Approximately 50% of this silk guidon is missing
including a large part of the canton and portions of the battle honors
commemorating the battery’s
service throughout 1862 from Cedar Mountain, Virginia, August 9, to Fredericksburg,
Virginia, December 11-15. The unit's designation, Battery L, 2nd Artillery,
is painted on the second red stripe (from the top). According to Captain
Jacob Roemer, the unit received this flag in May 1862 and carried it throughout
1862 and 1863. Battery L, 2nd Regiment Artillery largely served detached
from its regiment and in November 1863 received a new designation, 34th
Independent
Battery.
The flag received a netting treatment in 1973. Not a recommended
treatment by today’s
standards, the netting obscures construction details, creates a stiffer
hand, a false
sense of
fabric stability, and stress holes in the delicate silk. (2004.0045)
See also the Hamilton Light Artillery and the 34th Independent Battery.
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