Object Record
Images
Metadata
Object |
Flag |
Year Range from |
1775 |
Year Range to |
1777 |
Description |
Canton of flag used at the Battle of Bennington by General John Stark. Originally blue with thirteen painted white stars scattered randomly. Very small amount of the green silk field remains around the edges. Hand stitched. Band of silk with hemmed edge on one side. |
Width (inches) |
18.000 |
Length (inches) |
22.000 |
Subjects |
Bennington, Battle of, N.Y., 1777 |
Information |
This is the canton from the flag used by General John Stark during the American Revolution. There are remains of the green float around the edges, and pieces of the float also survive in the Museum's collection. This was a regimental flag, and is similar to other silk regimental flags of the time. The flag was retained by Stark until his death, and either Stark himself or his descendants cut it up to give pieces to his many admirers (a common fate for flags). This blue canton was brought to Bennington for exhibit during the 1877 centennial of the Battle of Bennington and again in 1891. It was passed to his granddaughter Susan Stark, to their daughter Susan Gamble Abbott to their daughter Jennie Abbott Osborne from whom Hall Park McCullough purchased it for the Bennington Museum shortly after it opened in 1928. Over the years, the flag picked up an association with the Green Mountain Boys, the Vermont militia who had fought with Stark at the Battle of Bennington. The flag was never used by the Green Mountain Boys, who were a Vermont regiment (General John Stark led New Hampshire troops). The flag was later adopted as a symbol by the Vermont National Guard. There are several pieces of the green float in the Museum's collection (A72, A440, A1043, A4736, and 1996.54.1). One (A4736) has a painted flourish on it, and it's likely that this flag had a painted design like other regimental flags of the era. |
Related People |
Stark, John |
Credit line |
Bequest of Mr. Hall Park McCullough |
Catalog Number |
A1042 |