American Flags Made From Hemp

[EmailPoster]

I doubt that this will be seriously taken into consideration given the sad...

I doubt that this will be seriously taken into consideration given the sad
state of the political culture in this great nation, but I think it should
be noted that the first American Flags were made from Hemp. This is very
important from a historical standpoint, in that no other other fiber was
strong enough to withstand the saline air on naval ships, nor to weather the
outdoors for a long period of time. It's also a bit of irony, given that the
original fabric that was used for our beloved flag is currently illegal for
farmers to grow.

Thanks,

Perry J. Boero

[jproffitt10]

Perry Boero,

It is sad that a viable, commercial agricultural product has been lost due to abuse by some, as its loss harms many financially. While I understand that in the past, hemp has been used for hundreds of commercial products--including American flags, it is now for the most part, a non-issue as its use is extremely limited and more often than not, frowned upon in the production of consumer goods. Currently hemp products are more of a novelty than anything else.

With that said, the American way is to lobby for change if you do not like a particular law. It seems like you are doing that and if that is what you believe in then keep it up. As a citizen of a "nation of laws, not men" all you have to do convince enough people of your viewpoint and then get them to the polls. Good luck with your endeavor.

[atcoleness]

Does anyone know where it is possible to buy an american flag made from hemp? there is one site i found that claims to sell them; however, it appears that they are out of business or something, i tried to call the number but the line is out. If anyone knows anything on this it would be greatly appreciated.

[csaanv]

I came across that same company. What a shame, as they were actually making their flags according the to the official specs. If you are able to contact them let me know as I would love one of their flags.

[NAVA1974]

I read on the hempmuseum.org site "Betsy Ross made the first flag of the United States of America out of the finest, strongest fiber available, hemp fabric."

That's a load of BS. Betsy Ross, like all the other professional flagmakers in Philadelphia at the time, used English wool bunting to make her flags. So was the Star Spangled Banner in the Smithsonian that the hempmuseum thinks is made of "linen." (At least it was not made of linen, according to the British WOOL expert/consultant that the Smithsonian brought on board during the early stages of the flag's conservation. I was standing next to him when the staff was rolling the SSB up in order to take it out of the main hall to the conservation lab a few hundred feet to the west. I could almost feel him cringe over the way they were handling that delicate WOOL flag.)

Since bunting was not made in the USA until the late Civil War era, all American flags, from 1776 to the 1860's, were made of imported English bunting (except for those few home made flags of linen or standards of silk.)

A more reputable site says "There are no existing 18th-century American flags made of cotton, since this fiber was not readily available in America until after 1800. Cotton sewing thread was not manufactured commercially until the 19th-century. Eighteenth-century documentation, bills, invoices, and descriptions, and examination of all the surviving flags from this period indicate that they were made of silk, linen, or wool bunting. "

Nick

[TomBrooklyn]

Since bunting was not made in the USA until the late Civil War era, all American flags, from 1776 to the 1860's, were made of imported English bunting (except for those few home made flags of linen or standards of silk.)

What materials were English and American bunting made from?

[NAVA1974]

What materials were English and American bunting made from?

Hello Tom,

Thanks for your question. The short answer is "wool."

In my previous message in this string I stated, "Betsy Ross, like all the other professional flagmakers in Philadelphia at the time, used English wool bunting to make her flags." "Bunting" was a lightly woven woolen fabric that floated easily with the slightest breeze.

Here is an example of a hand-sewn wool bunting flag:
13 Star US Navy Boat Flag1882 Hand Sewn Stars and Stripes - Size 7 Ensign | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Most commecially made flags through the 19th century used wool bunting. Note that the vast majority of flags made at that time were signal flags - ships needed relatively few national ensigns compared to the full suite of signal flags. Some larger flagmakers also dyed flag designs on wool bunting but these flags are relatively scarce compared to sewn flags.

Here is an example of a dyed wool bunting flag:
37 Star Flag U.S. Bunting Company Clamp-dyed | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Regarding American flags, many home made flags used cotton sheeting as that was a common fabric for making clothing. Cotton sheeting was also used by flag manufacturers to make smaller printed flags, but it really wasn't until the early 20th C that cotton bunting came on the scene. It was usually termed "moth proof bunting" as moth larvae ate wool fibers, not cotton.

Here is a detail of a 48star flag made of cotton bunting:
48 Star Flag of Dreadnaught cotton bunting | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Linen was very rarely used for flags. In the early days before the cotton gin was invented, stars applied to wool flags were often made of linen, but very few of those flags exist today.


Antique wool bunting flags are somtimes erroniously referred to as made of "hessian" fabric, but hessian is burlap cloth and was not used for flags.

For a full treatise on flagmaking, google "Thirteen Star Flags Keys to Identification" by Grace Rogers Cooper. The Smitsonian has that publication on line in PDF form.

Nick A
Columbia Maryland

[csaanv]

Hi Nick,
You really ought to consider putting together a photographic album of your collection. With so many historic flags, it would be a great educational tool.
Mike

[NAVA1974]

Hi Nick, You really ought to consider putting together a photographic album of your collection. With so many historic flags, it would be a great educational tool. Mike

Kind of you to say that. I do, indeed, plan to write a book on collecting flags and flag ephemera. The lessons that you learn from collecting these artifacts will be the primary focus of the book.

Nick A
Columbia MD

[csaanv]

Great! Can't wait!