Americana & Collectibles, York, Pennsylvania, 1987). Although the back of the flag is not pictured, my examination of it revealed that the top and bottom edges of letters were present that once spelled “John C. Breckenridge” and “Gen. Jos. Lane”. The same sort of trimming was done on both flags, so that the names of Bell & Everett are still evident on the example in question. The same unusual font was used for the printing of Lincoln's name on both flags, but Johnson's name was printed differently on each. On the Breckinridge example it is printed in the same manner as Lincolns name, but on the Bell example, it appears in solid, block letters. Both flags are roughly the same size and bear a similar unusual star configuration.

A more evident indication that this was a Bell & Everett flag is the presence of his campaign slogan: "The Union and The Constitution", which remains intact. Lincoln must have found this satisfactory, because it was also left visible on the other recycled Bell flag. A fifth recycled flag also exists that bears the Constitutional Union Party slogan, but from which Bell's name was removed and replaced by a blank piece of white cotton. While Lincoln's name was not stitched to this particular example, it is reasonable to presume that it was likewise used by Lincoln supporters in 1864.

While large scale textiles made to promote Lincoln & Hamlin’s 1860 campaign are very scarce, those made for the 1864 election are even more rare. There were two primary reasons why. First, while Lincoln felt unlikely to be re-elected early in 1864, as the year proceeded there were significant Union victories and reasons to assume the success of the incumbent president were solidified. Second, less time and resources were available during wartime to focus on campaign accessories. Because Johnson became president following Lincoln's assassination, and therefore played a more significant role in American history than Hannibal Hamlin, Lincoln & Johnson flags have the advantage of featuring the names of two American presidents instead of one. So while all Lincoln-related parade flags are highly sought after, and are collectively the most valuable of all printed flags known to exist, those made for the 1864 campaign of Lincoln & Johnson are of particular interest. Assuming all other factors are equal (graphics, text, size, etc.), the presence of the Johnson name is superior to Hamlin.

Past its historical importance, the flag is relatively large in scale compared to most 1860 and 1864 flags and has strong visual attributes. The configuration of the stars is unique among known examples. Most medallion designs made during and after the Civil War have a series of circular wreaths, but this variety does not. The pattern is one that I have, in the past, generically categorized as a "pentagon medallion" or a "heart medallion". Numerous varieties of this strange configuration exist, but the symbolism contained within them is not precisely clear. Most of the others have a large center star, like this flag, surrounded by a cluster of stars that either roughly or quite accurately take the form of a pentagon. All have stars outside the basic pattern, called "outliers". In some cases the pentagon is less clear than others. In this case, while the design is quite certainly related, the pentagon begins but is not completed. Some of the variants contain a "Great Star" pattern (a large star made out of smaller stars), hidden in the middle, while others, such as this one, do not.

To make matters more complicated, the union of this flag was rotated 90 degrees counterclockwise when it was printed, probably by accident. To view it properly, one must rotate the flag to a vertical position. The one thing that is common across all the related designs is the ability to draw a series of heart shapes within the stars. For this reason, I have also referred to this group of related patterns as "heart medallions". In the canton of this flag, two hearts can be drawn, one inside the other, but there are many stars outside them. The fact that a heart can be seen on all of the varieties provides enough evidence to form a hypothesis about their presence, but one can easily argue that the shapes are merely accidental.

The flag has 35 stars. At the time of the 1860 election there were 33 states. Flags that include more stars than there were states are called "anticipatory flags", produced in hopeful anticipation of Westward Expansion. While common during the latter 19th century, this condition appears to have been very rare in the manufacture of 35 star flags. I have never before seen the use of this star count on a flag so clearly produced in 1860. It may exist in other 35 star examples, but since most of them cannot be dated with complete certainty to a precise month or year, anticipatory production remains unknown.

The 2 outlying stars would probably represent Kansas, which gained statehood in January of 1861, shortly following the 1860 election, and another Western Territory, such as Nebraska, which everyone knew was coming, but held out until after the war's end.

Whatever the case may be regarding the symbolism in the canton, the star design is both beautiful and intriguing. To have a unique star configuration on a campaign parade flag provides an additional feather in the cap of an already desirable object. The combination of all of the various features, in addition to the fact that the flag survives as the only known example, results in one of the most interesting and desirable Lincoln campaign flags that I have ever owned.

Brief Biography of Andrew Johnson:
Andrew Johnson was born in North Carolina in 1808. He led an impoverished childhood and would become one of only eight presidents who never attended college (the others being Washington, Jackson, Van Buren, Taylor, Fillmore, Lincoln, Cleveland, and Truman). Johnson, in fact, was never formally educated and taught himself to read. He was an extremely charismatic speaker, however, and his political aspirations eventually led him all the way to the United States House of Representatives, followed by the Senate.

Having moved to Tennessee, Johnson played the fine line between the North and the South. As a result, he was eventually disliked on both sides of the Mason-Dixon. He often supported slavery, at least in his actions if not his words, yet was the only Senator to not denounce his seat after the secession. This earned him the title of “traitor” in the South and “hero” in the North, at least for a time. Lincoln chose him as a running mate to boost support among Southern sympathizers, as well as to convey his commitment to unification.

After Lincoln’s 1865 assassination, Johnson ascended to the presidency. Radical Republicans hated him due to political clashes regarding reconstruction. Many viewed Johnson’s actions as obstructive and endeavored to undue him, which led to impeachment. The charges were based on questionable technicalities, however, and fueled by political scheming. Johnson was acquitted at trial in 1868 and was not re-nominated.

Mounting: The ripple-profile frame has a gilded liner and dates to the period between 1830 and 1850. The flag has been hand-stitched to 100% cotton, black in color, which was washed to reduce excess dye. An acid-free agent was added to the wash to further set the dye, which was heat-treated for the same purpose. The glazing is U.V. protective acrylic.

Condition: There is minor foxing and staining throughout, accompanied by minor fading. There are a couple of very minor holes. The flag presents beautifully. Many of my clients prefer early flags to show their age and history of use. Further, the great importance of this flag and its desirability warrant almost any condition.

Place of Origin:
United States
Period:
19th Century
Date of Manufacture:
1860-1864
Condition:
See Item Description.
Seller Location:
York County, PA
Reference Number:
Seller: 35j-8521stDibs: U1111088497481