The Washington Life Guard was organized in 1776, soon after the siege of Boston while the American army was encamped near New York. Its flag was said to have been in the museum at Alexandria, Va., which was burned soon after the Civil War began and nearly everything was lost. It was of white silk with the design painted on it. The uniform of the guard was as follows: blue coat with white facings, white waistcoat and breeches, with blue half gaiters, a cocked hat and white plume. Some authors give the American shield a place on this banner, but only a later design contained the shield, since the United States shield did not appear until 20 June 1782.
There was a flag which floated above the heads of the brave colonists on 19 April 1775, when they defied the British at Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts. That flag, known as the Bedford Flag, is on exhibition in that Massachusetts town. It is of maroon shade, and contained these words: Aut Vince Morire, meaning °Conquer or Die." It was carried by Nathaniel Page, captain of the Bedford Minute The device of a rattlesnake was popular among the colonists, and its origin as an Amer ican emblem is a curious feature in our na tional history. It has been stated that its use grew out of a humorous suggestion made by a writer in Franklin's paper — the Pennsyl vania Gazette—that, in return for the wrongs which England was -forcing upon the colonists, a cargo of rattlesnakes should be sent to the mother country and "distributed in Saint James' Park, Spring Garden, and other places of pleasure.' Colonel Gadsden, one of the marine com mittee, presented to Congress, on 8 Feb. 1776, "an elegant standard, such as is to be used by the commander-in-chief of the American navy; being a yellow flag with a representation of a rattlesnake coiled for attack" The words "Don't Tread on Me' do not appear on this golden flag.
A blue flag with a union of white, upon which was a red cross with a pine tree in the upper dexter quarters, floated at the battle of Bunker Hill, 17 June 1775, and another flag of the same pattern, except that the flag was red and the cross red, was also used at Bunker Hill, and bore these inscriptions: On one side, °An Appeal to Heaven* and on the other "Qtii Transtulit Sustinet," meaning, who trans ported will sustain.' These were beautiful flags and research shows that both colors were used.
Trumbull gives the red in his celebrated painting in the capitol at Washington and other authentic accounts show that the blue flag was carried also — the color being the only differ ence in the two.
Massachusetts banner, 1659, white, a hand holding a dagger, marked °Thre County Trcnn.* was used.
Another New England flag of white had a pine tree and curled about its trunk a ser pent, below which were the words °Don't Tread on Me"; above the tree, °An Appeal To Heaven.* The Crescent flag of 1776, a flag in blue with a white sign of the Crescent in upper dexter corner, was made by Col. William Moul trie, a Southern patriot. Another Crescent device flag had the word °Liberty,* in white under the crescent also in white, on blue cloth.
Another flag bearing the symbol of a rat tlesnake was the °Culpepper Minute Men,' words which appeared across the top, while below were the words °Don't Tread on Me,' and across the centre these words °Liberty or Death.* As early as 1754, 21 years before the battle of Lexington, Benjamin Franklin urged the colonies to unite. (He also advised it in 1747 and suggested flags, see Part I). In his paper the Philadelphia Gazette, that editorial was embellished by a wood-cut of a snake divided into 10 parts, with the initials of some of the various colonies, all New England forming one part — the head. The idea was also placed on some of the early banners and devices.
Then there were such other flags, as the White Plains banner, of white with a naked sword crossed by a pole upon which was a liberty cap. In ancient times when a slave was set free he was permitted to wear a blue cap to indicate that he had obtained his freedom, hence blue and a cap have been for centuries associated with liberty.
The Taunton flag was used early in our Revolution, and a design of the British flag with the word "Liberty* painted or sewed upon the flag.
The Newbury port design consisted of a green cloth, a white canton, with red cross. Also a circle of a 14-link chain with a green pine tree; at each link a hand holding the link represented that the 13 colonies were joined in a chain of union.
Early in the Revolution, John Hancock pre sented to a colored troop a flag upon which appeared a pine tree, and aside of it, a deer, above which the initials °G. W. and I. H.* are pictured. The letters refer to Lieorge Washington and John Hancock who presented the flag.