New York State Unveils 10 Restored Historic Flags
By Michael Russert September '01 issue

ALBANY, N.Y. - The New York State Division of Military and Naval Affairs (DMNA) and New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation recently unveiled 10 newly restored flags from approximately 1800 battle flags in the DMNA collection.

Lt. Col. Robert von Hasslen of the DMNA welcomed a large group of visitors. He noted that it was appropriate that the second floor room of the New York State Capitol Building where the ceremony was held had been the storage area of the Civil War battle flags from 1865 into the 1940s.

Col. von Hasslen said, "It is not the artifacts, it's the story behind the artifacts that is so important. For example, the brave stories of the men who carried the flags into battle."

He called the conservation program an example of good government in action. It is a cooperative venture between the DMNA and the New York State Office of Parks. Von Hasslen observed, "What Parks Department has done for DMNA has been worth two regiments." He complimented Deborah Trupin, Textile Conservator, Office of Parks, and recently hired Assistant Conservator Sarah Stevens, who have worked on the project.

Stevens, who has a master's degree in historic costume and textile conservation from the University of Rhode Island, was hired last September to work strictly on flag conservation with a quarter-time per week assistant.

J. Winthrop Aldrich, State Deputy Commissioner for Historic Preservation, explained the intricacies of flag restoration - cleaning, vacuuming, and storing the flags on flat, pull-out trays for viewing without causing further damage.

The New York State collection has more than 10,000 artifacts of America's military conflicts, 1800 of which are battle flags dating from 1808 to the Gulf War.

Under Gov. George Pataki more has been done to preserve and stabilize the collection than at any other time. A professional staff of seven has been hired to work at the collection's temporary headquarters at the Watervliet Arsenal. They have cataloged and documented the collection, and there has been a greater recovery of missing artifacts.

Conservators at the Bureau of Historic Sites at Peeples Island, near Troy, have conserved 50 flags to date and will have 100 conserved and stabilized by the end of this year. William Howard, a deputy for Governor Pataki, noted that, "This administration has done more to conserve, protect, and exhibit the Civil War battle flags entrusted to its care then any other administration in history."

In May 1997, the state announced a 10-year plan to prepare some flags for exhibit, to preserve the rest, and to find a permanent home for the entire New York State collection. (See related article.) The State Legislature, to date, has allocated $175,000, while various state agencies have spent an additional $286,000.

A previous exhibit in the State Capitol displayed 10 Civil War battle flags which had been conserved. This new exhibit includes 10 additional restored flags; however, they represent a wider range of history. While the majority are Civil War, one flag dates to 1808, while another dates from the 1960s.

The earliest flag in the New York collection, the Albany Republican Artillery banner, was one of those selected for recent preservation. The regimental-size flag was carried by Gen. Philip Van Rensselaer's independent artillery unit and was purportedly carried at the Battle of Sacket's Harbor, May 29, 1813. In its center is the Seal of Albany with a farmer and a Native American with the inscription "Assiduity" and "Diligence." On the reverse side the U.S. Coat of Arms is painted.
A silk presentation flag with the New York State Seal embroidered on both sides depicting a Native American and a sailor has also been preserved. Dating from the 1840s, it was the regimental colors of the 8th New York State Militia.

There are five flags from the Civil War period. One of the most interesting is the unique regimental flag of the famed 84th New York Militia, better known as the 14th Brooklyn. Although a large segment of the silk banner is gone, the cotton-backed fabric over a silk fabric which was the central focal point of the flag has been restored. Another treasure is the huge and totally intact regimental banner of the 26th U.S. Colored Troops. Organized primarily in New York City in February 1864, the motto, "GOD AND LIBERTY" graces the flag.

Three flanker flags are among the newly conserved flags. A crimson silk right flank flag, edged in gold fringe, was carried by the 77th New York, "The Bemis Heights" or "Saratoga Regiment," served with distinction in the VI Corps. A silk flanker flag with a painted design depicting a shield in the center belonged to the 83rd New York Infantry.

The third flanker flag that has been conserved was carried by the 56th New York. The silk swallow-tail guidon flew over a unit organized in New York's Tenth Congressional District. Known as the X Legion, which is denoted on the banner, the unit originally consisted of a combined force of cavalry, artillery and infantry until its reorganization in November 1861 as the 56th New York Infantry.

The final three conserved flags represent 20th-century units. The large silk regimental colors embroidered with the U.S. Coat of Arms in its center, was the banner of the 369th Regiment, U.S. Infantry. This Afro-American unit fought in World War I under French command, since the U.S. Army did not allow Black soldiers in combat. The unit was known as "Hell Fighters."

A wool guidon representing Co. B, 101st Signal Battalion, dates to the Korean War period. The final flag, a wool guidon, was the flag of the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 27th Supply and Transportation Battalion, dating to the 1960s.

In addition, the 127th New York Infantry regimental banner which was restored with a combination of state monies and local funds raised by the North Shore Civil War Round Table, is on loan to a site in Huntington, Long Island. The regimental national colors of the 169th New York Infantry is on temporary display at the Maple Hill High School in Schodack. The 95th New York Infantry's regimental colors have also been restored through private fund-raising.

Flag preservation and conservation is a slow and expensive process and many of New York's flags have been allowed to fall into a state of disrepair. However, the Pataki Administration has taken the first steps in the process of conserving and documenting its extensive collection.

As Joseph Thatcher of the New York State Office of Parks said, "This exhibit is not an isolated event, but part of a continuous presence." He noted that past support for the flag project "was on a low dollar scale" and $175,000 more is available.

"Efforts are being made, movement is being made in the right direction, and it is movement," Thatcher said. The Temporary New York State Flag Preservation Committee will begin fund-raising to help finance the restoration project.