>>8932314

Washington Crossing The Delaware 2021 Quarter

Quarter dollar for 2021 and beyond to depict Washington crossing the Delaware

Oct 18 2019

https://www.coinworld.com/news/precious-metals/quarter-dollar-for-2021-and-beyond-to-depict-washington-crossing-the-delaware

A proposed reverse design for the Washington quarter dollar to be introduced in 2021 at the conclusion of the America the Beautiful Quarters Program shows George Washington crossing the Delaware and was recommended Oct. 15 by the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee.

Public Law 110-456, which authorized the 56-coin America the Beautiful Quarters Program, included two provisions about successor coins.

One provision authorized, at the Treasury secretary’s discretion, a second 14-year, 56-coin round of quarter dollars, each honoring a national park or historic site in each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia and the five U.S. territories — Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, U.S. Virgin Islands and the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin did not adopt that option by the required close of 2018 deadline.

The second provision of the authorizing legislation mandates that, in the event the Treasury secretary would not approve issue of another 56 America the Beautiful quarter dollars, the reverse of the quarter dollar beginning in 2021 would bear a rendering of Gen. Washington and his troops crossing the Delaware River on the night of Dec. 25–26, 1776.

Proposed designs submitted to the CCAC for review, while of the same theme, do not replicate the reverse of the 1999 New Jersey quarter dollar, based on a painting of Washington’s crossing by Emanuel Leutze.

The design CCAC recommends depicts Gen. Washington facing right standing in the bow of his boat, holding a small telescope in his left hand and with an extended sword in his right hand directing another boat containing Continental Army soldiers, as it passes between ice chunks in the river.

The authorizing quarter dollar legislation does not permit consideration of any design depicting a head and shoulders portrait or bust of any person, living or dead, and a likeness of any living person is prohibited.

All 17 designs submitted to the CCAC by the Mint’s engraving staff and Artistic Infusion Program artist depict some version of Gen. Washington leading his troops across an ice-choked Delaware River during a Nor’easter Dec. 25 to 26, 1776. The bad weather added to the element of surprise in Washington’s plan to attack the enemy at Trenton in New Jersey. The ensuing Battle of Trenton, and the subsequent Battle of Princeton, constituted a turning point in the Revolutionary War and gave hope to many that the Continental Army could prevail.

The flag in use at the time of the crossing was the Grand Union flag. According to U.S. Mint officials, where practical, historically accurate racial diversity among Washington’s troops is also represented in the designs.

The reverse design that receives final approval from the Treasury secretary will be paired with the original Washington portrait obverse introduced on the quarter dollar in 1932.

>>8932381

Wasn't William Dawes to warn John Hancock and Samuel Adams of impending arrest by British General Gage?

John Hancock was President of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress at the time and Adams a delegate.

British Parliment had passed the Intolerable Acts in response to the Boston Tea Party. The Provincial Congress was opposed to Parliment's actions to appoint the leaders of the Massachusetts government.

>>8932673

History of Coast Guard Flags

(article pertains to a 16 but not 13 stripe)

Aug 1, 1799, Secretary of the Treasury, Oliver Wolcott, issued an order… "16 perpendicular stripes, alternate red and white, the union of the ensign to be the arms of the United States in a dark blue on a white field."

History of Coast Guard Flags

https://www.military.com/coast-guard-birthday/history-of-coast-guard-flags.html

The Coast Guard Standard

The origins of the Coast Guard standard are very obscure. It may have evolved from an early jack. At least one contemporary painting supports this theory. In an 1840 painting, the Revenue cutterAlexander Hamilton flies a flag very similar to today's Coast Guard standard as a jack. This flag, like the union jack, which is the upper corner of the United States flag, appears to be the canton or upper corner of the Revenue cutter ensign.

An illustration in 1917 shows the Coast Guard standard as a white flag with a blue eagle and 13 stars in a semi-circle surrounding it. At a later date, the words, "United States Coast Guard– SemperParatus" were added.

After 1950, the semi-circle of stars was changed to the circle containing 13 stars. The Coast Guard standard is used during parades and ceremonies and is adorned by our 34 battle streamers. We are unique to the other services for we have two official flags, the Coast Guard standard and the Coast Guard ensign.

The Coast Guard Ensign

The initial job of the first revenue cutters was to guarantee that the maritime public was not evading taxes. Import taxes were the lifeblood of the new nation. Smuggling had become a patriotic duty during the revolution. If the new nation under the Constitution were to survive, this activity needed to be stopped.

Working within a limited budget, cutters needed some symbol of authority. Neither officers nor men had uniforms. How could a revenue cutter come alongside a merchant ship during an age of pirates and privateers and order it to heave to?

The solution was to create an ensign unique to the revenue cutter to fly in place of the national flag while in American waters. Nine years after the establishment of the Revenue Cutter Service, Congress, in the Act of March 2, 1799 provided that cutters and boats employed in the service of the revenue should be distinguished from other vessels by a unique ensign and pennant.

On August 1, 1799, Secretary of the Treasury, Oliver Wolcott, issued an order announcing that in pursuance of authority from the President, the distinguishing ensign and pennant would consist of, "16 perpendicular stripes, alternate red and white, the union of the ensign to be the arms of the United States in a dark blue on a white field."

The ensign was poignant with historical detail, inasmuch as in the canton of the flag, there are 13 stars, 13 leaves to the olive branch, 13 arrows and 13 bars to the shield. All corresponded to the number of states constituting the union at the time the nation was established. The 16 vertical stripes in the body are symbolic of the number of States composing the Union when this ensign was officially adopted.

This ensign soon became very familiar in American waters and served as the sign of authority for the Revenue Cutter Service until the early 20th century. The ensign was intended to be flown only on revenue cutters and boats connected with the Customs Service. Over the years it was found flying atop custom houses as well. President William Howard Taft, however, issued an Executive Order June 7, 1910, adding an emblem to the ensign flown by the Revenue cutters to distinguish it from the ensign flown from the custom houses, which read: "By virtue of the authority vested in me under the provisions of Sec. 2764 of the revised Statutes, I hereby prescribe that the distinguishing flag now used by vessels of the Revenue Cutter Service be marked by the distinctive emblem of that service, in blue and white, placed on a line with the lower edge of the union, and over the center of the seventh vertical red stripe from the mast of said flag, the emblem to cover a horizontal space of three stripes. This change to be made as soon as practicable."

(continued)

>>8932822

History of Coast Guard Flags (continued)

At about this time, cutters began flying the U.S. flag as their naval ensign and the revenue ensign became the Service's distinctive flag.

When the service adopted the name Coast Guard, the Revenue Cutter Service's ensign became the distinctive flag on all Coast Guard cutters as it had been for the revenue cutters.

The colors used in the Coast Guard ensign today, as in the Revenue Cutter Service, are all symbolic. The color red stands for our youth and sacrifice of blood for liberty's sake. The color blue not only stands for justice, but also for our covenant against oppression. The white symbolizes our desire for light and purity.

As it was intended in 1799, the ensign is displayed as a mark of authority for boardings, examinations and seizures of vessels for the purpose of enforcing the laws of the United States . The ensign is never carried as a parade or ceremony standard.

The Jack and Commission Pennant

During its early years, the Revenue Cutter Service flew the canton (the upper corner of the flag nearest the staff) of the Revenue Cutter ensign as its jack. This practice persisted at least into the 1830s. Prior to the U.S. Civil War, the Revenue Cutter Service adopted as its new jack the canton of the United States Flag (the Union Jack) and this continues to this day.

Now, the jack is flown from the jackstaff only while at anchor. During the early years of the Service it was frequently flown on special occasions either at the jackstaff or atop the main mast while underway as well as when at anchor.

The Coast Guard commission pennant was created at the same time as the ensign in 1799. The original commission pennant bore the same style American eagle as the ensign, 16 vertical red and white stripes, and a white-over-red vertical tail.

Prior to the U.S. Civil War, the Revenue Cutter Service adopted a commission pennant which had thirteen blue stars on a white field, thirteen vertical red and white stripes, and a red swallowed tail.

Sometime after the Civil War, the Service adopted the same commission pennant as the U.S. Navy. This pennant has thirteen white stars on a blue field, thirteen vertical red and white stripes, and a red swallowed tail. The pennant is flown from the top of the main mast.

By 1930, however, the Service had again changed its commission pennant. This pennant, with an inboard section that is a blue field with white stars, thirteen vertical red and white stripes, and a red swallowed tail, is the same one currently in use. The interesting thing about this change in practice is that there was apparently no regulation that ordered the Service to change from that commission pennant which was also used by the U.S. Navy.

The Stars and Stripes history includes:

June 14, 1777 Flag Resolution of 1777 / Flag Act of 1777

Jan 13, 1794 Flag Act of 1794 (15 stars and 15 stripes)

April 4, 1818 Flag Act of 1818

(restored 13 stripes and new star for each state added July 4)

June 24, 1912 President Taft signed Executive Order establishing the flag's proportions.

wiki Flag Acts of the US does link to the legislation

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_Acts_(United_States)

ushistory provides a chart of the US Flags thru history and changes

https://www.ushistory.org/betsy/flagfact.html

>>8932822

Historical flags of the Customs Service

I thought I might further share with you some information I've been gathering about this subject. The images below are conjectural images may all be found at www.uscg.mil/history/flagindex.asp. Please note all these images are from the as-yet unpublished, Early American Maritime Flags & Signals by Ray S. Morton (c) 1999

These images are reconstructions and have never been verified by either surviving examples or by any other source. They may be found on the US Coast Guard website, but when I inquired I was told that the images were all provided and not generated by them.

Further these US Treasury Department flags and ensigns were not standardized until the American Civil War; each Collector of Customs was responsible for acquiring flags and ensigns for their districts, leading to many variants in both construction and details of insignia.

We have flags in the collection which do not comply with these images; and we have reports of others. Research on this is complicated by the fragmentary nature of the US Treasury archives due to two disastrous fires at the Treasury (one British and one American!). These is no single volume reference work on this subject, and my personal visits to the USCG museum in New London, CT, and the Customs Archives in Washington, D.C. have only scratched the surface.

I would advise caution before we accept these as accurate.

Jim Ferrigan, 1 November 2008

"Responding to the urgent need for revenue following the American Revolutionary War, the First United States Congress passed and President George Washington signed the Tariff Act of July 4, 1789, which authorized the collection of duties on imported goods. Four weeks later, on July 31, the fifth act of Congress established the United States Customs Service and its ports of entry. On August. 1, 1799, the (Customs) ensign was formally adopted, making it the first official flag of a U.S. government agency, and the customs ensign originally was designed to mark those American ships that helped collect the bulk of the young nation's revenue.

A law, the Customs Administration Act, was passed in the spring of 1799 requiring that "revenue cutters", as they were known, should have a banner of their own. The need for the banner was simple: the cutters needed a visible sign of their authority to stop and inspect ships. Indeed, the cutters by law were given permission to fire on other ships that did not heed their calls to stop upon flying the new banner.

Why 16 stripes and not 13? At the time, Congress initially had adopted a practice of adding both a new star and a new stripe with the addition of new states, and it had changed the national flag to 15 stars and 15 stripes in 1794. Since that time, Tennessee had joined the Union as the 16th state, so Secretary of the Treasury Oliver Wolcott included a 16th stripe.

Why were the stripes vertical? It is believed that Wolcott turned the stripes to more readily differentiate the customs ensign from the national flag.

Customs officials around the country hired local flag-makers to make the ensigns, a process in place until the 1860s, when the Treasury Department began issuing standardized versions to customs houses nationwide.

The ensign was only designed to be flown on the revenue cutters, but shortly after its adoption, it also flew above many customs houses around the country - a tradition formalized in 1874 by Treasury Secretary William Richardson, who ordered the flag be displayed next to the U.S. flag at customs locations during business hours.

The flag flew with few changes until 1915, when the newly-formed U.S. Coast Guard, which was born from the revenue cutters, adopted the ensign for its use by adding an emblem in the flag's field, though the flag used by customs vessels and on land at customs facilities was unchanged.

Since its first hoisting, the flag's most significant change occurred in 1951, when government experts realized that the flag had a glaring error. It was supposed to contain the Arms of the United States, a design that can be seen on the back of a $1 bill as part of the Great Seal. The emblem used in the original ensign's union was essentially a very rough approximation of the arms' design, with the most obvious error being that 13 stars were arranged in a semicircle around and above the eagle, as opposed to the "constellation" design actually called for in the arms. That change brought about the customs flag that now flies at CBP headquarters, ports of entry and other facilities nationwide. The flag even continues in its role as an ensign, flying on some of CBP's marine vessels.

https://www.crwflags.com/FOTW/FLAGS/us%5Ecust.html