Maryland on Stamps…
The State Flag:1976/2009
Richard D. L. Fulton
On February 23, 1976, the United States Postal Service (USPS) issued a set of stamps dedicated to the state flags of the United States in conjunction with the nation’s Bicentennial, with the Maryland flag representing the appropriate state.
On August 6, 2009, the flag was depicted in a set of stamps, entitled Flags of Our Nation, along with a red-winged blackbird perched in a marsh. As of yet, the author of this column has been unable to ascertain as to why the USPS decided to depict a red-winged blackbird along with the Maryland flag, being that the state bird of Maryland is the Baltimore Oriole.
It appears likely that the seemingly irredeemable error may have resulted from the fact that the Baltimore Orioles are a member of the same bird family that includes red-winged blackbirds.
The First Maryland Flags
Before 1776, Maryland had no flag that could be called its own, although it has been speculated that a flag was indeed flown by Marylanders that may have featured the “Calvert colors.”
The “Calvert colors” were based on the colors of the coat of arms of the paternal family of the first Lord of Baltimore, George Calvert, which featured alternating blocks of yellow and black.
It is believed that after the American Revolution, Maryland ceased the usage of the “Calvert colors,” and may have simply depicted the state seal on a blue background. In 1854, the “Calvert colors” were reutilized, but only on the state seal.
In 1876, the “Calvert colors” began to reappear on Maryland “flags” or banners, at which time, the yellow and black arrangement of the colors began to be referred to as the “Baltimore colors” and/or the “Maryland colors.”
Born from an Insurrection
The red and white crosses that appear on the current Maryland flag appeared sometime during the early part of the Civil War. The red and white crosses were derived from the colors and crosses employed in the coat-of-arms of the maternal family (the Crossland family) of Lord Calvert, but neither of the flags—the one bearing the “Calvert colors” or the Crossland crosses—were officially adopted by the state.
As Maryland struggled with whether or not the state would secede with the rest of the seceding Southern states or refrain from seceding, the pro-Union faction adopted the “Calvert colors” as the symbol of their alignment, while the pro-secession faction adopted the red and white Crossland crosses “secession colors” as being the symbol of their alignment.
However, Confederate Marylanders (more than 20,000 Maryland men joined the Confederate Army) apparently also combined both the “Calvert colors” and Crossland crosses in different quadrants on some of their battle flags, thereby producing the precursor of the present-day Maryland flag.
The Road to Reconciliation
In the wake of the war, thousands of Confederate Marylanders were faced with returning to their home state that had refused to stand by them. But the Confederate Marylander-generated flag, consisting of quadrants containing both the “Calvert colors” and Crossland crosses, nevertheless, had gained in surprising popularity.
Although yet to be adopted officially by Maryland, the “hybrid” flag began appearing at various major events, with Marylanders recognizing that the new flag—to them—symbolized the process of beginning to bury the differences that had been spawned by the war. According to maryland.gov, the new flag “must have conveyed a powerful message.”
In 1880, the flag was flown during Baltimore’s 150th anniversary celebration. In 1888, it became the flag of the Maryland National Guard. In 1889, the flag was also flown during the dedication of the Maryland monument on the Gettysburg battlefield.
The flag was officially adopted as the state flag by the Maryland General Assembly in 1904.
According to maryland.gov, “The flag excels as a state banner because it commemorates the vision of the founders, while it reminds us of the struggle to preserve the Union. It is a unique symbol of challenges met and loyalties restored, a flag of unity and reconciliation for all the state’s citizens.”
First Day of Issue cover with 1976 Bicentennial flag stamp.
First Day of Issue cover with 2009 Flags of Our Nation flag stamp.
