By Claudia Loucks
Geneseo Current

David and Dale Smith, owners of Smith Studio and Gallery in downtown Geneseo, recently donated a 39-Star American Flag, a family flag heirloom, to the Geneseo Historical Museum. Angie Snook, curator of the Museum said the flag will be displayed in a prominent place in the Lincoln Room at the museum.

The Smith couple has had the flag conserved and framed at Maple Grove Framing in Geneseo prior to making the donation to the museum which Smith planned in conjunction to be near June 14, which is designated as Flag Day…”Flag Day is a holiday designed to commemorate the June 14, 1777, adoption of the first flag of the United States of America,” he said.

As he continued to share history, Smith said, “During the American Revolution the Continental troops fought under many different flags. A common flag was needed in order to be a common rallying symbol of our fledgling country. The Continental Congress made the following resolution, ‘The Flag of the United States shall be 13 stripes, alternate red and white, with a union of 13 stars of white on a blue field.’ In the past 246 years, as extra States were added, Congress has approved 27 different official versions of the ‘Stars and Stripes’.”

Illinois was officially added as the 21st State in the union on Dec.3, 1818. In 1889, a problem was created as States started to be added at a faster pace than before, Smith said. At the time it was thought that the two Dakotas would be added as one state. This decision was delayed until the fall when North Dakota and South Dakota were added into the Union as two separate states along with Montana and Washington. Idaho was added early in 1890. Flag manufacturers tried to create new flags to stay ahead of this national growth and mistakes were made. One of the biggest mistakes was the creation of a 39-star U.S. flag without waiting for Congress to act on making it “official”. So there never was a 39-star flag.

Flag design was changing so fast that manufacturers had to throw out the flags they made due to premature and unfortunate decisions, Smith said…”Very few of these flag ‘mistakes’ survived until today; and flag collectors may search for years in the hopes of finding a 39-star flag.”

In presenting the flag to Snook, Smith said, “This unique and rare flag example has now found a home at the Geneseo Historical Museum.”

He pointed out that an 1889 flag would date to the approximate downtown Geneseo was being built, dating the flag to the creation of today’ downtown shopping district…”What were our early Geneseo citizenry contemplating as the country was exponentially growing and they realized that they were making a future here in Geneseo?”