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The first mention of the "Bedford flag" by that name does not come until 1875. Cyrus Page sent the flag to the centennial celebration at
Concord on April 19, 1875, and flew it from the old Page homestead for the 1879 Sesquicentennial of Bedford. In 1885, just before his death, he entrusted the flag
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There is no documentary evidence, either from testimonies, depositions or diaries written at the time, or in participants' later memoirs, mentioning any such flag flown at the battles of
Lexington and Concord by either side. A Lieutenant of the British expedition to Concord noted a
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Unit flags served an important function as a rallying point on the battlefields of the 18th century. With the passage of time, the
Bedford flag came to be a political symbol of the early American Revolution and specifically the militia's resistance at Concord.
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Page family oral tradition, later recounted for historians, held that the
Bedford militia's flag was in the custody of the Page family at the time of the American Revolution, and that Nathaniel Page took it into battle at Concord.
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similarity to a documented flag made for a
Massachusetts cavalry unit in the 1660s, historians thought that the Bedford flag might actually be that earlier flag. However,
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of the Troop of horse”, the officer whose duty it was to bear the unit's flag. Nathaniel’s father, uncle and grandfather are all mentioned within the
Bedford and
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The exact age and origin of the flag are not known, but physical and historical evidence are consistent with a date early in the 18th century. Because of its
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town records as “Cornet Page”, indicating that a Page could have been carrying a flag for the local militia troop as early as 1720.
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As the only militia flag present at the battle according to tradition, the flag is the likely inspiration for the opening lines of
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circa 1651. The image of an arm holding a sword is common in
European heraldry at least as early as the 16th century.
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363:. Illustrations by Jan van Steenwijk. Bedford, Massachusetts: The Friends of the Bedford Flag.
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with a cap and an unknown flag on it standing on a hill near
Concord center. British
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A commission dating to 1737 names
Minuteman Nathaniel Page’s father John Page as “
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Being its namesake, the
Bedford flag is the official flag of
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measuring approximately 27 by 29 inches (69 by 74 cm).
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1775 establishments in the Province of Massachusetts Bay
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analysis of the paint revealed the pigment called “
23:Bedford Flag located at the Bedford Library in
166:chopped down the pole and destroyed the flag.
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388:. Bedford Free Public Library. Archived from
284:. Bedford Free Public Library. Archived from
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84:coming out of a cloud. The two sides are
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192:By the rude bridge that arched the flood,
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250:181st Infantry Regiment (United States)
245:Flags of the American Revolutionary War
230:and is available for visitors to view.
361:The Bedford Flag - a national treasure
198:Here once the embattled farmers stood,
195:Their flag to April’s breeze unfurled,
110:A flag of similar design hangs in the
415:. Town of Bedford, MA. Archived from
400:. Town of Bedford, MA. Archived from
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463:Flags of cities in the United States
134:”, which did not exist before 1704.
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280:Lawrence McDonald, Sharon (2000).
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226:. The flag is in the care of the
76:The painted-on design depicts an
1226:Flags of the American Revolution
214:, where it is still on display.
52:Battles of Lexington and Concord
313:"Bedford, Massachusetts (U.S.)"
359:Hitchcock, Barbara P. (1998).
240:Colours, standards and guidons
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170:As a symbol of the Revolution
66:The flag is made of crimson
42:. It is associated with the
228:Bedford Free Public Library
212:Bedford Free Public Library
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203:shot heard round the world
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427:Bedford Minuteman Company
93:
80:arm grasping a straight
16:Historical American flag
410:"Bedford Flag Unfurled"
149:Concord, April 19, 1775
62:Construction and design
1246:Flags of Massachusetts
1236:Bedford, Massachusetts
224:Bedford, Massachusetts
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48:Bedford, Massachusetts
27:
25:Bedford, Massachusetts
109:
22:
288:on February 25, 2008
34:is the oldest known
180:Ralph Waldo Emerson
398:"The Bedford Flag"
386:"The Bedford Flag"
335:bedfordlibrary.net
282:"The Bedford Flag"
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422:on 2016-03-25.
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379:External links
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132:Prussian blue
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40:United States
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1039:South Dakota
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1029:Rhode Island
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1017:Philadelphia
1002:Pennsylvania
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594:Jacksonville
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417:the original
402:the original
390:the original
360:
340:November 28,
338:. Retrieved
334:
325:
317:crwflags.com
316:
307:
301:
290:. Retrieved
286:the original
221:
208:
185:Concord Hymn
183:
177:
173:
160:liberty pole
156:
152:
136:
121:
94:
86:asymmetrical
75:
65:
32:Bedford Flag
31:
29:
1113:San Antonio
1056:Chattanooga
1044:Sioux Falls
939:Grand Forks
888:Albuquerque
837:Kansas City
822:Mississippi
810:Minneapolis
747:New Orleans
742:Baton Rouge
667:Springfield
579:Connecticut
535:Los Angeles
1220:Categories
1161:Washington
1142:Burlington
1022:Pittsburgh
1012:Harrisburg
951:Cincinnati
883:New Mexico
878:New Jersey
815:Saint Paul
730:Louisville
706:Des Moines
694:South Bend
679:Fort Wayne
530:Long Beach
525:California
479:Birmingham
292:2009-04-24
256:References
218:Modern use
164:grenadiers
50:, and the
1193:Milwaukee
1183:Wisconsin
1071:Nashville
1061:Knoxville
1051:Tennessee
956:Cleveland
917:Charlotte
866:Las Vegas
832:St. Louis
800:Minnesota
759:Baltimore
737:Louisiana
689:Lafayette
650:Pocatello
540:San Diego
496:Anchorage
143:Billerica
116:The Hague
112:Binnenhof
44:Minutemen
1154:Richmond
1149:Virginia
995:Portland
978:Oklahoma
961:Columbus
895:New York
856:Nebraska
849:Billings
827:Missouri
788:Michigan
754:Maryland
725:Kentucky
657:Illinois
638:Honolulu
584:Delaware
562:Colorado
550:San Jose
520:Arkansas
234:See also
124:heraldic
1200:Wyoming
1188:Madison
1171:Spokane
1166:Seattle
1137:Vermont
1103:Houston
1098:El Paso
1093:Denison
1066:Memphis
927:Raleigh
900:Buffalo
844:Montana
793:Detroit
781:Taunton
776:Bedford
718:Wichita
674:Indiana
662:Chicago
626:Trenton
621:Atlanta
616:Georgia
604:Orlando
589:Florida
508:Phoenix
503:Arizona
474:Alabama
210:to the
139:Cornett
78:armored
38:in the
1108:Laredo
1088:Dallas
1083:Austin
1007:Easton
990:Oregon
971:Toledo
966:Dayton
922:Durham
861:Nevada
805:Duluth
771:Boston
713:Kansas
633:Hawaii
572:Denver
513:Tucson
491:Alaska
484:Mobile
367:
102:Origin
92:motto
71:damask
1125:Provo
1078:Texas
983:Tulsa
645:Idaho
609:Tampa
599:Miami
420:(PDF)
413:(PDF)
90:Latin
82:sword
1120:Utah
946:Ohio
701:Iowa
365:ISBN
342:2021
68:silk
56:1775
36:flag
30:The
182:'s
114:in
54:of
46:of
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333:.
315:.
264:^
188::
58:.
455:e
448:t
441:v
373:.
344:.
319:.
295:.
205:.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
