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  UNITED DAUGHTERS OF THE CONFEDERACY PARADE FLAG FROM THE BELL BATTERY CHAPTER, EDENTON, NORTH CAROLINA, 1900-1930

Available: Sold
Frame Size (H x L): 22.25" x 22"
Flag Size (H x L): 12.75" x 12.5"
Description....:
UNITED DAUGHTERS OF THE CONFEDERACY PARADE FLAG FROM THE BELL BATTERY CHAPTER, EDENTON, NORTH CAROLINA, 1900-1930:

Produced in the period between 1900 and 1930, this Confederate battle-style parade flag, printed on cotton, has overprinted advertising from the United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC) chapter in Edenton, North Carolina. Confederate parade flags with overprinted text are extremely scarce, which makes this a very desirable example.

The Edenton Bell Battery was formally the 3rd Battalion North Carolina Light Artillery, Co. B. Following is an excerpt from the Edenton Historical Commission:

History of the Original Edenton Bell Battery

The Edenton Bell Battery was initially organized as the Albemarle Artillery in March, 1862 by Edenton lawyer Captain William Badham, Jr. and his brother-in-law Lieutenant John M. Jones. Lieutenant Nelson McClees and his men from Tyrrell County joined the battery, as did men from Washington County. A few from Bertie and Perquimans Counties joined as well. The unit was officially incorporated into Confederate service as Company B, 3rd Battalion, North Carolina Light Artillery. After drilling in Edenton, Raleigh, and Richmond without cannon and after a threat to be disbanded and incorporated into the infantry, Captain Badham dispatched Lieutenant Jones back to Edenton in April, 1862, to solicit metal to cast cannon for the unit. Jones was successful in convincing the major institutions and residents of the town to donate their bells. Upon Jones' return to Richmond, Tredegar Foundry cast four bronze cannon on April 28, 1862, using the metal obtained from the melted bells of Edenton. The unit's name then became the Edenton Bell Battery.

The Men of the battery voted names for each cannon based on the bells from which the cannon was actually cast. A six-pounder was named the Edenton since the Chowan County Courthouse bell was used to cast it. Another six-pounder was named the Columbia in honor of McLees' men from Tyrrell County (Columbia being the county seat.) Using the bell from the Edenton Methodist Church, a twelve-pounder was cast and named the Fannie Roulac after a female leader of the church. Lastly, another twelve-pounder was named the St. Paul after the St. Paul's Episcopal Church bell that was used to cast it.

The battery saw action in Virginia with the ANV (Army of Northern Virginia) in battles at Winchester, Culpeper Courthouse, the Seven Days Battle, and Fredericksburg. Subsequently transferred to the Department of North Carolina in 1863 to oppose Union advances towards the Wilminton and Weldon Railroad, the battery then saw action in the battles of Whitehall Bridge, Goldsboro, and Kinston. That same year, the unit was garrisoned at Fort Holmes on Smith Island (now Bald Head) and served as a "flying" battery for protection of Southern blockade-runners transiting Old Inlet at the mouth of the Cape Fear River. After the fall of Fort Fisher in January, 1865, the battery evacuated to Fort Anderson in Brunswick County, N.C. Subsequently engaged in a fighting retreat up the western bank of the Cape Fear River towards Wilmington, the St. Paul and its gun crew were captured on February 20, 1865 by Federal forces at the Battle of Town Creek near Orton Plantation. The remainder of the battery saw action around Wilmington and in the battles of Bentonville and Cox's Bridge. The six-pounder Edenton was surrendered with the surviving men of the battery and Army of Tennesse under General Joseph E. Johnson on April 26, 1865. The Fannie Roulac and the Columbia are rumored to have been dumped into the Eno River during the unit's retreat with Confederate forces west of Raleigh after the Battle of Bentonville.

During the Years following the War and the return home of the surviving men of the Edenton Bell Battery, the whereabouts of the four cannon remained a mystery for generations. Not until 1990 did a Civil War reenactor from Edenton discover the six-pounder Edenton at Shiloh National Military Park in Shiloh, Tennesse. In 1999, the twelve-pounder St. Paul, with its distinct identifying markings, was discovered stored at Old Fort Niagara in Youngstown, New York. Prior to transfer to Old Fort Niagara in 1930, the St. Paul had been stored at the U.S. War Department's Watervliet Arsenal in New York State. Both Tubes (Edenton and St. Paul) are now home in Edenton, NC and are on display in Edenton's Waterfront Colonial Park. *

* Source: http://www.edentonbellbattery.org/originaledenton/history.html

Founded in 1894, the UDC would become the female counterpart to the UCV (United Confederate Veterans) association, which was the primary post-war organization for Confederate soldiers. It was originally called "The National Association of the Daughters of the Confederacy", but changed its name at its second annual meeting in 1895.

The square design, bearing St. Andrew's Cross and, in this case, 13 stars, is often termed the flag of the Army of Northern Virginia after the well-known division that carried it which was under the command of General Lee.

The Confederacy had three successive national designs, known as the first, second, and third confederate national flags. The original first confederate design looked much like the stars and stripes. It consisted of 7 white stars arranged in a blue canton, and three linear stripes instead of thirteen (2 red with one white in-between). This is the flag known as the stars and bars.

The second Confederate flag was white in color, with St. Andrews cross (the Confederate battle flag) serving as its canton. Soldiers hated this design because it looked too much like a surrender flag, and, if given the opportunity, they would dip the end in blood. A red vertical stripe was later added at the fly end, and the result was adopted as the 3rd national design.

Contrary to popular belief, the "battle flag" was not the national flag of the Confederacy; nor is it the flag which is referred to as the "stars and bars", even though the name seems appropriate enough. It comes in two basic shapes, rectangular and square. IN rectangular format it served as the Confederate naval jack, used to mark ships of the Confederate Navy. Infantry flags in this design were typically square, though there are exceptions to this rule.

Mounting: The solid walnut frame dates to the period between 1860 and 1880. It has great, early surface and a gilded liner. The flag has been hand-stitched to 100% cotton rag mat. Spacers keep the textile away from the glass, which is u.v. protective.

Condition: There is some water staining, accompanied by an L-shaped tear in the bottom corner at the hoist end. There are small separations along the hoist where the flag was attached to its original staff.
Collector Level: Intermediate-Level Collectors and Special Gifts
Flag Type: Parade flag
Star Count:
Earliest Date of Origin: 1900
Latest Date of Origin: 1930
State/Affiliation: North Carolina
War Association: 1861-1865 Civil War
Price: SOLD
 

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