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Betsy Ross Flag
Since there was no official United States Flag for the first year after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, there were a great number of homespun flag designs. This flag is without question the most well known of those.
Bennington Flag
Used in the Battle of Bennington, August 16, 1777, by Vermont militia. This flag is the first to lead American armed forces on land. The original is preserved in the museum at Bennington, Vermont.
Serapis Flag
John Paul Jones raised this Flag on the British frigate Serapis, which he had captured during the most famous Revolutionary naval battle on September 23rd, 1779, when his own ship, the badly damaged Bonhomme Richard, sank.
Gadsden Flag
In 1775 Christopher Gadsden was in Philadelphia representing his home state of South Carolina in the Continental Congress.
Gadsden and Congress chose a Rhode Island man, Esek Hopkins, as the commander-in-chief of the Navy. The flag that Hopkins used as his personal standard on the Alfred is the one we would now recognize. It's generally accepted that Hopkins' flag was presented to him by Christopher Gadsden, who felt it was especially important for the commodore to have a distinctive personal standard. Gadsden also presented a copy of this flag to his state legislature in Charleston. This is recorded in the South Carolina congressional journals:
"Col. Gadsden presented to the Congress an elegant standard, such as is to be used by the commander in chief of the American navy; being a yellow field, with a lively representation of a rattle-snake in the middle, in the attitude of going to strike, and these words underneath, "Don't Tread on Me!".
Cowpens Flag
The Cowpens Flag was named due to its presence at the Battle of the Cowpens in South Carolina, January 17, 1781. This flag was first carried by the Third Maryland Regiment which was part of the Continental Line of Maryland, Virginia and Georgia Regiments. The original flag is now at Annapolis, Maryland.
British Union Flag
Although the British flag underwent a number of changes in the 17th century, the St. George's Cross continued as the official national flag. For seagoing ships, however, the official banner was the Union flag (better known as the Union Jack), which combined England St. George's Cross with Scotland's St. Andrew's Cross (a white saltire on blue). In 1707, the Union flag became Britain's national land flag. As of that date, all of present-day Georgia was included within the area claimed by the second Carolina charter (1665), so the Union flag would have been the official flag of what would one day become Georgia.
British Red Ensign
British Red Ensign AKA "Colonial Red Ensign" and "Meteor" Flag Queen Anne adopted a new flag for England and her colonies in 1707. The Kings Colors were placed on a red field. Cornwallis surrendered at Yorktown under this flag.
The best known of the British Maritime flags, or Ensigns, which were formed by placing the Union flag in the canton of another flag having a field of white, blue or red. This flag was widely used on ships during the Colonial period. This was the first National flag of the United States.
1st Navy Jack
Navy Regulations, first promulgated in 1865, prescribed the use of the jack. It is displayed daily from the jackstaff of all U.S. naval vessels in commission, from 8 a.m. to sunset while the ship is at anchor. Additionally it is flown to indicate a court martial is in progress, and as the President's and Secretary of the Navy's personal flag.
This powerful American symbol was used by the Continental Navy in 1775 and is being used again by the U.S. Navy in the War on Terrorism.
Come & Take It
This flag was flown by the defiant citizens of Gonzales in November of 1835. The flag was hoisted to dare the troops of the Alamo de Parras Company under the command of Mexican Lieutenant Francisco Casta
