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INSSAR Historic Flag
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Name: George Rogers Clark
The green and red striped flag generates many questions from the public, and creates an opportunity to tell the incredible story of George Rogers Clark and the fight for Vincennes.
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Things you should know:
- Named for George Rogers Clark, the Virginia officer who liberated Kaskaskia, Cahokia, and Vincennes.
- Vincennes was a French colony governed by the British after the French & Indian War ended in 1763.
- First "American" flag made in Indiana, 1778.
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INSSAR Protocol:
- The "George Rogers Clark" was likely the flag of a local militia company in Vincennes.
It should be grouped with other company or regimental flags.
- The Indiana Society might use this as our identifying flag in a parade, since it has strong historic ties to our state.
If used as such, it should be plainly visible.
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Questions and Answers:
Q: Was this George Rogers Clark's flag?
No. It was made in Indiana, before George Rogers Clark ever arrived. François Riday Busseron, a French resident of Vincennes and a local militia captain, supported the Americans and paid Madame Goderre to make this flag before British Lt-Governor Henry Hamilton arrived to capture Fort Sackville. Busseron and his company were credited with giving Hamilton a great deal of trouble when the British occupied Vincennes, and Busseron supplied Clark with dry powder to use in the seige of Fort Sackville. This could be considered the flag of the first Indiana Guard!
Many local or milita flags used American symbols on their flags, such as stripes or stars. Different colors would identify the unit. At least one other green and red striped flag is known to have existed on a ship in Philadelphia in 1775.
Q: If this isn't Clark's flag, why is it called the Clark flag?
This is one of the few flags from the "Illinois Campaign" that can be documented, so it is often used at events in Indiana, Illinois, and Kentucky to represent Clark and his regiment.
Q: What flag did Clark fight under?
We don't know. When Clark left Virginia, he carried many flags with him, which he left in towns or villages that declared for the Americans. When Lt-Governor Henry Hamilton travelled down the Wabash to reclaim Vincennes for Great Britain, he confiscated American flags along the way. Clark estimated that when the Americans marched into Vincennes, they carried about a dozen flags, to make their numbers appear larger.
Q: Was this the first American flag in Indiana?
No, although it was probably the first flag made in Indiana to show support for the Americans.
Captain Leonard Helm visited Ouiatenon (present day Lafayette) before Clark sent him to Vincennes. He left an American flag there, which Lt-Governor Henry Hamilton confiscated on his way to reclaim Vincennes for Great Britain. That means at least one American flag existed in Indiana before this flag was made. Father Gibault apparently brought an American flag with him when he came to Vincennes, too.
Q: Is this an United States flag?
No. At the time, an official flag of the United States would have 13 red and white stripes with 13 stars. This may have been the best that the residents of Vincennes could do to show their support for the Americans. The stripes, although the wrong color, would have been easily recognized as a symbol of rebellion against Great Britain.
It's quite likely that Busseron had this flag made for his own militia company, after they declared for the American cause.
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| On 4 February 2008, the Indiana Society presented a George Rogers Clark flag to Indiana National Guard Major General R. Martin Umbarger for use with the 76th Infantry Brigade during their deployment in Iraq. The National Guard is widely considered to continue the heritage of the militias that fought in the American Revolution, and since the Clark flag was made by a Patriot militia on Indiana soil, it is fitting that the Indiana Guard carries this flag with them, today.
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The GRC flag on the Internet:
National Park Service
Wikipedia
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