A Day Aboard the SULTANA with the True Colours Flag Project

In September 2021, the Museum brought its collection of replica historic flags to Chestertown, Maryland, to fly them aboard the schooner SULTANA, a replica Revolutionary War-era vessel, on the Chester River. Dr. Tyler Putman, the Museum's Senior Manager of Gallery Interpretation, recaps the day on the water, discusses the historical significance of these replica flags, and explains the excitement of seeing them fly aboard a historic tall ship.

Special thanks to the Center for Environment & Society at Washington College for hosting the Museum for a day on the water.

The True Colours Flag Project featured a dozen seamstresses from across the country recreating a "suit of colours," the full set of flags carried by ships during the Revolutionary War. Each ship carried not just their own country's flags but also flags from many other countries. This allowed them to show respect to foreign ports they visited by flying that nation's flag as a gesture of respect but also to sail in disguise, misleading observers.

Sponsorship for the True Colours Flag Project was provided by The Color Guard of the Pennsylvania Society of Sons of the Revolution.