Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1901-06-29
FLAGS vF THE CONFEDERACY.
A Chapter Of History That IL of
interest to Old and Young.

Interest to Old and Young.
Galveston News:
The following paper on the various
flags of the Lost Cause was written
by the historian Of Pat Cleburne
Camp, and appeared printed on the
official programme of the reunion at
Waco, Texas:
The first flag indicative Of secession
was raised at Charleston, S. c., De-
cember 10, 1860. one day prior to the
passage of the ordinance whereby
South Carolina withdrew from the
Federal Union and declared its indie
pendence. The flag is field Of solid
red, with a crescent and star In
white, quartered in the upper left
hand corner. Who designed the flag, Is
not known to this writer; number of
Charleston. ladies purchased the mater
ial, made 1t on the pattern described,
and ran 1t up on the tall staff Of the
custom house. It's dimensions were
eight feet in length and six feet broad.
Later it became the naval flag of
South Carolina, and continued such
to the close Of the war. Those made
for the navy was forked at an end.
The South Carolina privateer Dixie,
flying the stars and crescent flag, enga-
ged the United States battleship Key
stone State, and the keystone suffered
terribly. The Dixie was captured In a
sinking condition. its entire crew being
dead or disabled from wounds.
The critics objected to the red flag
with it's silver quarterings on the
ground that silver or white or red was
non -heralded. It was criticised also on
the ground that it was almost identi-
cal with the Turkish flag. Those and
others points Of objection, while falling
to attract the attention Of the naval
commanders, caused the original, af-
ter which the legislature adopted the
remodeled pattern as the flag OF SOW
ereignty Of the state Of South Carolina.
The revised South Carolina flag had
the cross of st. George in blue as Its
chief quartering, the cross emblazoned
both on it's upright and transverse,
with white stars corresponding In
number to the number Of states In the
Southern Confederacy. Another alter
alton was that the small star In white
appearing on the original flag, near
the crescent, was substituted in the
flag Of sovereignty by white pal
metto tree.
The first national flag of the Southern
Confederacy was adopted at Montgom-
ery, Ala, March 4, 1861, and was hoist
ed to the summit Of the staff on the
capitol building in that city, Miss L. c.
Tyler, daughter of ex-President Tyler,
pulling the cord, gliding gloriously up
the pole in the presence Of multitude,
who greeted the new flag with deaf
ening cheers.
ACT OF CONFEDERATE CONGRESS
The act of the Confederate congress
in session at Montgomery, Ala, de-
clares that the flag of the Confederate
States Of America shall consist or
red field, with white space extend
ing horizontally throught the center
and equal in width to One-third or the
width Of the flag, the red space above
and below to be the same width as the
white, a canton Of blue extending
downward through the white space and
stopping at the upper border OF lower
red space. In the center Of the blue
canton stars corresponding In number
to the number Of states in the South
ern Confederacy must be placed In
circle. the circle indicative Of perpet-
uity.
The first flag bore seven stars, that
being the number Of states In the Con-
federacy at the time the stars and Dars
became the southern flag by enactment
at Montgomery, Ala, on the date men
toned above. Later 1t became Gus
tomary to make flags with 13 stars
one for each of the eleven seceding
states, one for Maryland and one tor
Kentucky, and in some instances the
stars and bars bore IA stars, the state
Of Missouri being included in the south
ern constellation.
The stars and bars ceased to be the
legal national flag on May l, 1863, an
act of congress, passed on that date
substituting another flag, hereafter 10
be described; but while the stars and
bars by the subsequent enactment
ceased to be the flag Of the Confederate
States of America, to the end of the