Flying the Grand Union Flag to pay homage to our ancestors
I first took interest in the Grand Union Flag when I saw it flying over the front door of Longfellow’s Wayside Inn, in Sudbury MA (a link to that photo and article ). Not only did I like the design of it, It reminded me of my lineage and the many ancestors who made the brave, and most likely scary, trip to New England. After much research, some of them chose to come here on their own, some were servants, and some were born soon after their parents arrived.
We, my husband and I, thought hanging the Grand Union Flag on our New England home would be a whimsical, yet Patriotic, way to pay homage to our ancestors; those who braved sailing across an open ocean, those who lost their lives once they got here (or on the way), and to the many mamas who had children, oh so many children, once they arrived.
Before the flag arrived, I searched the exterior of our home looking for any evidence of where a previous home owner may have hung a flag, but found no holes or marks. That said, I was 99% sure I wanted it on our portico, and centered over our front entrance, but ended up searching online for other options. We even drove around looking at other colonials to see what placement options we liked best.
After walking around, holding the flag pole on the house in several places, I went with my initial plan and asked Ben to help me hang it. By help I mean he got the ladder, he got the drill, he hung it, he even washed the gutter face for me :-). I watched, held the ladder, and made sure the pole bracket was centered to our house numbers. Hey! That’s a mighty important role!
Willow making sure we did a good job.
About the Grand Union Flag
The Grand Union Flag(also known as the "Continental Colors", the "Congress Flag", the "Cambridge Flag", and the "First Navy Ensign") is said to be the first national flag of the United States of America. This flag consists of 13 alternating red and white stripes, like our current flag, but instead of stars in the upper corner or canton, you will see the British Union Flag.
Where we ordered our flag from one of our affiliates. Here is their link if you are interested Click Here
We also purchased our bunting from this company. Photos of our bunting can be seen here from a past blog post
Our lanterns are from a New England based company called Brass Traditions we love to work with (here is a link to our lanterns). I searched high and low to find just the right lanterns and then our electrician had a heck of a time fishing wire to the front of the home.