1950s Political and Patriotic Memorabilia

Early California state bear flag. Super graphic and bold colors. Perfect amount of patina and wear as expected for a flag of this vintage. Earlier design. No...

Presented is a 49-star American flag, celebrating Alaska statehood. The flag is printed on silk and has seven rows of seven stars in a staggered row pattern printed on the bright blue canton. Alaska’s long path to statehood started in 1867, when Secretary of State William Seward brokered a deal to acquire the territory from Russia for $7.2 million. The Alaska Purchase gave the United States a land mass of 586,412 square miles, an area twice the size of Texas, yet was purchased when the United States already had an abundance of unpopulated land, thus earning the nickname Seward’s Folly. Alaska became a territory in 1912. Its strategic importance became obvious during World War II and in 1946 Alaska held a referendum asking Congress to consider it for statehood. On January 3rd, 1959 Alaska was granted statehood, placing the 49th star on the American flag. An Executive Order from President Eisenhower provided for the arrangement of the stars in seven rows of seven stars each, staggered horizontally and vertically. The 49-Star flag...

Truman, Harry. Memoirs by Harry S. Truman. New York: Doubleday & Company, 1955-56. Signed and inscribed. In original dust jackets. Special Kansas City Edition. Two-volume set. Housed...

Presented is a one page typed and signed letter from Harry Truman to Robert Gray Taylor. Dated March 3, 1954, and written on cream Federal Reserve Bank Bu...

Presented is a Scottish celebratory banner from the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953. The banner hangs vertically from a wooden dowel. The canton is composed of the x-shaped White Cross of St. Andrew on a blue field. Called the Saltire or St. Andrew’s Cross, the design has been the official design of Scotland’s flag and dates back to 1540. Completing the design are three vertical stripes in red, white, and blue, which end in a swallowtail. The coronation of Elizabeth II occurred on June 2, 1953 at Westminster Abbey in London. Elizabeth II ascended the throne at the age of 25, after the 1952 death of her father, George VI. During the service, Elizabeth took an oath, was anointed with holy oil...

Rare set of Russian KGB stamped erotic post cards We are proud to offer a rare set of 43 Russian stamped KGB Erotic post cards. These items are individually encased in plastic sleev...

1953 Queen Elizabeth 2nd coronation framed flag. This is a vintage and original flag made for the coronation, street parties and celebrations in 195...

A beautiful pair of brass spread-wing eagle bookends by Virginia Metalcrafters, stamped 1952. The eagle is shown with its wings fully spread and a laurel branch and bundle of arrows clutched in its left talon. The eagle clutches a Union shield across its breast. The Union shield has a chief with three stars and six stripes completing the design. The eagle motif in décor and Folk Art has been widely used throughout our nation's history, most notably as part of our Great Seal. The founders of the United States were fond of comparing their new republic with the Roman Republic, in which eagle imagery, usually the golden eagle, was prominent. On June 20, 1782, the Continental Congress adopted the design for the Great Seal of the United States depicting a bald eagle grasping 13 arrows and an olive branch with its talons. When Charles Thomson put together the final design for the Great Seal, he placed a bundle of arrows in the eagle's left (sinister) talon. The official description specifies the bald eagle holding "in his sinister a bundle of thirteen arrows." The thirteen arrows are tightly aligned – a symbol of "strength in unity" that's found in the traditional cultures everywhere, from the Romans to the Iroquois— in this case a nod to the unity of the original 13 colonies. William J. Loth founded Virginia Metalcrafters in 1890, under the name Waynesboro Stove Company. The company, which made ornately cast Cook...

CALIFORNIA STATE / BEAR FLAG WITH GOLD SILK FRINGE, CA 1950-60 Early state flags fall between very scarce and extraordinarily rare in the antiques marketplace. One primary reason for this is that most states, even if they existed during the 18th or 19th century, didn’t actually adopt flags until the early 20th century. The Maryland State Legislature, for example, didn’t find need for a state banner until 1904, in spite of the fact that Maryland was one of the original 13 colonies. Other states had crests or symbols that were tied to the state legislature in some way, or to local patriotism, but didn't accept an official design until many years following statehood. In the case of California, the "Bear Flag," as all California state flags and variations thereof are often called, is based on a significant early example. The eldest surviving Bear Flag is thought to date to the 1846 “Bear Flag Revolt”. This occurred when Major John Fremont arrived in the state on a so-called Mission to reach the Pacific and encouraged an uprising against Mexican rule in the territory. Fremont claimed himself military governor of the California Republic and was brought up on charges of treason for his actions, but was pardoned by President James Polk. Polk was an expansionist and Fremont’s actions brought California to statehood in 1850, immediately following the 1849 Gold Rush. The original Bear Flag was designed and made by William L. Todd, a first cousin to Abraham Lincoln’s wife, Mary Todd. Painted on cotton, it had a white field with a red stripe along the bottom, just the like modern design. The star image was taken from what was known as the “California Lone Star Flag”, flown during California's previous, 1836 revolt. Like the modern California flag, the red star appeared the upper hoist-end corner, but the bear was placed next to the star. On a later version, designed by a man named Peter Storm...

6 foot tall Smokey the Bear. Hand-painted wooden sign from the United States Parks and Wildlife. Great piece of Americana. Very rare. Excellent vintage...

A handsome bust depicting Abraham Lincoln; cast in dark patinated plaster and mounted on a square black wood base. The collar of the bust is signed and dated: "1955 Leo Cherne...

Flag pillows with fifty star flags and blue and red cotton linen backings. The inserts are down and feather fill.