{"id":4889,"date":"2023-05-25T15:53:24","date_gmt":"2023-05-25T19:53:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/?p=4889"},"modified":"2024-06-28T13:06:57","modified_gmt":"2024-06-28T17:06:57","slug":"old-glory-story-behind-name","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/old-glory-story-behind-name\/","title":{"rendered":"Old Glory: The Story Behind The American Flag’s Well-Known Nickname"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"american<\/span><\/p>\n

The American flag has a few nicknames\u2014some call it \u201cthe Stars and Stripes,\u201d after its distinguished appearance, or \u201cthe Star-Spangled Banner\u201d as an ode to the national anthem. None of these monikers, however, carry the same mix of defiance and reverence as the title originally bestowed upon Captain William Driver\u2019s 17- by 10-foot banner, which he flew at his Nashville home during the height of the Civil War: \u201cOld Glory.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This nickname is now used to refer to American flags no matter where they wave, and the story of Captain Driver\u2019s stalwart bravery is an incredible representation of patriotism and loyalty that inspires awe even today.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A Symbol of Patriotism on the Roaring Seas<\/span><\/h2>\n

The original banner that we now know as \u201cOld Glory\u201d was sewn in Salem, Massachusetts in 1824. It was crafted by Captain William Driver\u2019s mother and a handful of female admirers in honor of Driver\u2019s appointment as a master mariner and commander of his own ship, the <\/span>Charles Dogget<\/span><\/i>. Driver was just 21 years old at the time of his appointment.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The flag crowned his ship while he sailed the South Pacific as an American merchant seaman, and it served as both a symbol of his freedom and independence and a piece of home he was proud to serve under. In regards to the flag, Captain Driver wrote, \u201cIt has ever been my staunch companion and protection. Savages and heathens, lowly and oppressed, hailed and welcomed it at the far end of the wide world. Then, why should it not be called Old Glory?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Family Fabrics Torn During the Civil War<\/span><\/h2>\n

In 1837, when Captain Driver was just 34 years old, his first wife, Martha Silsbee Babbage, died of throat cancer, leaving their three young children without a mother. In order to be with his children, Captain Driver retired from his seafaring life and settled in Nashville, TN, bringing \u201cOld Glory\u201d with him. He soon remarried, and he and his second wife, Sarah Jane Parks, had six more children together.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Driver would fly the massive flag on every holiday, hanging it from a rope secured to his attic window and a locust tree across the street. However, as tensions rose between the North and South and secession neared, the flag became a source of contention both within the community and Driver\u2019s own home. Driver\u2019s family was torn at the seams, and two of his sons enlisted in the Confederate army\u2014one would never make it home.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

After the secession of Tennessee in 1861, local Confederates tried several times to seize the flag, only to be rebuffed by Captain Driver, who was still a strong and determined man, despite being nearly 60 years old. He was, however, convinced of the flag\u2019s danger, so unbeknownst to the Confederates, he enlisted several loyalist women to help him hide his prized banner, and \u201cOld Glory\u201d mysteriously disappeared.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Secrets in a Calico Quilt<\/span><\/h2>\n

Nashville became the first Southern capital to fall to the Union army, in February of 1862. When Captain Driver saw the capitol building\u2019s Confederate flag replaced with the Star-Spangled Banner and the colors of the Sixth Ohio regiment, he made his way to speak with the Union commander, General William \u201cBull\u201d Nelson.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Driver, a broad but graying gentleman, whose gait still held the tell-tale signs of a youth spent at sea, carried a calico quilt over his arm. Once he confirmed that General Nelson was indeed the Union commander in charge, he began to cut the quilt apart, revealing the treasure within: \u201cOld Glory\u201d had been hidden inside.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

General Nelson\u2019s aide, Horace Fisher, recalled, \u201cthe bedquilt was safely delivered of a large American flag, which he handed to Gen. Nelson, saying, \u2018This is the flag I hope to see hoisted on that flagstaff in place of the [damned] Confederate flag set there by that [damned] rebel governor, Isham G. Harris. I have had hard work to save it; my house has been searched for it more than once.\u2019 He spoke triumphantly, with tears in his eyes.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

General Nelson did indeed hang the flag from the statehouse flagstaff, where it was met with cheers from the Union Soldiers, many of whom were part of the Sixth Ohio. This led the regiment to take \u201cOld Glory\u201d as its motto for the remainder of the Civil War.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A Contested Legacy<\/span><\/h2>\n

The history of \u201cOld Glory\u201d becomes much more murky from that point on\u2014some historians claim Driver replaced the flag with a newer, stronger one that same night, when a storm threatened to rip his precious banner apart. Some say he gave it to the Sixth Ohio when the regiment left the city, while others say it was stored away in his home until the second battle for Nashville in 1864.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While Capt Driver served as a provost marshal of Nashville during the remainder of the Civil War, a large flag, reported to be \u201cOld Glory,\u201d hung from the window of his home as a symbol of patriotic defiance. One of his daughters, Mary Jane Roland, stated that Driver gave her the flag as a gift in 1873, over a decade before his death, stating, \u201cThis is my old ship flag Old Glory.I love it as a mother loves her child; take it and cherish it as I have always cherished it; for it has been my steadfast friend and protector in all parts of the world\u2014savage, heathen and civilized.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Roland\u2019s story, however, was contested by Drivers\u2019 niece, Harriet Ruth Waters Cooke, after his death in 1886. She stated that she inherited the flag from Drivers and presented it to the Essex Institute in Salem (now the Peabody Essex Museum), along with family memorabilia.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Roland denied this claim and wrote a book titled <\/span>Old Glory, the True Story <\/span><\/i>in response; she eventually presented her flag to President Warren G. Harding in 1922, who turned it over to the Smithsonian Museum. Cooke\u2019s flag also made its way to the Smithsonian that same year. The two flags remain at the museum to this day, and although Roland\u2019s flag is widely considered to be the authentic \u201cOld Glory,\u201d both flags hold historic significance.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Either way, Captain William Driver\u2019s patriotism and dedication to his country led to one of the most iconic nicknames for the American flag, and it\u2019s his legacy we honor when we stop and admire \u201cOld Glory\u201d blowing in the wind, no matter where she flies.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Browse Gettysburg Flag Works\u2019 Selection of American Flags<\/span><\/h2>\n

While we don\u2019t have the original \u201cOld Glory,\u201d Gettysburg Flag Works proudly carries a large selection of American flags. If you\u2019re interested in unique patriotic decor, consider our <\/span>Betsy Ross Flag<\/span><\/a>. In the spirit of Captain Driver, consider outfitting your sea- or lake-faring vessel with our <\/span>Premium Sewn American Boat Flag<\/span><\/a>. You could also showcase your patriotism by hanging our <\/span>Battle-Tough Nylon American Flag<\/span><\/a> outside your home. Browse Gettysburg Flag Works\u2019 full selection of American Flags <\/span>online<\/span><\/a> or give us a call at <\/span>1-888-697-3524<\/span><\/a> to place an order. \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Source:
\n<\/span>The Smithsonian Magazine: <\/span>How the Flag Came to be Called Old Glory<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The American flag has a few nicknames\u2014some call it \u201cthe Stars and Stripes,\u201d after its distinguished appearance, or \u201cthe Star-Spangled Banner\u201d as an ode to the national anthem. None of these monikers, however, carry the same mix of defiance and reverence as the title originally bestowed upon Captain William Driver\u2019s 17- by 10-foot banner, which… continue<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":69,"featured_media":4890,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4889","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-history-lessons"],"yoast_head":"\nThe History of Old Glory: A Story of Patriotism, Defiance, and Intrigue<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"\u201cOld Glory\u201d may be the flag\u2019s most universally recognized moniker\u2014learn the incredible history behind the original flag that inspired the iconic nickname.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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