Flag, Centennial - "Bonnie Blue"
Object number1900.059.00
MediumNylon
Dimensions53 15/16 x 71 1/4 in. (137 x 181 cm)
Credit LineOld State House Museum Collection
Terms
Researcher Malcolm Smith claims that the "Bonnie Blue" was never an officially recognized flag of the Confederacy. When in 1905, all captured Rebel Flags were returned to the several states by the Flag Museum (the War Department, no description of a Bonnie Blue was given). Several states claim to have designed the flag, including Texas, Arkansas, and Mississippi - Arkansas lays claim because an Arkansan actor was present in Jackson, MS when the Ordinance of Secession was passed, and he wrote a popular song with that name and sang it in a local theatre that night. The actor was Henry McCarthy and the flag that was dramatically displayed in the act was a "Bonnie Blue." Overall, the "Bonnie Blue" was most likely one of many designs by individual states prior to the adoption of the "Star & Bars" as the National emblem of the Confederacy on May 4th, 1861. The "Bonnie Blue" was never an official flag of the Confederate States of America.
Status
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