William tappan thompson august 31, 1812 march 24, 1882 was an american writer who promoted the confederacys second national flag as the white mans flag. Organized at richmond, virginia in 1896, the scv serves as a historical, patriotic, and nonpolitical organization dedicated to insuring that a true history of the. Lindsey graham, have advocated for the removal of the confederate flag that flies from a pole in front of the south carolina capitol. April 23, 1863 our idea is simply to combine the present battle flag with a pure white standard sheet. The politicallycorrect origin of the confederate battle flag dead. William tappan thompson august 31, 1812 march 24, 1882 was an american writer who promoted the confederacys second national flag as the white. Thompson, the designer of the confederate flag, said, as a people we are fighting to maintain the heavenordained supremacy of the white man over the inferior or colored race and as. July 29, 2015 added clarification regarding the distinction between the confederate and rebel flags.
William tappan thompson 18121882 new georgia encyclopedia. One of his most notable works was major joness courtship, an epistolary novel. As a people, we are fighting to maintain the heavenordained supremacy of the white man over the inferior or colored race. Viral image about the confederate flag confuses history. Thompson, gave the definitive reason why every republican, kkk member, and socalled southern heritage advocate still supports flying that symbol of treason and racism. Thompson of the nation of confederates was a racist, what you leave out, is that he was not only a white supremacist, but a religious christain racist, believing the god. Jun 28, 2015 the first confederate national flag bore 7 stars representing the first seven states to secede from the u. If that isnt clear enough for you, thompson then wrote that this new.
Thompson, the designer of the confederate flag, said. Historians have written countless books explaining this. It was designed by germanprussian artist nicola marschall in marion, alabama and resembles the flag of the austrian empire later austriahungary, now the republic of austria, with which marschall would have been familiar. The following is thompson quoted in an excerpt from the book our flag by george preble.
Politifact viral image about the confederate flag confuses. Thompson and consisted of a white field with the confederate battle flag as the canton. Pursuing the flags conflicting meanings, coski suggests how this provocative artifact, which has been viewed with pride, fear, anger, nostalgia, and disgust, might ultimately provide americans with the common ground of a shared and complex history. It incorporates the confederate battle flag in the canton and differs from the second natioanl flag only by the red vertical stripe. The flag is a symbol of slavery and white supremacy to many but a. Thompsons bestknown fictional character was major joseph jones. In 1863, as the confederate flag was discussed at the rebel congress in richmond, a racist newspaper editor william tappan thompson of the savannah morning news weighed in. Expired image removed this is a letter written by thompson. Flags of the confederate states of america infogalactic.
He cofounded the savannah morning news in the 1850s, known then as the daily morning news. Here he is quoted in the book our flag, by george preble. Flags of the civil war petersburg national battlefield u. While i appreciate your acknowledgement, that william t. Flags of the confederate states of america wikipedia.
The confederate flag heritage, history, subjugation of a race. Thompson was the person who designed the confederate flag and deemed it a symbol of white supremacy not southern heritage. Thompson was born on august 31, 1812, in ravenna, ohio, to david and catherine kerney thompson. Thompson a news editor wrote an editorial in his paper that is now quite. The vast majority of southerners are against what william t. In 1863 the entire nation was talking about the need for a new flag, and possible designs therefore. The question here is did the confederate states of america ever officially adopt william t. William thompson did design the confederate stainless banner in that it was he who suggested that the white background of the flag be added to. The newspaper savannah daily morning news, which william tappan thompson edited, published an article confederate flag and seal on 23 april 1863. Did the confederate flags designer call it a symbol of white.
The second confederate national flag was adopted on may 1, 1863. As discontent with the stars and bars brewed, miles stumbled into the history books. Heres the racist meaning of the confederate flag, in the words of. Dec 21, 2019 july 29, 2015 added clarification regarding the distinction between the confederate and rebel flags. On april 23, 1863, the savannah morning news editor william tappan thompson, with assistance from william ross postell, a confederate blockade runner, published an editorial championing a design featuring the battle flag. In reality, most of the congress of the csa probably didn t even hear about thompson until after the event. Restricted confederate flag proposals wartime politics. During the american civil war, he worked in georgia as a newspaper editor and supported the confederacy. This flag was designed by savannah, georgia newspaper editor william t. Thompsons editorials would have you believe they did.
As a people we are fighting to maintain the heavenly ordained supremacy of the white. Expired image removed note the last sentence in the paragraph. This image shows the third confederate national flag, designed by william t. Thompson a news editor wrote an editorial in his paper that is now quite famous which describes a flag similar to the one that would eventually be picked. Its rapidly become a widely discussed point of contention. According to the book our flag, in an april 1863 editorial, he wrote. An excerpt of thompsons april 1863 editorial was excerpted in the 1872 book our. Thompson, the editor of the savannah morning news then known as. He reveals the flags origins as one of many banners unfurled on the battlefields of the civil war and shows how it. The designer of the confederate flag said it was a symbol of white supremacy. The confederate flag as described by its designer mag the. On april 23, 1863, the savannah morning news editor william tappan thompson, with assistance from william ross postell, a confederate blockade runner, published an editorial championing a design featuring the battle flag on a white background he referred to later as the white mans flag. Did the confederate flags designer call it a symbol of.
William thompson, the confederate cause, and the white mans flag this cruel war share or comment on this article. Thompson wrote in an 1863 editorial about the stainless banner, the second national flag of the confederacy, our idea is simply to combine the present battle flag with a pure. Jun 23, 2015 this flag was designed by savannah, georgia newspaper editor william t. Thompson who called it the white mans flag named for the large white field accompanying the corner. Jun 24, 2015 william tappan thompson, designer of the second national flag of the confederate states of america, quoted in the savannah daily morning news on april 23, 1863 click to enlarge 9. William tappan thompson archives center for mark twain studies. The first confederate flag stars and bars was basically designed as an imitation of the betsy ross flag. The first confederate national flag bore 7 stars representing the first seven states to secede from the u. The white supremacist who designed the confederacys flags, one william t.
William thompson designed the confederate flag explicitly. Jun 21, 2015 simply put, the confederate flag flying at the capitol is both a deeply held symbol of regional heritage and a protected institution. Fda warned doctors against prescribing the drug, hydroxychl. Cannon details the texts of the flag acts adopting national banners and also covers the creation of the many patterns of battle flags used by confederate forces. Jun 24, 2015 why was it called the white mans flag. The flag is also known as the stainless banner, and the matter of the person behind its design remains a point of contention. Infobox congressman william thompson november 10, 18 october 6, 1897, a lawyer, clerk, newspaperman, longtime army officer, and democrat, was the first person elected to congress from iowas 1st congressional district. A reminder for those pushing the false narrative that the confederate flag is about southern pride.
Jan 24, 2019 william thompson, the confederate cause, and the white mans flag this cruel war share or comment on this article. William t thompson, explains the meaning of the battle flag incorporated into his design. Thompson never designed a confederate national flag. Given the above references and thompsons association with the confederate flag, i became eager to know if twain ever made any further references to thompson in his works. Miles design didnt get much traction as a national flag in early 1861, but it. Simply put, the confederate flag flying at the capitol is both a deeply held symbol of regional heritage and a protected institution. Well, because thats the name given to it by the guy who designed it, william t. In reality, most of the congress of the csa probably didnt even hear about thompson until after the event. Thompson, stated this about the symbol of heritage. Miles opposed this selection because, he felt, it too much resembled, as supporters of it admitted, the old stars and stripes.
William tappan thompson was an american writer who promoted the confederacys second national flag as the white mans flag. Jun 23, 2015 in 1863, as the confederate flag was discussed at the rebel congress in richmond, a racist newspaper editor william tappan thompson of the savannah morning news weighed in. Roof posed with photos of this confederate battle flag, one of the. Thompson complied and agreed and made the changes to both the battle flag and national adopted flag. Mar 07, 2017 thompson was born on august 31, 1812, in ravenna, ohio, to david and catherine kerney thompson. Originally from ohio, thompson moved to savannah, georgia, where he cofounded the daily morning news and became an editor. While serving in the confederate provisional congress, miles chaired the committee on the flag and seal, which adopted the stars and bars flag as the national flag of the confederacy.
The man who created the confederate flag, william t. Thompson, who was an advocate for the second confederate flag. Thompson, the man who designed the confederate flag. Oct, 2015 the sons of confederate veterans scv is the direct heir of the united confederate veterans, and the oldest hereditary organization for male descendants of confederate soldiers. Henry prentice miller, the background and significance of major joness courtship, georgia historical quarterly 30 december 1946. The third confederate national flag was adopted one month before general robert e. Oct 10, 2016 william thompson did design the confederate stainless banner in that it was he who suggested that the white background of the flag be added to the square confederate battle flag that was in. Posted on july 12, 2015 by nikki there is a rumor, to put it nicely, going around right now that the designer of the second flag of the. Second confederate flag by william t thompson thompson was cofounder of the savannah daily morning news newspaper in the 1850s and in the 1860s, along with one other, produced the design of the stainless banner, which came to be used as the southern confederacys national flag from 1863 to 1865, replacing the stars and bars. Heritage, not hate wasnt axiomatic when the civil war and the. The article at the end of the meme includes a variation of the quote in the image. For many true southrons today, the confederate battle flag or southern cross. William thompson designed the confederate flag explicitly as a.
The second flag of 1863 integrated the battle flag. Arkansas high school student suspended for wearing confederate flag after he. His race for reelection in 1848 was the only iowa u. Jul 09, 2015 its rapidly become a widely discussed point of contention. Heres what william thompson said about the confederate flag, and we should listen, since he was the one who created not only its design but its symbolism and purpose. The confederate national flag 18631865 the stainless banner.
William thompson designed the confederate flag explicitly as. Thompson s editorials would have you believe they did. The rebel flag wasnt a peripheral question for the. Studies in the evolution of cutlture, second enlarged edition, p.
William thompson designed the confederate flag explicitly as a racist symbol. William tappan thompson, designer of the second national flag of the confederate states of america, quoted in the savannah daily morning news on april 23, 1863 click to enlarge 9. The sons of confederate veterans scv is the direct heir of the united confederate veterans, and the oldest hereditary organization for male descendants of confederate soldiers. William tappan thompson 31 august 1812 24 march 1882 was an ohioan writer and newspaper editor during the 19th century. Jul, 2018 thompson did not design the second flag the stainless banner in fact he only merely promoted even then it was just simply pr another person designed it and its purpose probably wasn t what thompson stated. Biographical note william tappan thompson papers research. It was called the stainless banner and was designed by william t. Thompson, the creator of the confederate battle flag, said about his stars and bars, namely, that his flag represents the struggle to maintain the heavenordained supremacy of the white man over the inferior or colored race.
At the age of fourteen, he left home to make his own living. William thompson and the confederate stainless banner. As a people we are fighting to maintain the heavenly ordained supremacy of the white man over the inferior or colored race. The first official national flag of the confederacy, often called the stars and bars, was flown from march 4, 1861 to may 1, 1863. Jan 30, 2018 recent research has shown that william t. Viral image about the confederate flag confuses history politifact. As a people we are fighting to maintain the heavenly ordained supremacy. Thompson, another member of the committee who designed this flag, chose the white background to represent the dominance and superiority of the white race. Thompson did not design the second flag the stainless banner in fact he only merely promoted even then it was just simply pr another person designed it and its purpose probably wasnt what thompson stated. Thompson, the designer of the confederate flag, said, as a people we are fighting to maintain the heavenordained supremacy of the white man over the inferior or colored race and. William tappan thompson gained experience on the philadelphia daily chronicle and later traveled south to work as a secretary under james d wescottt, secretary of the territory of florida. Jun 20, 2015 the second flag of 1863 integrated the battle flag. Stuff i didnt know about the confederate flag chris stout.
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