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Whipple American History Flag (U.S.)

Also known as Whipple Peace Flag

image by Pete Loeser, 9 May 2025

On this Page:

Introduction: Whipple American History Flag 1917
Whipple Peace Flag
Whipple 50-Star American History Flag 1979

See also:

Introduction: Whipple American History Flag 1917

In 1910, Wayne Whipple, a well-known author of popular books on American history, proposed a meaningful design for the star pattern of the flag. His idea was that the central 13 stars should represent the original states as on the great seal, then to surround them with a ring of 25 stars representing the states that joined the Union in the first 100 years, and then finally have a ring of ten stars representing the states that joined in the second hundred years. He called his design a "History" flag. He then challenged students who read his book to come up with their ideas for a meaningful star arrangement.
Interestingly enough Whipple entered his flag design into a Peace Flag contest just before the beginning of World War I, it didn't win, but later it was marketed by the Dettra Flag Company as the "Whipple Peace Flag" to celebrate the end of World War I in 1918. So the Whipple "American History" Flag became the Whipple "Peace" Flag.
Source: Many Constellations of Old Glory
Pete Loeser, 26 February 2020

Whipple Peace Flag

image located by William Garrison, 15 May 2025

Spotted on this on the Jeff R. Bridgman Antiques website and this caption: "A U.S. 48-star 'Whipple Peace flag.' The 'Peace Flag,' conceived by Wayne Whipple of Germantown, Pennsylvania. His visionary design featured a deeply symbolic configuration: thirteen stars representing the original colonies formed a central six-pointed star; encircling them were twenty-five stars denoting the states admitted during the nation's first century; the outermost ring comprised ten stars, honoring those welcomed into the Union after 1876. Whipple also glorified the design in a book he released called 'The Story of the American Flag' (1910, Henry Altemus Company, Philadelphia). He even went so far as to distribute small parade flag/hand-waver versions in pursuit of his goal to be the first person to design the official star pattern for the American flag Printed on cotton or silk, he took these to rallies and mailed them to influential parties."
William Garrison, 15 May 2025

I presented an in-depth article about Wayne Whipple and his flags to a NAVA meeting back in 2012, which was published in Raven Vol. 22, 2015.
Dave Martucci, 16 May 2025

This is listed in our FotW-ws Biliography as [mtc15] and on the NAVA website you can find the electronic copy of the whole [Raven Vol. 22, 2012].
Wayne Whipple's own book is also listed in our Biliography, as [wwy19].
António MARTINS-Tuválkin, 18 May 2025

Please try [Wayne's World of Flags] to link directly to Dave's RAVEN PDF article. This url is given in the NAVA I mentioned on Sunday, 18 May 2025.
António MARTINS-Tuválkin, 19 May 2025

OK, thanks, though I recall the description as being from someone else. Here we go: In the past the Whipple Peace flag was created to bring together the 48 existing states of the US, to signify how the US up to that point had just survived the worst enemy it had ever faced and had won peace. However, time does not stand still, and since Wayne Whipple's time with 48 states, the US have grown larger and has suffered more dangerous challenges, including in 2025 an attack on the US Constitution by its own president.
Clearly, the US citizens need to remind themselves that they are a single entity that has joined together, with a common history, and held together by their Constitution. Hence, the original American History flag, which showed a star formed of 13 stars for the original states ending with Rhode Island who all first adopted the Constitution, then 25 more stars circling around them for the time, up-to Colorado, representing those who later joined the US during its first 100 years, or first Centennial. An additional outer circle of 12 more stars were added for states who joined during the second 100 years, or Second Centennial, ending with admission of Hawaii. All these 48 states joined swearing to defend the their Constution.
Now the US is more in danger than it has been in years of no longer being United, perhaps all US citizens should be flying a flag like Whipple's American History Flag.
Peter Hans van den Muijzenberg, 25 May 2025

Whipple 50-Star American History Flag 1979

image by Dave Martucci, 9 May 1979

In 1979, this interesting 50-Star design variant was suggested by the well-known Flag Historian (Vexillologist) Dave Martucci for a new design of the United States flag. According to Dave the symbolism is exactly the same as Wayne Whipple's history flag. In fact, he simply updated Whipple's design. Thirteen stars in shape of 6-pointed star (from Crest of US Arms) for original states, ring of 25 for states that joined the Union in first century, 3 in each corner making 12, the number of states that joined in the second century.
As with Whipple's original suggested flag there was no official governmental acceptance of the flag design, but it has been flown.
Source: Historic Flags of Our Ancesters
Pete Loeser, 25 May 2025

I actually had one of these made and fly it here at home when I want to fly an American flag but don't feel like flying THE American flag.
Randy Young, 26 May 2025