HARDEE PATTERN BATTLE FLAG OF THE 8th ARKANSAS WITH BATTLE HONORS: DESCENDED IN THE FAMILY JOHN H. KELLY, COLONEL OF THE REGIMENT AND “BOY GENERAL OF THE CONFEDERACY,” MORTALLY WOUNDED SEPTEMBER 1864

HARDEE PATTERN BATTLE FLAG OF THE 8th ARKANSAS WITH BATTLE HONORS: DESCENDED IN THE FAMILY JOHN H. KELLY, COLONEL OF THE REGIMENT AND “BOY GENERAL OF THE CONFEDERACY,” MORTALLY WOUNDED SEPTEMBER 1864

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Item Code: 1179-1395

This rare Arkansas Confederate Hardee pattern battleflag was among those described by British Lt. Col. J.A.L. Fremantle when he attended a review of Liddell’s brigade of Arkansas troops at Wartrace, TN, on June 1, 1863. He described not only the clothing, arms, and discipline of the brigade, but their flags as well: “Each regiment carried a ‘battle flag,’ blue, with a white border, on which were inscribed the names ‘Belmont,’ ‘Shiloh,’ ‘Perryville,’ ‘Richmond, Kentucky,’ and ‘Mufreesboro.’” He also later noted a fellow British observer’s opinion on the standing of Confederate officers among their men: “the only way in which an officer could acquire influence over the Confederate soldiers was by his personal conduct under fire . . . every atom of authority has to be purchased by a drop of your blood.” He may not have met Liddell’s regimental commanders after the review, but that judgment would have applied to Col. John Herbert Kelly of the 8th, commander of the regiment from May 5, 1862, to his promotion to Brigadier General on November 16, 1863, later known as the “Boy General of the Confederacy,” and in whose family this battleflag descended.

The flag comes with extensive documentation from the family on the provenance and chain of custody, including copies of a 1951 Mobile, AL, newspaper article picturing the flag displayed by Kelly’s grandniece at the dedication of his grave marker, as well as 1973 correspondence between the family and respected vexillologist Howard Madaus, who published it in his 1976 monograph from the Milwaukee Public Museum titled “The Battleflags of the Confederate Army of Tennessee.” Included also are Madaus’s 2006 letter of authenticity supplied to the family, and the 2008-2009 treatment proposal and conservation reports of Textile Preservation Associates, Inc., made after it passed from the family into the hands of the Texas Civil War Museum.

The flag measures 40-1/2” on its leading edge by 45-3/4” on the fly and has been conserved, archivally mounted, and is in a frame measuring 47-1/2” by 53-3/4” under UV filtering plexiglass. The dark blue wool field is formed of two pieces, horizontally joined with top piece roughly 9-1/2” and the bottom 17-1/2” with the top, fly and bottom edges bordered with a roughly 6” band of undyed cotton, with the edges turned to the reverse to form a rolled hem. The border of the hoist edge is a piece about 9” wide, folded back about 2-3/4” to form a sleeve for a flag staff. A cotton disk, roughly 14” wide and 15-1/2” tall was inserted into the blue field (cut away on the reverse to show it as well,) with “8th ARKS” painted in black letters roughly 2” high along the bottom arc of the disk. Up the hoist edge, across the top, and down the fly edge of the flag are three battle honors painted in black ink serifed letters about 2-5/8” high: SHILOH, PERRYVILLE, and MURFREESBORO. (The letters of the last two are noted by the conservators as being slightly visible on the reverse from bleed-through of the ink, with the Murfreesboro honor partially visible on the reverse of the hoist likely from the flag being folded in the process of the painting.)

The conservator’s treatment report states the flag was “relatively intact with only minor damage.” The latter consisted of some minor folds, a dusting of scattered small holes in the blue field, mostly under ¾” in size, but with a 2” square at the top hoist corner and some tears in the bottom hoist corner and a couple of old repairs. The flag was carefully cleaned, but little else was done. The fly edge of the border showed holes and these were left as is, showing a little loss to the M, B and R of Murfreesboro. Some rust-colored stains are evident, and were water soluble, but were also left alone. The conservator’s report notes that a “staining substance” may have been used to enhance the lettering, particularly noticeable on the “O” of Shiloh. (Remarkably, sample fibers taken from the “O” tested positive for blood.) The disk showed minor stains but no holes. The only cosmetic touch was placing a matching blue cotton fabric, with a cutout for the white disk, under that portion of the flag in the framing, so as not to highlight the small holes from insect damage and the like. Interested parties are invited to consult the full conservation and treatment reports, photos of the flag before and after conservation, as well as the Madaus letter of authenticity and other documentation. The flag displays impressively.

Known as the “Hardee pattern” Confederate battleflag from its association with troops later in Hardee’s corps, the design appeared in the winter of 1861-1862 carried by troops in the “Army of Central Kentucky,” composed of divisions commanded by Hardee, Buckner and Floyd. Hardee mentioned adopting the flag, but credit for the design generally goes to Buckner (who claimed it in 1909,) with inspiration likely coming from flags of his former command, the Kentucky State Guard, who seem to have carried dark blue flags with a light blue disk bearing the arms of the U.S., though opinion still differs on the matter with other sources of inspiration suggested, such as the blue Virginia flags carried by some of Floyd’s division, and also varied interpretations of the design.

Madaus felt this flag of the 8th Arkansas likely dated to 1863, given the uniformity of the battle honors and Murfreesboro being fought from Dec. 29, 1862, to Jan. 2, 1863. It might be argued the paint dates to that period and the flag might be earlier, but the design does seem to fall into the “Fourth Pattern” designation currently used by some to indicate the use of a white border on all edges and a vertically oriented white ellipse and dated to 1863 as well.

The flag then coincides well with the latter half of Kelly’s command of the regiment, though whether it went to Kelly on his promotion to general, after the regiment’s amalgamation, or went to Kelly’s brother after his death is unclear. The regiment or its officers giving him the flag at his promotion seems unlikely since he had in some ways parted company with them already, having been given a brigade command in Preston’s division before Chickamauga. But, with his promotion in the immediate offing, officers of that brigade penned a strong farewell testimonial to him (quoted in a 1906 Carrolton, AL, newspaper) and his old regiment may have wanted to make a similar gesture. We also note the existence of a Hardee pattern flag of the 8th Arkansas bearing the additional designations of Cleburne’s division and Govan’s brigade, which would date after Chickamauga and to the Chattanooga Campaign of October-November, though before the amalgamation of the regiment with the 19th Arkansas, or the regiment’s acceptance of it, which dates to the same period. It looks, then, like that flag, or at least its paint, dates to very cusp of that reorganization, leaving open the possibility that Kelly did receive their former flag when he was promoted at about the same time, giving it some active field use from the Tullahoma Campaign through Chickamauga at least.

Family tradition is also ambiguous. Madaus’s 2006 letter simply says the tradition was that it was given to Kelly’s brother “consequent” Kelly’s death in September 1864. The 2006 letter from the last family member to own it states it was presented to the family (Kelly’s brother, we presume,) “at the funeral of Brig. Gen. John H. Kelly in 1864.” Kelly’s funeral, however, did not really take place until he was reinterred at Mobile on March 18, 1866. His promotion to Brigadier General involved a transfer to Wheeler’s cavalry corps, where he was given command of a division of two brigades, and he was mortally wounded in an engagement near Franklin, Tennessee, on September 2, 1864, during a raid against Sherman’s communication lines. He was left at a local house, died two days later, and was buried by local citizens in the family burial ground of W.H. Harrison about five miles from Franklin. His brother seems only to have found out the details of his death and burial in September 1865. The flag may well have passed to him earlier, but if connected to Kelly’s funeral, a date of 1866 seems more likely.

Born at Carrollton, AL, on March 31, 1841, John Herbert Kelly was orphaned at a young age, but through two relatives in Congress was able to enter West Point at the age of 17 in July 1857 as a member of the Class of 1861. He resigned Dec. 29, 1860, anticipating Alabama’s secession, and reportedly gained initial appointment in the CS Army as a 2nd Lieutenant, the usual berth for young West Point cadets, and was assigned to Fort Morgan, guarding Mobile Bay and seized by Alabama militia eight days before the state seceded. There he came to the attention of W.J. Hardee, former commandant at West Point and by then a Confederate Colonel and commander of Forts Morgan and Gaines, accompanying Hardee as Assistant Adjutant General on his staff with the rank of Captain after Hardee was promoted to Brigadier General in June 1861 and sent to Arkansas to organize troops for Confederate service.

In Arkansas Kelly received a commission as Major in McCarver’s regiment (known variously as the 9th and 14th Regiment) on September 18, 1861, and was subsequently given command of a battalion of four companies detached from the regiment and designated the 9th Battalion of Arkansas Infantry, which accompanied Hardee to Kentucky and became part of the “Army of Central Kentucky” mentioned above. After the loss of Forts Henry and Donelson in February 1862, those forces withdrew to northern Mississippi, merging with the A.S. Johnston’s Army of Mississippi in late March, with the 9th Battalion becoming part of Wood’s Brigade in Hardee’s Corps, and fighting at Shiloh, with the battalion given credit for taking a battery and the brigade suffering the substantial loss of 745 (107 killed, 600 wounded, and 38 missing according to Battles and Leaders.)

In the wake of those losses and the reorganization of the army for more extended service, the 9th was consolidated with the 7th Battalion and the 8th Regiment of Arkansas to form a new 8th Arkansas regiment, of which Kelly was elected Colonel on May 5, 1862, and which took part in the siege of Corinth as part of Liddell’s brigade of Hardee’s Corps. In October he commanded the regiment at Perryville, KY, still in Liddell’s Brigade, in Buckner’s Division of Hardee’s Left Wing of Bragg’s Army of Mississippi. Liddell praised him, noting “he behaved gallantly and contributed greatly to the repulse of the enemy, at the close of that action capturing with his own hands Col. Gooding, commanding a brigade of the enemy.” He gained further praise from Liddell for his performance at Murfreesboro, where he apparently commanded the left of the brigade, and “behaved with his usual valor and coolness, until wounded and taken from the field about 2 o’clock p.m. on 31st of December.”

That injury was apparently a slight wound in the arm that did not sideline him: muster rolls list him present through the Tullahoma Campaign in June all the way to those of August to October, which list him as detached by Gen. Bragg, presumably to take the brigade command in Preston’s division at Preston’s request. And, as was typical, he gained praise from Preston as well for his performance at Chickamauga in September: "During the struggle for the heights, Colonel Kelly had his horse shot under him, and displayed great courage and skill." With those recommendations, and also one by Cleburne, he received his promotion to general in November, and his transfer to the cavalry corps, with which he then saw service in the Atlanta Campaign and action against Sherman until his death in September 1864.

The 8th as consolidated with the 19th in the meantime saw continued service, with the brigade thereafter commanded by Govan, in the Chattanooga Campaign, with fighting at Missionary Ridge and Ringgold Gap in November 1863, continuous service in the Atlanta Campaign with fighting at Resaca and elsewhere, the Franklin-Nashville Campaign, and finally the Campaign of the Carolinas.

They did, however, have one other encounter with their former commander. In late May 1864 during the Atlanta Campaign Kelly’s cavalrymen helped drive back an attempt by Sherman to get around the Confederate right at Pickett’s Mill. It was a bloody repulse for Union troops in an ill-coordinated, piecemeal attack, but at one point when the Confederate cavalry were being driven back, it was the consolidated 8th and 19th Arkansas who came to their rescue. Whether they knew it was their former Colonel they were helping is unclear, but it may have added impetus to their rush.

This is scarce pattern of Confederate flag from an active Arkansas regiment in very strong condition and intimately tied to Kelly, who had an impressive combat record like the regiment, and also acquired a good deal of posthumous fame as the “Boy General of the Confederacy.” Interested parties are invited to consult the full conservation and treatment reports as well as other documentation in the file for this remarkable flag. [sr][PH:L]

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