[KrisNelson]

I am curious about anyones knowledge on a 47 star flag. I know that it was literally 5 weeks between the 47th and 48th States being added - would they have really made any 47 star flags? I have been approached with the existence of one - supposedly only 1 of 3 or 4 ever made. I have seen it - and it is clearly old and it looks authentic but wanted the input of you experts as to any knowledge that you might have.

You can email me directly if you want at
knelson@tricountyhospital.com

Thanks!
Kris

[american_flag_uk]

well i recken it was quite possible that 47 star flags where made in that time period before Arizona joined the union.... before the 48 star flag there was no guidance on star positioning as long as the flag had the right number of stars it didnt matter about the arrangement or size of them. so if people didnt know about Arizona joining so soon after New Mexico im sure there were some flags made with 47 stars on them.- though obviously it was never to be an official flag

[american_flag_uk]

hey i was browsing a vexillology site i visit sometimes and found this 47 Star Flag -unofficial- (U.S.) thought it might be useful.

[NAVA1974]

US Flag manufacturers in the late 19th and early 20th C were eager to add the new star to their flags as soon as possible in total disregard for the letter of the law specifying that the additional star must wait until the following July 4. This was also the case for the 47 star flag. In 5 weeks you can mass-produce quite a lot of flags so they aren't as rare as one might think. If you "google" 47-star flag you will find a number of references, including a few museum collections. A small number have shown up on eBay as well, on the order of one or two a year, but bring lower final bids than good Civil War era flags. Why? It is a matter of supply and demand. While there are few 47 star flags around, there are far fewer flag collectors, but a lot of Civil War collectors who want a flag as part of that collection. Nick

[tbhs]

Our museum is one of the few to have a 47-star flag. Please check out our web site at Tularosa Basin Historical Society - Alamogordo, New Mexico to see a photograph of it. It was found by a native of Alamogordo in California in the 1980s tacked up on the wall of a bar. The Museum of New Mexico in Santa Fe has 2 in storage. Also, one was donated to the Smithsonian in 2005. The man who found ours theorized shortly before his death last year that one might have been made to fly above each of the 33 county courthouses in New Mexico. Both Arizona and New Mexico had been wanting statehood for so long, it makes since that flags were manufactured for New Mexico.