Regimental Colors of the 21st O.V.V.I.   Save
Ohio Battle Flag Audiovisual Collection
Description: This blue silk flag served as the regimental colors of the 21st Ohio Volunteer Infantry. The flag was manufactured in the United States between 1861 and 1865. The United States arms is painted in the flag's center. The arms consists of a bald eagle in profile perched on a shield emblazoned with red and white stripes. The eagle holds in its beak a scroll with the motto "E Pluribus Unum" (Latin for "one out of many"). The arms is framed by a round cloud that is blue at the top and brown at the bottom. An arc of thirteen painted stars appears above the arms. Below the arms are three unconnected black scrolls with gold text that reads: "21ST. REG. / OHIO, VET. VOL. / INFT[...]." Some of the text is no longer legible or intact due to deterioration. Portions of gold fringe remain on the flag's top, right and bottom sides. Ohio battle flags were on display at the Ohio Statehouse until the 1960s, when the state formed a committee to oversee the efforts to restore the fragile flags. Some of the battle flags were on display on the Plaza Level of the Ohio Historical Society from 1970 until 1989. For conservation reasons, the flags have been in storage since 1989. In the 1960s, the collection was photographed and commercial artist Robert Needham painted illustrations of many Civil War flags. Photographs of the flags and the paintings are now part of the society's archival collections. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL01921
Subjects: Flags--Ohio; United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865; Ohio Veteran Volunteer Infantry
Places: Ohio