![13 STARS IN A LOPSIDED, OVAL WREATH, SURROUNDING A FANCIFULLY HAND-PAINTED EAGLE, SIGNED “J.L. SEARING,” WITH A GARLAND-LADEN STREAMER THAT READS: "UNITED WE STAND, DIVIDED WE FALL", ON A HOMEMADE, ANTIQUE AMERICAN FLAG, WITH 44 STARS ON THE OPPOSING SIDE, MADE IN LOST SPRINGS KANSAS [MARION CO.], FOR A VETERAN OF BOTH THE MEXICAN AND CIVIL WARS WHO SETTLED THERE; REFLECTS THE PERIOD WHEN WYOMING WAS THE MOST RECENT STATE TO JOIN THE UNION, 1890-1896](https://jeffbridgman.com/inventory/files//stand+flag+13+stars+lopsided+oval+wreath+wyoming+eagle+1890+5556-1.jpg)
| 13 STARS IN A LOPSIDED, OVAL WREATH, SURROUNDING A FANCIFULLY HAND-PAINTED EAGLE, SIGNED “J.L. SEARING,” WITH A GARLAND-LADEN STREAMER THAT READS: "UNITED WE STAND, DIVIDED WE FALL", ON A HOMEMADE, ANTIQUE AMERICAN FLAG, WITH 44 STARS ON THE OPPOSING SIDE, MADE IN LOST SPRINGS KANSAS [MARION CO.], FOR A VETERAN OF BOTH THE MEXICAN AND CIVIL WARS WHO SETTLED THERE; REFLECTS THE PERIOD WHEN WYOMING WAS THE MOST RECENT STATE TO JOIN THE UNION, 1890-1896 |
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| Web ID: | 13j-1724 |
| Available: | In Stock |
| Frame Size (H x L): | 81" x 96" |
| Flag Size (H x L): | 69.25" x 85" |
| Description: | |
| Some of the rarest early American flags display different star counts on each side. On this tremendous example, with 44 stars on the obverse & 13 on the reverse, the latter, configured in a lopsided oval, surround a hand-painted eagle, with a garland-laden streamer that reads: "United We Stand, Divided We Fall." The painting is signed, in a fanciful manner, with the name “J.L. Searing.” The count of 44 stars reflects the period when Wyoming became the most recent state to join the union, between 1890-1896, while the count of 13 celebrates the birth of America. Early American flags that display eagles among their design elements are both rare and among the most coveted by collectors, especially when they present as beautifully as this, with whimsical features and attractive colors. Nearly square in format, mimicking the general size and appearance of infantry and artillery battle flags, and with an interesting, sunburnt, red-orange complement of stripes, this is a homemade example, sewn for a tiny Civil War veterans’ post in far-flung, rural Kansas, during the late 19th century, within an unincorporated community of around 260 residents, that all but disappeared. The area called “Lost Springs” was named for an actual, lost spring, near a popular camping spot active between roughly 1821, when Missouri gained statehood, until following the close of the Civil War, in 1866. Situated at a point along the Sante Fe Trail [connected Franklin, Missouri to Sante Fe, in the future state of New Mexico], Lost Springs had a post office from 1861-1864, thereafter closed until reestablished in 1879. In 1880, the Pacific Railroad arrived and the village became a key stop. Incorporated in 1904, Lost Springs maintained a consistent population until WWII, dwindling thereafter with the railroad’s decline. While many places such as this became ghost towns, this one manages to hold on today, with a population of around 50. The flag was made for a Pennsylvania German who served his country not only during the more recent, Civil War (1861-1865), as part of an Illinois unit, but during the Mexican War (1846-1848), as a Pennsylvanian. Three small lines of blue, typeset text, along the first stripe, next to the canton, were included to mark ownership. These read: Geo. W. Ziders His Flag G.A.R. G.W. Ziders LOST spring kans. Listing his age, but no place of birth or residence, 18-year-old George Ziders (b. 11 Nov. 1828 – d. 29 Jul. 1898) enlisted with the 2nd Pennsylvania Infantry on May 5th, 1847, and was assigned to Company “M”, where he served as a Private. The regiment was an extremely active participant in the war over borders to define the recently annexed State of Texas. With the initial companies mustering 4 months prior, in January, the 2nd Pennsylvania participated in Major General Winfield Scott’s celebrated victory at the Siege of Veracruz, in March, as part of the first major amphibious assault in U.S. history. With him again during his next win, at the Battle of Cerro Gordo, the Army afterwards seized the Mexican city of Puebla, remaining there for several months, awaiting reinforcements, supplies, and for the many ill men among his troops to recover and regain strength. It is here that Ziders would have met up with the victorious American force, 80 miles to the west of Mexico City, in preparation for Scott’s advance, in pursuit of Santa Anna. Winning at the Battles of Contreras and Churubusco, with the 2nd PA engaged, Scott engaged the enemy at Molino del Rey, though without the 2nd PA, sent forth to prepare for the siege of Chapultepec. Here the 2nd Pennsylvania was part of the storming party that successfully breached the castle defenses, and subsequently fought their way through the Belén Gate, as Scott’s army took the capital and the Mexican Army surrendered. Discharged on July 21st, 1847, Ziders’ path thereafter remains as unclear as his life previous to military service. Having survived the war, he at some point moved to Missouri, where, on April 1st, 1860, he married Mary L.E. Adams (b. 8 Apr. 1841, d. 19 Oct. 1921) of South Carolina. The “E” in Mary’s records—many of which do not include the “L”—appears to have stood for “Ellen.” Born to parents James C. and Lucinda (Hares) Hulen, both of South Carolina by birth, Mary may have sought to convey a degree of deception with regards to her identity, feeling it prudent for a South Carolinian who had fallen in love with a Northerner. In the opening year of the Civil War, in 1861, George W. Ziders was employed as a cooper (barrel maker) in the town of Sullivan, Missouri, when he once again answered the call to Federal service. Enlisting with the Union Army on November 26th of that year, he was assigned to Company “A” of the 1st Illinois Cavalry, where he again held the rank of Private. If the introductory rank seems surprising for a Mexican War veteran, presumed to possess some wisdom gained by age, as well as on the battlefield, its selection could be tied to the regiment’s unusual fate. Mustering in for 3 years at Alton, IL, approximately 5 months prior to George’s arrival, his enlistment followed the Siege of Lexington (MO), a harrowing debacle in which the 7 initial companies (A-G) were forced to surrender, and were captured. In this peculiar and most embarrassing circumstance, the prisoners were not held, but instead sent home, paroled and temporarily discharged, under signed oath that they would not again take up arms until formally “exchanged” for a negotiated complement of Confederate soldiers. Unlike the 1st IL Cavalry’s non-commissioned officers and men, its commissioned officers were not discharged. Exchanged separately and much sooner, a period of Limbo followed where officers sought to recruit replacements who could legally fight. Exchange of the bulk of the 7 companies took place in the late Spring of 1862, with their members reassembling at St. Louis’s Benton Barracks, to re-organize. Significant disagreement concerning officers and assignments, and significant dissatisfaction with the means and circumstances of the parole and release, led to more mayhem, damaging already fragile morale to the point where army officials disbanded the companies completely, discharging them from further service on July 14th, 1862, with George W. Ziders among them. Though there are some who shy from the burden of command, content with a Private’s duties and pay, I suspect that the elder, Ziders, may have been led to believe that the rank was temporary, pending reorganization. With or without ill-intent, straw enticements such as this, in effort to re-build the regiment, would have heaped greater difficulty on the process, already burdened by the heavy weight of disgrace shared by the returning men, and widespread mistrust of the command. False promises to more recent recruits could have easily pushed the reorganization into a tailspin. Whatever the case may be, it would seem that George Ziders had nerve, first as a boy of 18, who had probably never been anywhere but home, enlisting for service in Mexico, then, at age 33, agreeing to serve officers just returning—tails tucked between their legs—to reform companies they had just led to total defeat and capture. The gall required to volunteer in Missouri, in such a climate, with split loyalties to the very premise of the war, was noteworthy to say the least, especially with both local and national newspapers reporting weakness and mismanagement, in the wake of one of the most significant slaps to the face received by the Union. Subsequent to his marriage and Civil War service, George Ziders moved his growing family to Kansas, no-doubt drawn by the promise of 160 acres of free land for veterans, via the Homestead Act of 1862. Settling in Lost Springs Township, he is present there in the 1870 Census, his profession listed as “Farmer.” Continuing in this endeavor, he appears in the 1880 census with wife Mary E., as well as a son, Charles A.L., age 16, also listed as a farmer, and four others, including daughter Fannie B., age 14, who would marry J.L. Searing, painter of the eagle (see below). There was a Catherine E., age 12; Florence H., age 7, and George E., age 2. Another son, Louis L., would appear by the time of the 1885 census, where he is listed as age 3. It seems very likely that the middle initials of “A.L.” were selected to glorify Abraham Lincoln, the death of whom was ever mourned. It is reasonable to presume that George Ziders’ own middle initial may likely have stood for “Washington,” also a popular practice for men named George, in military families, during the latter 18th and 19th centuries. There was a George Washington Ziders, of about the same age, born to a military family in Perry County, Pennsylvania, just north of Harrisburg, who was very likely a close relative. Ziders (a.k.a. Zeiders) is a local name in the Harrisburg region, though fairly uncommon elsewhere. Ziders became one of 10 founding members of Barnhill Post #274 at Lost Springs, organized April 14th, 1891. Due to Wyoming’s entry as the 44th state on July 10th, 1890, and subsequent, official addition of a 44th star on the American flag on July 4th, 1891 (though flag makers both private and commercial paid little heed to the latter), it can be presumed that the flag was made specifically for events surrounding the establishment of the Barnhill Post. Joseph L. (J.L.) Searing (25 Sept 1859 - 1936), painter of the eagle, was born in New York to parents James Searing (9 Oct 1827 - 16 Feb 1913) & his wife, Rebecca (Liggett) Searing. The 1860 Census records the family of three as residing in West Farms [formerly part of the town of Westchester, annexed to the Bronx in 1874], with the profession of J.L.’s father listed as “painter.” At some point after 1870, when James is still in NY, employed in a store as a porter, he appears to have gone west to stake a land claim. In the 1880 census, he was residing in the town of Union, Kansas, with his profession listed as “farmer,” accompanied by Rebecca and 4 children, including J.L., now age 21 (likewise listed as “farmer”). All four siblings remained in the state into the 20th century, as evidenced by James’ 1913 obituary, printed in the Clay Center Kansas Times. At age 26, on February 4th, 1882, J.L. married Fannie G. Ziders (b. 19 Apr 1866, McClain County, IL], the daughter of George W. Ziders, owner of the flag. Though the 1890 Census was largely destroyed by a 1921 fire in Washington, DC, an 1895 census was thankfully taken. This shows J.L. Searing in Lost Springs Township, Kansas, at age 36, with his profession listed as “blacksmith.” Accompanying him in the household were wife, Fanny, age 28, born in Illinois, and an adopted Kansas-born stepdaughter, Nellie, age 6. A member of both the Odd Fellows and the Modern Woodmen of America, J.L. was elected on the Republican ticket, in 1906, as one of two Constables to serve Lost Springs. In 1910, he lists his profession as “Stationary Engineer” [a maintainer of stationary steam engines, as opposed to those aboard trains], and in 1920, as “Garage Mechanic.” By 1930, J.L. records “none”, evidently retired. He passed in 1936 and is interred at Lost Spring Cemetery. Given the 1870 profession of his father as a painter, and his 1880 employment as a blacksmith, as well as the quality of the fancifully embellished, highly detailed emblem on his father-in-law’s flag, I would hasten to suggest that J.L. worked as a sign & carriage painter, probably as a natural extension of his day-to-day work, fashioning whatever was needed of a blacksmith in a small, rural community. This would have included buggies, wagons, sleighs, and signage, among other objects, likely both required and, to borrow the title of a well-known text on American Folk Art by Richard & Rosemarie Machmer, “Just for Nice.” Given his apparent ability to paint on cloth, this probably included ceremonial items for both the Odd Fellows and the Woodmen, in which he was very involved, and likely for the “G.A.R.” At some point near the end of his life, while residing, at least part time, in relatively nearby town of Junction City, Kansas (approx. 36 miles, George Ziders applied for a soldier’s pension, by way of a form printed in 1889. On it, in the space provided to describe his condition, he reports “Ruptured & Diseased.” In that provided to record if he is dependent on other for support, he relates “Sometimes I am. Cannot work. Son-in-law help.” I expect this was a different son-in-law, at whose home he was presently residing, though he may have been referring to J.L., who evidently thought well enough of him to adorn his flag with the painting. In the space reserved for remarks, he reports: “I deserve a pension I do. I lost my hearing and health in the service and now I am fit for nothing.” George passed of “sunstroke” in Havanah, Illinois on the July 29th, 1898, and was interred there at Laurel Hill Cemetery. Construction: The flag is made entirely of plain weave cotton. Rendered on a panel constructed from two lengths of cloth, the painting of an eagle was appliqued to the canton by hand-stitching. The stars are double-appliqued (applied to both sides of the canton) with treadle stitching, save for the star in the upper, right-hand corner of the 13 star arrangement, adjacent to the painting, which is stitched by hand. The stripes were pieced and joined by treadle stitching, then applied to the canton by the same means. There is a white cotton binding along the hoist, in the form of an open sleeve, applied by treadle stitching, through which a wooden staff was passed, and the flag subsequently affixed in place with metal tacks, as evidenced by the holes left when they were removed. Condition: In addition to the tack holes along the binding, with minor, associated rust stains, there are a few associated tears in the same, accompanied by a scattering of tiny marks and stains along the same, there is minor to modest soiling elsewhere, throughout. Many of my clients prefer early flags to show their age and history of use. The overall condition is excellent for a cotton flag of this period. The great rarity of 19th century flags with eagles would warrant almost any condition. |
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| Video: | |
| Collector Level: | Flags for the truest Patriots. My best offerings |
| Flag Type: | Sewn flag |
| Star Count: | 44 |
| Earliest Date of Origin: | 1890 |
| Latest Date of Origin: | 1896 |
| State/Affiliation: | Kansas |
| War Association: | 1861-1865 Civil War |
| Price: | Please call (717) 676-0545 or (717) 502-1281 |
| E-mail: | info@jeffbridgman.com |
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