Main Street--A Learning Moment

A typical home on main street Gordonsville. Note the flag. This is what is known as the First National flag of the Confederacy. It is also referred to as the "Stars and Bars." The great misconception is that the Confederate battle flag (Actually the ones carried by regiments of the Army of Norther Virginia) with the stars in the Cross of St. Andrew is the Stars and Bars. The First National flag started with seven stars and ended up with thirteen as states seceded. This is of interest because only eleven states ever seceded. A bit of wishful thinking on the part of the Confederacy. Your homework assignment is to identify the two other states that were expected to secede but didn't. This flag would later be replaced because, as you can see in the picture, it was easily confused with the "Stairs and Stripes."