New York State National Guard, Co. I, 7th Infantry Camp Flag, Spanish American War.
This elegantly hand sewn wool camp flag with a blue silk unit designation identified an encampment of Company I of the 7th Regiment of the National Guard of the State of New York in the late 19th century when the 7th was drawn from the social elite of New York City.
In 1880 the 7th Regiment Armory was also known as the Park Avenue Armory and was the only privately funded National Guard armory in the nation. The building was located at 66th Street and Park Avenue, covering a city block and boasting windows, woodwork, and lavish interior décor by the esteemed designer Louis Comfort Tiffany.
Flags like this were rarely used after the American Civil War after the use of company camp markers had been abolished and before infantry guidons were issued in the early 1900s. This camp flag was not an issue item, but rather a private purchase of the company. It would have been used to locate the company's camp when the unit was called up for annual summer training at Camp Smith, near Peekskill, or in the field when the 7th was called out to quell labor unrest during the Brooklyn Street Car Strike and The Croton Dam Strike.
This flag was acquired with and is a companion piece to ZFC3163, and also includes a photo of Capt. John Gould and officers of the National Guard State of New York who came out of Capt. Gould's estate. Due to their utilitarian nature, Infantry Camp flags from this are almost unknown in either public or private collections.
ZFC Significant Flag
Item is Framed
Provenance:
• Company I, 7th Regiment National Guard State of New York, 1880s-1890s.
• Capt. John Gould, National Guard State of New York.
• By descent in Gould family.
• Sold via James D. Julia Auctions of Fairfield, ME to Zaricor Flag Collection, 2007.
Sources:
Phisterer, Frederick, New York in the War of the Rebellion, 3rd ed. Albany: J. B. Lyon Company, 1912.
Seventh Regiment Armory, Wikipedia, 6 October 2011, from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seventh_Regiment_Armory
Camp Smith, Wikipedia, 6 October 2011, from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camp_Smith_%28New_York%29
CAMP FLAG, Dictionary of Vexillology, Flags of the World, 5 October 2011, from: http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/vxt-dv-c.html
Louis Comfort Tiffany, Wikipedia, 6 October 2011, from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Comfort_Tiffany
Image Credits:
Zaricor Flag Collection
