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  CIVIL WAR PERIOD CONFEDERATE FLAG IN THE FIRST NATIONAL PATTERN (a.k.a., STARS & BARS), HOMEMADE & ENTIRELY HAND-SEWN, WITH 13 STARS ARRANGED IN A WIDELY DISPURSED WREAT OF 12, WITH A LARGE, STARFISH-SHAPED CENTER STAR, ON A CANTON OF BLUE COTTON CHINTZ, DEC. 1861 – JUNE 1863

Available: Sold
Frame Size (H x L): 47.25" x 34.25"
Flag Size (H x L): 36.25" x 23.5"
Description....:
First national pattern Confederate flag with 13 stars, made sometime following the acceptance of Missouri and Kentucky by Jefferson Davis and the Confederate Staes of America (CSA) legislature, as its 12th and 13th states, in November and December of 1861, respectively.

Homemade and entirely hand-sewn throughout, the red and white bars of the flag are made of plain weave cotton. The brilliant blue canton, somewhere between cobalt and cornflower blue in color, is made of a lustrous, glazed cotton chintz. There is a binding along the hoist, made of the same fabric, in the form of an open sleeve, through which a wooden staff could be slipped and tacked firmly into place. All of this was joined and hemmed with extremely fine stitching, indicative of the time and reflecting the handiwork of a very skilled seamstress.

The stars of the flag are made of cotton and are double-appliquéd (applied to both sides). These are crudely arranged in what was intended to be a circular wreath of 12, with a much larger, 13th star in the very center. Probably clipped and sewn by a child, the edges of these are raw and not turned under, the former of these are rather traditional in shape, if somewhat irregular, but the latter is distinctly different, with elongated arms and terrific folk qualities, reminiscent of a starfish. The presence of more than one person involved in the construction of a flag is not at all unusual in homemade, Civil War period examples, with the making and sewing of stars often seeming to have been delegated to children within the household, who, with little doubt, would have viewed this as being the much more fun and perhaps important aspect of the task.

Although the flag has no specific history, it was handed down through the family of Louis Olender (1902-?) and Rebecca (Becky) Brisk (1908-1982), Jewish immigrants from Poland and Jerusalem, respectively. Louis and Becky emigrated to the United States in 1914 and 1924, respectively, married each other twice, first in 1930 and then again in 1960, and resided first in Detroit, Michigan, then in Los Angeles, California. While it is unclear as to how these particular Olenders obtained the flag, family lore says that it was handed down through a Southern branch of the Olender family, which at some point resided in Tennessee. The spelling of the name varies widely and it is likely that that particular line changed the spelling, perhaps to mask their religion. In spite of extensive research in attempt to backtrack family lineage, we were unable to discover an association between Louis Olender and any others with this surname, or variant spellings thereof.

At approximately 2 x 3 feet, it is likely that it was produced for presentation to an officer, for use as a guidon or flank marker, or as camp colors, or as his personal flag. The latter seems most likely. Though the flag exhibits signs of obvious use, it was obviously well-cared-for and was not exposed to the elements for extensive periods, else the glazing of the cotton would have worn away. Whatever the case may be, it is a great example of a homemade, Civil War period flag with beautiful colors and great presentation.

A Brief History of Confederate Flag Design:
The Confederate States of America (CSA) adopted three successive national flag designs between 1861-1865. The first of these looked much like the Stars & Stripes. Nicknamed the "Stars & Bars" by Confederate soldiers, as a play on the nickname of the American national flag, this was adopted by the CSA legislature on March 4th, 1861, when in session at the temporary capitol of Montgomery, Alabama. The flag initially consisted of 7 white stars arranged on a blue canton and three linear bars in red-white-red. The star count reflected the initial wave of secession, which occurred approximately one month prior, on February 7th, in conjunction with the adoption of the CSA’s provisional constitution. As more states seceded, more stars were added, with a total of 11 seceding in an official manner, ratified, when required, by popular or legislative vote. The count of 11 was retained from roughly May of 1861 until late November, when the States of Missouri and Kentucky were formally accepted by Confederate President Jefferson Davis and the CSA legislature, in spite of being Border States with more divided views and without formal achievement of secession.

Use of the Stars & Stripes and the Stars & Bars on the same battlefield led to great confusion, precipitating change to something far easier to distinguish. The Southern Cross battle flag began to be introduced in the late fall of 1861. Though the Confederate legislature refused to sanction the design, it was approved at the field level by Confederate General Joe Johnston, who refused to permit his men to continue to be killed by friendly fire, mistaking their own flags for Union Army banners.

Many people are surprised to learn that the most widely recognized Confederate design was never actually the national flag of the CSA. In rectangular format it did officially serve as the Confederate Navy Jack, displayed when a CSA ship was at port or anchor. It square format, it soon began to be called “Confederate battle flag,” however, of the “Flag of the Army of Northern Virginia,” because it was first carried by the much-loved General Robert E. Lee and his army of that name. Though many flag designs were used in the South, the Southern Cross battle flag was thereafter adopted in many variants, some square, some rectangular, in every state throughout the Confederacy.

The CSA adopted a second national flag design on May 26th, 1863. Known as the Stainless Banner, it was white in color, with the Southern Cross adopted to serve as its canton. Soldiers and officers disliked this design because it looked too much like a surrender flag, especially if a unit that was carrying it head-on with no cross wind. The myth became that, given the opportunity, soldiers would dip the fly end of the stainless banner in blood, the first chance it had to do so. The reality, however, was that there was practically no use of this flag by ground forces. It did, however, see some use at sea.

36 days before the war’s end a red vertical bar was added at the fly end and the result became the third national design. This was called the “blood stained banner”, but officially the red did not represent blood. Rather it paid homage to France, which lent aid to the South during the war, because if one were to replace the first third of the third Confederate national flag with a vertical blue bar, the result would be the French tri-color, the national flag of France.

Mounting: For 25 years we have maintained our own textile conservation department, led by a master’s degree level graduate from one of the nation’s top programs. We take great care in the mounting and preservation of flags and related textiles and have preserved thousands of examples.

The flag was mounted and framed by us in-house. It has been hand-stitched to 100% silk organza throughout (flat-lined) for support. It was then hand-stitched to a background of 100% cotton twill, black in color, that was washed and treated for colorfastness. The mount was placed in a black-painted, hand-gilded and distressed Italian molding. The glazing is U.V. protective acrylic (Plexiglas).

Condition: There are a few pinprick-sized holes and tiny tears in the canton and each of the bars, accompanied by a minor nick in the red cotton fabric, along the top bar. There is very minor bleaching in the canton, accompanied by very minor to minor water staining in the white cotton bar and in the stars. Many of my clients prefer early flags to show their age and history of use.
Collector Level: Advanced Collectors and the Person with Everything
Flag Type: Sewn flag
Star Count: 13
Earliest Date of Origin: 1861
Latest Date of Origin: 1863
State/Affiliation: The Confederacy
War Association: 1861-1865 Civil War
Price: SOLD
 

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