At Federal Flags, we appreciate the vast power of flags of all types to represent and rally countless groups and causes in a moving and transcendent way that is instantaneous and often beyond the scope of mere words. Of course, our most popular flag is the American Flag, the more than 250-year-old “Star-Spangled Banner.” In times of peace, our national banner has sparked gratitude in citizens for our national unity and perseverance and motivated change so that our unwavering commitment to “liberty and justice” for all refuses to falter. In times of war, the American Flag has served as a rallying beacon throughout the trials, tribulations, and sacrifices inherent in armed conflicts. Thus, the American Flag has served U.S. citizens as much as U.S. citizens have served the U.S. Flag. In a very palpable way, flags have shaped our history, and history has shaped our flags.

But while the American Flag is certainly the banner most capable of galvanizing U.S. citizens and representing our eternal commitment to values like liberty and a never-say-die attitude, countless other flags have influenced our history as well. During the American Revolution, Patriot forces employed several flags to identify their units and provide a rallying point for their troops. During the Civil War, regimental flags were so beloved by the troops fighting under either side that scores of men would vie for the high privilege of holding their regimental flagstaffs and flying their unique and often colorful banners, even though being entrusted with this honor often meant almost certain death from bullets fired by enemy soldiers searching for a conspicuous target amidst the smoke and confusion of the battlefield.

The flags we fly largely reflect our most cherished values. These values, in turn, shape our history and the course that history ultimately takes. Join us in American History Unfurled for a firsthand appreciation of the manifold ways these dual truths have shaped the United States of America, in good times and bad, throughout its proud existence.