Located just a few blocks down from Flag-Works over America in Concord, New Hampshire is the state capital. The building was designed by architect Stuart James Park, and built between the years of 1816-1819. Inside the main lobby area of this historic building is the Hall of Flags formerly known as Doric Hall, which was named and designed after a similar display in the Massachusetts capitol building by Charles Bulfinch. The halls feature over 100 battle flags carried by New Hampshire soldiers, representing the Civil War, Spanish-American War, WW I, WW II, and the Vietnam War. The flags surrounding you go back to our nations infancy. Some of these flags are so old that there isn’t barely anything left of them, others are torn and tattered due to going through the riggers of war.
Many of the flags in the hall are here today because of those who gave their life to protect these flags and what they stand for. All of the flags have a story, and this room is not lacking. Some of the flags are from different states, some are from foreign countries and some are from our country. It is quite a site to see to be in the same room inches away from a flag that may have been held by such important people like Franklin Pierce the 14th president of the United States and General John Stark, as well as many other people who founded this great country. Just like the men who fought to protect the flag then, we have men and women now who fight to protect our flag today. Our hope is that one day some of the flags that they fight to protect may be added to this room full of historic flags.
First introduced on Continental Naval ships in the fall of 1775, The First Navy Jack Flag consisted of 13 red and white stripes which were to represent the 13 colonies. Historically there isn’t an exact date as to when the flag changed, but sometime in the years that followed the flag was altered to what it is known now which is 13 red and white alternating stripes with and uncoiled rattlesnake imposed over the stripes with the motto underneath stating “Don’t Tread on Me”. The flag with the rattlesnake and motto on it have typically been used since 1880. The snake is meant to be a symbol of resistance towards the British from the time of Colonial America. The Phrase of “Don’t Tread on Me” was introduced during the Revolutionary War, also the meaning behind the phrase is simple in that a snake doesn’t strike until provoked. Other flags that The United States have used over the years that also depict a snake are flags like The Gadsden Flag, and The Culpepper Flag. All three of these flags play a role in the progression of flags and their meanings throughout American flag history.
Did you know that Flag-Works not only has the Betsy Ross flag for sale on it’s website but also has flags like the Alamo, the Bennington and the British Red Ensign. These true American historical flags are available here or visit Flag-Works.com for all of America’s historic flags.
Don’t tread on Me is the inscription on the Gadsden flags. The flag of the first commander of the U. S. Navy, Esek Hopkins. It takes the popular name from Colonel Christopher Gadsden, who gave a replica of the original to the S.C. Provincial Congress. Don’t tread on me has become synonymous with the current Tea Party movement. The original flag stood for not letting England tread on colonial patriots. The Tea Party, patriots, don’t want the American government treading on them. This makes this flag carry an appropriate message that is still relevant today.
Our authentic historical reproductions of flags from American history are popular with collectors or as part of patriotic displays. The historical flags are manufactured with the same high quality outdoor construction as our state and international flags. Buy one today!
From dusk till dawn the livelong night
She kept the tallow dips alight,
And fast her nimble fingers flew
To sew the stars upon the blue.
With weary eyes and aching head
She stitched the stripes of white and red.
And when the day came up the stair
Complete across a carven chair Hung Betsy’s battle-flag.
_______
Like shadows in the evening gray
The Continentals filed away,
With broken boots and ragged coats,
But hoarse defiance in their throats;
They bore the marks of want and cold,
And some were lame and some were old,
And some with wounds untended bled,
But floating bravely overhead
Was Betsy’s battle-flag.
______
When fell the battle’s leaden rain,
The soldier hushed his moans of pain
And raised his dying head to see
King George’s troopers turn and flee.
Their charging column reeled and broke,
And vanished in the rolling smoke,
Before the glory of the stars,
The snowy stripes, and scarlet bars Of Betsy’s battle-flag.
______
The simple stone of Betsy Ross
Is covered now with mould and moss,
But still her deathless banner flies,
And keeps the color of the skies.
A nation thrills, a nation bleeds,
A nation follows where it leads,
And every man is proud to yield
His life upon a crimson field
For Betsy’s battle-flag!
Our flag is a very special flag, it shows that we are American. It has 13 stripes and fifty stars. Along time ago people have only discovered 13 states. So they made a flag that had 13 stripes and 13 stars. As they adopted new states, they kept making new flags. For every state they adopted they added a star. Soon enough there were 50 stars on the flag. The flag still had 13 stripes. It stayed that way for the original 13 states.
September is usually a quiet time at our flag store. Summer is over and anyone needing to replace a faded flag or who had dreams of adding a flagpole to their yard had already done so. In 2001 my husband, Patrick, and I had just been married so it was a great time for us. We had casual days at the store and plenty of time in the evenings to do some work around our new home. Life was good.
I remember driving into work the morning of September 11th and hearing on the radio about a plane hitting the World Trade Center. I had a feeling of uneasiness about the whole thing because it just seemed so odd. I couldn’t wait to get into the store and tell Patrick, who had left before me that morning to run some errands. I arrived and Patrick had already heard the news. As I was opening the retail portion of the store I heard on the radio about the second plane hitting the World Trade Center. I got a sick feeling in my body. I ran into the back of the store to tell my husband and we both sat down for a minute to think about what all of this meant. Patrick went out to get a small TV so we could be aware of what was going on and get up-to-date new reports. We then heard of the Pentagon also being attacked. What was happening was surreal.
It was quiet in the store and the City of Concord became still. We had no customers come in or call. We sat glued to the TV still unaware of what our role in this tragedy would be. A few hours later our retail doorbell rang and we had a customer come into the store. A woman, distraught and crying, came in and said she needed an American flag. She couldn’t believe this was happening to our country. I didn’t know how to comfort her because I needed comforting myself. As Americans we all needed some comforting. She left with her flag seeming somewhat stronger than when she came in. I will never forget my interaction with her and the renewed patriotism that was about to sweep the country. For Flag-Works, she was just the beginning. Within an hour, we had a line in the store and out the door. Patrick and I weren’t quite sure how to handle the crowds. People came into the store to choose a flag then proceeded to the end of the line, even if it was outside our door. There was no time for policing or mistrust on our part. People were coming in as Americans and we had to trust that they acted in good faith. Our phone, too, was ringing off the hook with people trying to place orders to be shipped. Our large catalog and flag internet business was distracting us from helping those in front of us, the people of Concord. With a limited supply of flags in stock we decided it was most important for us to take care of Concord first. We put a message on our answering machine and on our website telling people we weren’t currently able to take phone or internet orders.
For 5 days the routine stayed the same. Arrive at the store 1 hr before we opened (there would already be a line outside the door by then) and stay through until the evening hours, working straight through. We would leave to go home and feed our dogs, grab a quick bite to eat and head back in to clean the store and get re-stocked for the next day. When we finally arrived home late at night we would watch the news (at this point we had no time for our in-store TV) to see the day’s developments and hopefully get a few hours sleep. Our honeymoon period was most certainly over! We brought in extra help and tried to order as many flags from our manufacturers as we could. You see, it was off season for them too so there weren’t many flags in the warehouses to go out. In our store the line remained long yet people waited. It was interesting to watch what happened between people, some with a 30-45 minute wait, to purchase their flag. After completing their purchase, many would exchange hugs or handshakes with those next to them in line that they got to know. It was truly amazing to see what happens when people stand together as Americans. There were no differences between us, we were all Americans and that is what mattered.
After about 5 days we ran out of flags. For that matter we ran out of anything red, white and blue! We put signs on the door saying we were out but people still stopped in to see for themselves. When our first re-stocking truckload arrived a few days later word got out quickly. Local radio stations picked up on it and made an announcement that we had just received a shipment. This continued every time we ran out, which was every couple of days. Many times people would be waiting by our door and when a truck pulled up with more flags, they’d help us unload. It wasn’t just Flag-Works that was out of flags, there was a national shortage. With only 2 embroidery houses in the entire US making star fields for flags, the flag manufacturers couldn’t keep up with the demand. This cycle continued for months.
The show of patriotism on and after September 11th was remarkable. There were American Flags flying everywhere. We united together as a country using our flag as a show of unity. Since that time, flags have faded and so has the show of patriotism. Everyone seems to have gotten back to putting their differences first. I hope that this September 11th we all remember the feeling we had 10 years ago as a united country. Sure, there will always be differences among us, that’s what makes this country so great. It’s the place of importance that we put those differences that makes or breaks our strength as a country.
The earliest known flag of 13 stars and 13 stripes is the one which flew over the Battle of Bennington in August of 1777, by the Vermont Militia, fortunately, it is still preserved today in the museum at Bennington, Vermont. as in many other flags from that era, the Bennington flag has unexpected differences from the flag we love today. The first flag law did not indicate exact details of colors, proportions, star arrangement, etc. Since all flags were made by hand, each flag was more or less different from all others. No one today knows why the figure 76 was added in the canton. While the stars have have 7 points, other Revolutionary flag’ stars vary from 4 to 8 points. The first Stars and Stripes to lead American armed forces on land.
Our authentic historical reproductions of flags from American history are popular with collectors or as part of patriotic displays. The historical flags are manufactured with the same high quality outdoor construction as our state and international flags. All historical flags are 3×5′ or as marked. Larger historical flag sizes and designs are available upon request as a custom flag.
Located just a few blocks down from Flag-Works over America in Concord, New Hampshire is the state capital. The building was designed by architect Stuart James Park, and built between the years of 1816-1819. Inside the main lobby area of this historic building is the Hall of Flags formerly known as Doric Hall, which was named and designed after a similar display in the Massachusetts capitol building by Charles Bulfinch. The halls feature over 100 battle flags carried by New Hampshire soldiers, representing the Civil War, Spanish-American War, WW I, WW II, and the Vietnam War. The flags surrounding you go back to our nations infancy. Some of these flags are so old that there isn’t barely anything left of them, others are torn and tattered due to going through the riggers of war.
The flag of the first commander of the 
It has 13 stripes and fifty stars. Along time ago people have only discovered 13 states. So they made a flag that had 
in the museum at Bennington, Vermont. as in many other flags from that era, the