Service flag
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A Service Flag in the United States (also at times called Son(s) in the Service, no longer considered proper) is an official banner that family members of service members in harm's way can fly.[1] The flag or banner is defined as a white field with a red border, with a blue star for each family member in active duty. A gold star (with a blue edge) represents a family member that died during service, without specifying cause of death -- it could be killed in action, or died due to unrelated causes.[2]
Manufacture of these flags are only by specific government license in the territories under American jurisdiction.[1]
[edit] History
The Service Flag can also be called a Blue Star Service Banner or a Gold Star Service Banner depending on the color of stars.
The banner was designed in 1917 by United States Army Captain Robert L. Queissner of the Fifth Ohio Infantry, in honor of his two sons who were serving in World War I.[2] It was quickly adopted by the public and by government officials. On 1917-09-24, an Ohio congressman read into the Congressional Record "The mayor of Cleveland, the Chamber of Commerce and the Governor of Ohio have adopted this service flag. The world should know of those who give so much for liberty. The dearest thing in all the world to a father and mother — their children."[3]
These flags were first used in World War I, with subsequent standardization and codification by the end of World War II.[4] They were not popular during the Vietnam Conflict but have come back into use.[5] In modern usage, an organization may fly a service flag if one of its members is serving active duty.[6]
[edit] References
- ^ a b U.S. Congress (unknown date). 36 USC 901 provided by Cornell Law School.
- ^ American Legion (unknown date). Blue Star Service Banners a fact sheet provided by the American Legion.
- ^ Nick Artimovich (1997-05-02). Description at Flags of the World.
- ^ John M. Simpson (2005-12-30). Service Flag Graphics.
- ^ ServiceFlags.com, Inc. (unknown date). Service Flags.com.
[edit] Internal and External links
- Blue Star Mothers Club
- Gold Star Mothers Club
- Gold Star Wives
- Gold Star Families for Peace
- Multiple authors (multiple dates). Info about the service flag at Flags of the World. A mirror site of nearly the same information.
- John M. Simpson (2005-12-30). Service Flag Graphics.
- U.S. Naval Academy (1994-11-20). The Service Flag of the United States at USFlag.org.
- U.S. Government (multiple dates). Service Flag and Service Label Button fact sheet at a Pentagon web site.
- Louise Shreffler (unknown date). Blue Stars for Safe Return: an organization selling blue star stickers and related merchandise. Contains limited information about service flags.
- ServiceFlags.com, Inc. (unknown date). Service Flags.com for related information and merchandise.
- Multiple authors (multiple dates). The American War Mothers flag by Free Republic. Much duplicated information about the service flag, a forum for tributes to those concerned, plus antique photos and another source for the "Governor of Cleveland" quote, above.
