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Flags of the World's Fair Expos

ZoinsZoins Posts: 33,811 ✭✭✭✭✭
edited January 5, 2023 8:37AM in U.S. Coin Forum

As a fan of So-Called Dollars and World's Fairs, I've been looking at them for some time, but only recently did I realize that they had their own flags!

I wonder how many of these flags appear on So-Called Dollars. Check out the one below for an interesting observation!

Here are two flags to get this thread started and hopefully more will come in the future!

1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition

Here's an excerpt:

On 14 February 1903, a patent application was made by Walter B. Stevens, of St. Louis, Missouri, Assignor to Louisiana Purchase Exposition Company, a Corporation of Missouri for the final design. It was awarded as Design Patent number 36,273 on 7 April 1903 for a term of 3½ years. The drawing that accompanied the application is a bit different than the flags that ultimately saw use:


image by Dave Martucci, 23 January 2019

For one thing, the patent drawing shows a flag that is very close to 1:2 in proportion while actual flags of the day appear in the standard 2:3 or 3:5 proportions. The blue field is to be about one-third the length of the flag. It has a thinly outlined fleur-de-lis and an oval of stars, described in the Patent document as “an elliptical figure formed of stars.” They all point up.

Actual flags and images more often show the stars in a circle and pointing in various different directions depending on who manufactured the flag and usually with either the fleur-de-lis in outline similar to the patent design or a solid white flower. Flags purchased for use by the Exposition appear to have the latter type while many of the souvenir flags have the former.


image by Dave Martucci, 23 January 2019

This flag is an erroneous design. Interestingly, it is the design that was recently used for a special occasion at Six Flags St. Louis in commemoration of the Expo!
Dave Martucci, 23 January 2019

Here's my HK-306 from this exposition.

This has a US flag but doesn't appear to have something that can be the expo flag.

1909 Alaska-Yukon Pacific Exposition

https://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/int-fr09.html

Two flags were apparently used, the red-white-blue one being the official flag and the gold-blue one the official burgee. It appears the red-white-blue flag was hoisted throughout the expo grounds and the burgee was hoisted on ships and other vehicles traveling to and from the expo and inside the expo on its own ways.
Dave Martucci, 7 July 2010


[...]
Burgee

image located by Dave Martucci, 7 July 2010

The burgee was a yellow flag with the AYP Signet in blue.
Dave Martucci, 7 July 2010

Here's my HK-364 from this exposition.

Of note, the U.S. Government Building is showing both flags and burgees!

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