Michigan Battle Flags

[major bill]

Today I attended the 150th Anniversary of the Return of the Civil War Volunteers and their Battle Flags. 150 years ago on July 4th 1866 70,000 people (7% of the state population) gathered in Detroit to officially accept the returned Battle Flags of the Michigan Regiments. The flags were displayed at the State Capitol for the next 125 years. Time took its toll and in 1991 the flags were put into storage at the State of Michigan Museum where they reside to this day.

About 200 uniformed reenactors and perhaps half that many non uniformed reenactors attend the anniversary today. Free posters and Michigan in the Civil War booklets were available plus the usual displays. An associate of mine was presented a certificate for adopting the Battle Flag for the 1st Michigan Engineers and Mechanics (you adopt a flag by contributing a set amount of money to preserve that flag).

Today the Battle Flags have a home in a special storage room at the State of Michigan Museum. One flag at a time is on display on a rotating basis. However, anyone interested in a Michigan Civil War flag can be taken into the storage room and they will allow you to look at the flag of you choice. The point of contact for this is.

Save The Flags
Michigan State Capitol
P.O. Box 30014
Lansing, Michigan 48909-7514

or you can call (517) 373-5157

 

[Legion Para]

Even though flag preservation is expensive, it is a worthy cause.

http://seekingmichigan.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/p15147coll5/id/146

First Michigan Engineers and Mechanics (National) Battle Flag

 

[major bill]

I am a docent at the State of Michigan Historical Museum. My docent guild adopted a flag this year as well. Don't worry there are plenty of flags left to adopt.

 

[StephenColbert27]

I actually interned for a Michigan State Rep., and in their State House they have all the regimental flags preserved and on display. I wish I had taken photos for you guys!

 

[Championhilz]

Even though flag preservation is expensive, it is a worthy cause.

http://seekingmichigan.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/p15147coll5/id/146

First Michigan Engineers and Mechanics (National) Battle Flag

View attachment 104905

My G-G Uncle William James Adams served in Company B, 1st Michigan Engineers and Mechanics. I am very happy to see that the flag of his regiment has been restored.

 

[major bill]

I actually interned for a Michigan State Rep., and in their State House they have all the regimental flags preserved and on display. I wish I had taken photos for you guys!

The flags were moved to the Histrical Center in 1991-92. The flags are stored in a special room at the Michigan History Museum. This room is a light, temperature, and humidity controlled storage cell. The Capitol building has modern copies of the flags. The durable modern copies are great to look st, but the original Michigan Civil War battlefields flags are on custom made acid-free sliding trays, each flag covered with special tissue paper, the whole draped with curtains to keep dust and light from getting to the flags. There are also 80 flags from later wars.

 

[major bill]

My G-G Uncle William James Adams served in Company B, 1st Michigan Engineers and Mechanics. I am very happy to see that the flag of his regiment has been restored.

The current process is to stabilize and preserve. When things are restored the artifact is damaged. The new way is to use methods that do no, or very little, damage. The goal is d to do nothing that can not be reversed.

The terms sound the same to the general population, but the term "restore" causes museum people to cringe.

 

[Package4]

The reenacting group that I am in takes a particular flag each year (most of the time it takes several years) and raises money to preserve, so far we have preserved three Tennessee flags and a Maryland (first national) flag carried by Co A 2nd Maryland at Gettysburg. Next we have our sights on the 1st Maryland Flag carried at Harrisonburg, Cross Keys and Port Republic. We participate in living histories, National Park Service events and were even in the Amazing Race, to raise funds for this endeavor.

 

[major bill]

I am in the Company of Military Historians. At our convention in Nashville the woman who is doing the preservation of the Tennessee Civil War flags gave us a class on her work with the flags. We also got to go to the back of the Museum and see the flags in the storage area. Interesting class and visit.

 

[KLSDAD]

The flags were moved to the Histrical Center in 1991-92. The flags are stored in a special room at the Michigan History Museum. This room is a light, temperature, and humidity controlled storage cell. The Capitol building has modern copies of the flags. The durable modern copies are great to look st, but the original Michigan Civil War battlefields flags are on custom made acid-free sliding trays, each flag covered with special tissue paper, the whole draped with curtains to keep dust and light from getting to the flags. There are also 80 flags from later wars.

Please LMK when there are future opportunities to view them!

Chuck

 

[major bill]

I will see some of the people who do this off and on and will ask when the next tour is going to happen. If you want you can call them and see if they would unlock the room for you when you will be in Lansing.

 

[CW Watch & Sword Guy]

Are there images available of either the 25th MI Infantry or the MI Cavalry Brigade? I have a special interest in those units.

 

[major bill]

There are a couple from the Michigan Cavalry Brigade but I will have to look to see about the 25th Infantry.

 

[Legion Para]

Are there images available of either the 25th MI Infantry or the MI Cavalry Brigade? I have a special interest in those units.

Found this image of the 25th Michigan colours online.

http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~janwhite/oren-d.htm

 

[CW Watch & Sword Guy]

Found this image of the 25th Michigan colours online.

http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~janwhite/oren-d.htm

Thank you very much, LP.

 

[kholland]

This was identified as the flag carried by the 24th Michigan of the famed Iron Brigade at Gettysburg on this website:http://www.austinblaircamp7.com/year12.htm (Austin Blair Camp Sons of Union Veterans). I have seen the top photo featured in the Time-Life Gettysburg issue some years ago. It has always moved me. The conservators have done a fantastic job with what they had to work with.

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[CW Watch & Sword Guy]

This was identified as the flag carried by the 24th Michigan of the famed Iron Brigade at Gettysburg on this website:http://www.austinblaircamp7.com/year12.htm (Austin Blair Camp Sons of Union Veterans). I have seen the top photo featured in the Time-Life Gettysburg issue some years ago. It has always moved me. The conservators have done a fantastic job with what they had to work with.

View attachment 106582​

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View attachment 106577​

That is one experienced flag!

 

[CW Watch & Sword Guy]

There are a couple from the Michigan Cavalry Brigade but I will have to look to see about the 25th Infantry.

Would the brigade have had its own unit flag, or just the individual regiments that comprised it?

 

[bdtex]

I am in the Company of Military Historians. At our convention in Nashville the woman who is doing the preservation of the Tennessee Civil War flags gave us a class on her work with the flags. We also got to go to the back of the Museum and see the flags in the storage area. Interesting class and visit.

How awesome is that. Flags and uniforms are my favorite pieces in museums. Amazing how they are able to preserve fabric artifacts.

 

[major bill]

Oldest uniform I have been able to have brought out to me was from the American Revolution, but it was not here in Michigan.