37 Star U.S. Flag, Abraham Lincoln's Funeral.

37 Star U.S. Flag laid upon President Lincoln's casket in Philadelphia, PA 1865.
On April 14, 1865, President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated by a Southern sympathizing prominent actor, John Wilkes Booth. He was from a respected family of America's best stage actors. He committed this act in revenge for the Northern triumph over the South during the American Civil War. A shocked and stunned country embraced their martyred President as never before. This flag and other artifacts from the period of Lincoln's funeral help tell the story of the nation's respect and admiration for the President who had guided the country through a most terrible war.
Abraham Lincoln's funeral was a process rather than an event, and crowds flocked to railroad stations and sidings all along the route from Washington D.C. to Springfield, Illinois. Mementos such as flags from the Lincoln assassination and funeral are quite rare, less than 70 are known to have survived, due to the fragile ephemeral nature of textiles. They are silent survivors from that national event.

This 37-star U.S. flag is such a memorial piece related to the funeral of Abraham Lincoln. The hand-written text under flag reads:
"Washington DC November 2 1922.
This is to certify that this silk flag 16 "X 25 ½"with 2 - 1iX16i = Red, White + Blue streamers. Now in possession of Anton Heitmeuller was draped on the coffin of the President Abraham Lincoln in Philadelphia, Pa. in Independence Hall, April 21, 1865 and was presented to my mother, Mrs. Caughlin by Joe Strong, the Guard."

Although the 37 star flag would not become official until 1867, it was common practice in 19th century America to add stars to the flag prior to the official date of entry, July 4th. These "Anticipatory Flags", made in anticipation of statehood, were common in the 19th century when the number of stated in the Union was dynamic/ Regardless of Congressional action, flag makers made and sold starfields that included new states. Additionally, obsolete star counts continued to be sold as long as the were in inventory. Thus, at the time of Lincoln's funeral there were 33 ,34, 35, 36 and 37 star U.S. flags in circulation.

Research continues on the names mentioned on the provenance. The "Anton Heitmeuller" referenced on the note accompanying the flag is Anton Henry F. Heitmuller (1859-1943) the noted Washington DC art dealer, antiquarian and Lincoln expert. Heitmuller collected Lincoln artifacts for 50 years, from 1890 to 1940.

The exact identities of Mrs. Coughlin and her daughter Anna Cooper remain unknown due to the common nature of those surnames. The guard, Joe Strong also remains only partially identified. There are multiple Joseph Strongs listed in the Union Army in April of 1865 as listed in the U.S. National Park Service's Soldiers and Sailors Database.


Exhibition History:
(ZFC0276) Moraga Room Flag Label - January 2003
Special Memorial Day Display
Flags on Easels in the Moraga Room and Moraga annex

Presidio of San Francisco Officers Club
Memorial Day 2003

Chicago Meeting December, 2003
(ZFC0276)

University of California - Santa Cruz
Board of Councilors Meeting, Rare Flags Exhibit
Santa Cruz, CA
7 June 2012

The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Library
LIFE AND TIMES OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN
The Exhibit
Simi Valley, CA
1 June 2014 to 30 September 2014

Appomattox Court House National Historic Park
150th Anniversary of the Surrender at Appomattox
Appomattox, VA
March 2015 to Summer 2018

Provenance:
Funeral viewing of President Abraham Lincoln, Independence Hall, Philadelphia, PA, 21 April 1865.
Mrs. Cahghlin, until conveyed to daughter.
Mrs. Anna Cooper, until conveyed to Anton Heitmeuller.
Anton Heitmeuller, 2 November 1922 until his death 21 September 1943
Anonymous collector(s) until 1996
Sold via Greg Martin Auctions, San Francisco, CA to Zaricor Flag Collection, 1996.


Sources:

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Madaus, Howard M.- Whitney Smith, The American Flag: Two Centuries of Concord and Conflict, VZ Publications, Santa Cruz, 2006.

Mastai, Boleslaw and Marie-Louise D'Otrange, The Stars and The Stripes: The American Flag as Art and as History from the Birth of the republic to the Present, Knopf, New York, 1973.

37 Star Flag - (1867-1877) (U.S.), Flags of the World, 11 November 2011, from: http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/us-1867.html

U. S. Bunting, Lowell Land Trust.Org, 11 November 2011, from: http://lowelllandtrust.org/greenwayclassroom/history/USBunting.pdf

Image Credits:
Zaricor Flag Collection

Hoist & Fly
Width of Hoist	25
Length of Fly	15.5

Union/Canton
Width of Union/Canton	9.5
Length of Union/Canton	8.5

Stars
Size of Stars	0.75

Stripes
Width of 1st Stripe	1.5
Width of 3rd Stripe	1.5
Width of 8th Stripe	1.5
Width of Last Stripe	1.5
Size of Hoist	0.25

Frame
Is it framed?	yes
Frame Height	24.5
Frame Length	32.25

Stars
Number of Stars	37
How are the stars embeded?	Printed
Are there stars on obverse?	yes
Are there stars on reverse?	yes
Star Field Design	Rectilinear - Horizontal

Stripes
Number of Stripes	13
Color of Top Stripe	Red
Color of Bottom Stripe	Red
Has a Blood Stripe?	no

Nationality
Nation Represented	United States

Fabric
Fabric	Silk

Stitching
Stitching	Machine

Weave
Type of Weave	Plain

Attachment
Method of Attachment	None

Applica
Applique Sides	Single Faced = Mirror Image Reverse

Documentation
Research Documents
Public Copy & Signs

Condition
Condition	Fair
Damage	Flag is used, torn silk fracturing.
Displayable	yes

Date
Date	1865

Exhibits
Exhibition Copy	Exhibition History: (ZFC0276) MORAGA ROOM FLAG LABEL - Jan. 2003 37-STAR UNITED STATES FLAG Date: About 1867-1876 Medium: Silk; machine stitched Comment: Represented as a flag related to the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Text hand written on label under flag: Washington D.C. November 2, 1922. This is to certify that this silk flag 16X25.5 with 2 = 1iX16i = Red, White + Blue streamers. Now in possession of Daten Heitneuller was draped on the coffin of the President Abraham Lincoln in Philadelphia, Pa. in Independence Hall, April 21, 1865 and was presented to my mother, Mrs. Caughlin by Joe Stevy, the Guard. It was common practice in 19th century America to add stars to the flag prior to the official date of entry, July 4th. Congressional action would be before that date and even anticipated before Congress officially acted. At the time of Lincolns death in 1865 there were 35, 36 and 37-star flags in circulation. The 35th, West Virginia, was unanticipated until 1863 when a section of Virginia (northwest part of the state) seceded from Virginia due to the slavery issue; the 36th, Nevada, was anticipated before and official in 1865; the 37th star, Nebraska, though anticipated was delayed for 3 years prior to Congressional action on March 1, 1867 and the official entry date July 4, 1867. During those three years the anticipation of flag makers resulted in a number of 36 and 37 star flags in 1865. The ribbons attached are believed contemporary to this period. Provenance: Acquired by the Zaricor Flag Collection (ZFC0276) in 1997 from Greg Martin of San Francisco, CA. Special Memorial Day Display Flags on Easels in the Moraga Room and Moraga annex Presidio of San Francisco's Officers Club Memorial Day 2003 37-Star United States Flag Date: Purportedly 1865; the 37-star flag became official on 4 July 1867 to recognize Nebraska's admission to the Union on 1 March 1867. Comment: According to the family tradition and a note written in 1922 by the former owner, this flag was placed upon the coffin of Abraham Lincoln when his cortege stopped in Philadelphia on its journey back to Springfield, Illinois, in April 1865. The incongruity between the family claim and the number of stars on the flag presents a major difficulty with the story, reminiscent of the 1870 recitation of the family history of Betsy Ross. Chicago Meeting December, 2003 (ZFC0276) 37-Star U.S. Flag (Abraham Lincolns Funeral) Date: 18631865 Medium: Printed silk flag Comment: In April of 1865 Southern malcontents in revenge for the Northern triumph assassinated President Abraham Lincoln over the South. The shocked and stunned country embraced their martyred President as never before. The funeral of Abraham Lincoln was a process rather than an event, and crowds flocked to railroad stations along the route from Washington, D.C. to Springfield, Illinois. Mementos of the funeral became quite popular with mourners. One practice was to have a personal flag placed briefly on the coffin. This 37-star U.S. flag is believed to be such a memorial piece related to the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. The hand written label under flag reads: Washington DC November 2 1922. This is to certify that this silk flag 16X25.5 with 2 = 1iX16i = Red, White + Blue streamers. Now in possession of Daten Heitneuller was draped on the coffin of the President Abraham Lincoln in Philadelphia, Pa. in Independence Hall, April 21, 1865 and was presented to my mother, Mrs. Caughlin by Joe Stevy, the Guard. Although the 37-star flag would not become official until 1867, it was common practice in 19th century America to add stars to the flag prior to the official date of entry, July 4th. Congressional action would be before that date and even anticipated before Congress officially acted. At the time of Lincoln's death in 1865 there were 35, 36 and 37 star flags in circulation. University of California - Santa Cruz Board of Councilors Meeting, 7 June 2012 Rare Flags Exhibit Santa Cruz, CA, June 7, 2012: The Zaricor Flag Collection exhibited 34 flags and artifacts at the University of California Santa Cruz Campus for the Board of Councilors Meeting. 37 Star U.S. "Lincoln Funeral" Flag Date: 1865 Media: Printed silk flag and grosgrain ribbon. Comment: This small 37 star silk flag 16" X 25.5" was placed on the casket of President Abraham Lincoln while the body lay in state in Independence Hall Philadelphia, Pa., 22 and 23 April 1865. Secretary of War William Stanton imposed restrictions regarding the body's disposition while it was on public view, which included his infamous edict that no photographs were to be allowed of the President's body nor flags placed on the casket, both which were followed except for the clandestine act of Jeremiah Gurney's photograph of the body lying in state in City Hall in N.Y. The photographs we confiscated and destroyed and thought to be lost until a single copy was rediscovered in 1952 in the Illinois State Historical Library. This is the only documented flag placed on Abraham Lincoln's casket during the viewing at Independence Hall. Like the photograph, this flag went unnoticed by historians because the 37 star flag did not become official (earliest date) 1 March 1867, two years after the death of Lincoln. However, what was not widely known is that the 37th state, Nebraska made three attempts to have the state constitution accepted by Congress, prerequisite to joining the Union but twice rejected in 1864 and again in 1865 and accepted in 1867. In the Zaricor Collection there are two documented 37 star flags of the same construction and size plus a third flag, which indicates at least two flag companies anticipated Nebraska's entry into the Union in 1864/65. Thus 37 star flags were available to the general public at the time of the president's funeral. Provenance: Acquired by the Zaricor Flag Collection (ZFC0276) in 1996 the family of Mrs. Anna Cooper by Greg Martin via Private Treaty, San Francisco, CA. www.FlagCollection.com The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Library LIFE AND TIMES OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN The Exhibit Simi Valley, CA 1 June 2014 to 30 September 2014
Exhibition Images	Cover Frontispiece Frontispiece Detail