The First U.S. Navy Union Jack Waves at My Front Door on the Fourth of July.
The following is from "Don't Tread On Me Flag History":
In the fall of 1775, as the first ships of the Continental Navy
readied in the Delaware River, Commodore Esek Hopkins issued a set of
fleet signals. Among these signals was an instruction directing his
vessels to fly a striped Jack and Ensign at their proper places. The
custom of the jack-type flag had originated with the Royal Navy in the
15th century or earlier; such was the likely source of Hopkins'
inspiration. This first U.S. Navy Jack has traditionally been shown as
consisting of 13 horizontal alternating red and white stripes with a
superimposed rattlesnake and the motto "Don't Tread on Me."
The rattlesnake had long been a symbol of resistance to British
repressive acts in Colonial America; its display on the new jack of
the fledging Continental Navy fit naturally with the fervor of the
times.
In 1975, the Secretary of the Navy directed that the First Navy Jack be flown in 1975 and 1976 in lieu of the Union Jack during the United States Bicentennial Year as a colorful and historic reminder of the nation's and the Navy's origin.
On May 22, 2002, the U.S. Navy ordered all ships to display the First
Navy Jack during the War on Terrorism.
www.history.navy.mil/faqs/faq122-1.htm
Sheena 2.0™ and Sonny Boninsegna added this photo to their favorites.
Edna Barney 84 months ago | reply
- johngiovanni 76 months ago | reply
That is a great piece of American history (I was not aware
of the Navy Jack tradition, and my father was a long-time
Navy veteran). I love how it's found a new incarnation
and renewed purpose for the Navy today in the war on
terrorism. Thanks so much for posting.
Sonny Boninsegna 64 months ago | reply
great pic
Edna Barney 59 months ago | reply
Mouserola - I think this is the explanation you are seeking: patriots.wordpress.com/?s=navy+union+jack .
I am a Navy wife and mother - that is my connection to the Navy, besides going to school and living in a Navy town when I was a teenager.
Jan Egil Kristiansen 57 months ago | reply
Tag suggestion: "Naval jack".
Jan Egil Kristiansen 57 months ago | reply
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called Naval jacks, and we'd love to have this added to the group!
(But you're not supposed to fly a naval jack on your house?)
Edna Barney 57 months ago | reply
What do you mean I'm not supposed to fly a Navy Jack at my house? I never heard such a thing. I don't have a battleship.
Jan Egil Kristiansen 57 months ago | reply
Well, it was a question. There are rules, traditions and not least intentions.
I guess what I meant to say is that naval jacks are usually flown at the bow of a navy ship in port, I do not question your intentions.
And intentions are everything. One of two authorized ways to put a Norwegian flag out of service, is burning it. Still, when a Middle East mob is burning one, that's clearly something else.
Edna Barney 57 months ago | reply
Once you commented, I checked this official US Navy site to see if there were any prohibitions: www.history.navy.mil/faqs/faq122-1.htm . I didn't see any.
Perhaps because this particular flag is a "temporary" navy jack. I guess when the War on Terror is over, the Navy will go back to their customary union jack. Like maybe in a hundred years or so.
Jan Egil Kristiansen 57 months ago | reply
Yeah, it seems rather impossible to declare an end to the GWOT. One you do, someone will set off a bomb to prove you wrong. You can more or less win it, but probably never say that you did so.
I am fully behind the "Don't Tread on Me" motto. (But I'm sorry to say that the practical implementation sometimes seems more like "I don't like you".)
Edna Barney 57 months ago | reply
Jan - That was our message to the British, back in the Revolutionary War days - "Don't Tread on Me." The rattlesnake was a reminder to the British of a dangerous creature in our native land that they were not familiar with.