Dedication of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) Flag

You're Invited to a Special Event!

In October 2022, the Conway Public Library received a $20,000 Mooseplate grant from the Conservation License Plate Trust Fund, the New Hampshire State Council Arts (NHSCA), and the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) to perform conservation treatment on the library’s Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) flag.

The flag has been part of the library collection for nearly one hundred years. It was donated to the Conway Public Library (AKA Jenks Memorial Library) on May 28th, 1924.

This grant allowed the Museum Textile Service (MTS) of Andover, Massachusetts to conserve and frame the flag so it could be properly displayed at the

Conway Public Library.

The GAR was founded in April 1866 and disbanded in 1956 when the last surviving member died. The GAR was a benevolent, fraternal organization composed of Union veterans of the Civil War. It grew to include hundreds of “posts” (local community units) throughout the country.

The library’s flag was used as a parade flag to honor Civil War veterans who belonged to Conway’s Custer Post No. 47. The group proudly carried this flag in processions every year, at encampments and Memorial Day parades, celebrating the service and sacrifice of soldiers in the American Civil War.

Over one hundred men from the Conway area, veterans of service in the war, belonged to Custer Post.

GAR Flag Ceremony

(Grand Army of the Republic Flag)

Save the Date!!

When: April 12, 2024

Where: CPL's Great Hall

When: 4:00-5:00 pm

Extra: Light refreshments will be served

April 12 was chosen to coincide with the anniversary of the attack on Fort Sumter and the day Union soldiers became eligible to join the Grand Army of the Republic,

163 years ago.

Picture Above: Bombardment of Fort Sumter, as depicted in a lithograph by Currier and Ives. Library of Congress/Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain

Something Old Preserved

This 42-Star flag was used as a processional or parade flag to honor Civil War veterans who belonged to Custer Post 47 Dept of New Hampshire.

The 42-star flag was never an official American flag but would have been used for a short time in 1890. The flag has silk taffeta stripes and canton with gold painted stars and four white silk satin ribbons that tie to a flagstaff. The flag is assembled with machine stitching and the fringe is hand-stitched.

The third and fourth red stripes on the flag read “Custer Post 47 Dept of N.H.” in gold and black paint.

Three sides of the flag are decorated with gold-colored fringe. Accompanying the flag are a gold-colored tassel that would be tied around the flagstaff, and a flagstaff harness made of leather, metal tacks, and cotton thread.