[True2theRedWhiteandBlue]

Hello,
I have seen many different variations of Feather Tree Flags. I have seen many different star counts and have done some simple research in Google.

Are these considered real flags as far as collecting?

Are they mostly 19th century ?

Do they have any value and are some more rare then others.

I would appreciate any insight.
Thank You, Paul

[NAVA1974]

Originally Posted by True2theRedWhiteandBlue

Hello,
I have seen many different variations of Feather Tree Flags. I have seen many different star counts and have done some simple research in Google. Are these considered real flags as far as collecting? Are they mostly 19th century ? Do they have any value and are some more rare then others.l

Miniature flags, or 'feather tree flags' are found in great variety. Tiny silk 50-star flags on thin sticks are modern and have little collector value. 48-star varieties with the label "Made in Occupied Japan" are of more interest as that dates them to the late 1940's. Similar examples with 25 to 30 stars do NOT date from the early 1800's. They were made in the 1920's or 30's and sold in boxes of 12 dozen. They should have 48 stars, but the manufacturer just didn't care to make them correctly. (Values of these tiny silk flags are in the $2 to $5 range.)

Larger flags (2x3 inches) printed on sized muslin (thin, stiff cotton) with 13 stars mounted on 6-inch long wood sticks are also usually from the early 20th century, though some may date from the last half of the 19th. Very few of them actually date from the Civil War or Centennial eras regardless of the claims of the seller. Values are in the $5 to $20 range. If they have the "proper" number of stars (44,45, 46) they can be worth up to twice that amount.

Printed muslin 13-star flags on 10-12 inch long stick, for some reason, sell on eBay for $100 to $200. The same style flags are found from 33-stars up to 48 stars, so it is really hard to pin down when a 13-star flag was made. Could be anywhere from 1860 to the 1920's (when softer cotton seems to have taken over for stick flags.)

The values noted above are based on my observations of eBay sales over the last 10 years and are not 'official' in any way. The same flag on different days can sell for $10 or $200, depends on who is buying at the moment, and the creativity of the seller.

[True2theRedWhiteandBlue]

This is why I love to visit this forum. Providing such a great resource and fantastic wealth of knowledge.
Thank You Once again ,Paul

[Robin Hickman]

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GREETINGS, True2theRedWhiteandBlue !!!


Welcome to the USA-flag-Site Forums !!!


I had never heard of "Feather Tree Flags". Apparently, until you started this thread, neither had Google !!!

Google now has ONE search result page listed for the search term, "Feather Tree Flags", and THIS PAGE is it !!!

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&source=hp&q=%22feather+tree+flags%22& btnG=Google+Search


Thank You for bringing your Flag-related question to our Forums !!!


Robin Hickman
Eugene, Oregon, USA
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[NAVA1974]

Originally Posted by True2theRedWhiteandBlue

This is why I love to visit this forum. Providing such a great resource and fantastic wealth of knowledge.
Thank You Once again ,Paul

You are most welcome. I began collecting flags shortly after Canada adopted the Maple Leaf flag. It occurred to me that not only Canada and the US flags had changed recently, but that the US flag had added stars frequently during the 19th century, and that other countries changed their flags for various reasons (not as well thought out as the US flag's concept of adding stars for every new state, perhaps, but changes nevertheless.) When you build a collection you can't help but learn a lot about the artifacts and the reasons for their existance. And I just enjoy sharing that knowledge, as well as learning from others on this forum.
Nick
ps: Robin, I had never heard of "Feather Trees" before I started finding 'feather tree flags' on eBay. Apparently feather trees are miniature substitutes for Christmas trees, and the ornaments are minature versions of what one would put on a real Christmas Tree.

[Robin Hickman]

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QUOTE (NAVA1974) : "ps: Robin, I had never heard of "Feather Trees" before I started finding 'feather tree flags' on eBay. Apparently feather trees are miniature substitutes for Christmas trees, and the ornaments are minature versions of what one would put on a real Christmas Tree."

Thanx, Nick! Actually I'd never heard of "Feather Trees" before, either!

"Googling" the search term "Feather Trees" produces over 81,000 pages :

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&source=hp&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=%22Feather+Trees%22&btnG=Google+Search


I don't know about anybody else, but this DOES seem to be a clear-cut case of "learning something new every day" !!!


Robin Hickman
Eugene, Oregon, USA
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