The symbol of America has not always been the American Bald Eagle. Long before we used the eagle to symbolize our strength and liberty, it was in fact the American rattlesnake that held the esteemed title as the first symbol of America – the symbol of Liberty.

It was December 1775. Fighting between the American colonists and the British had begun, but the Declaration of Independence was yet to come. Benjamin Franklin wrote a letter that was published in the Pennsylvania Journal under the  name “An American Guesser.” In the letter he compares the characteristics of the rattlesnake to the qualities of the new emerging America.

Here are excerpts from the letter with his brilliant observations:“I observed on one of the drums belonging to the marines now raising, there was painted a Rattle-Snake, with this modest motto under it, ‘Don’t tread on me.’”

I know it is the custom to have some device on the arms of every country,…I sat down to guess what could have been intended by this uncommon device…”

Franklin’s research about the serpent found:

“The ancients considered the serpent as an emblem of wisdom, and in a certain attitude of endless duration…”  “It occurred to me that the Rattle-Snake is found in no other quarter of the world besides America, and may therefore have been chosen, on that account, to represent her.”

I recollected that her eye excelled in brightness, that of any other animal, and that she has no eye-lids. She may therefore be esteemed an emblem of vigilance. She never begins an attack, nor, when once engaged, ever surrenders: She is therefore an emblem of magnanimity and true courage.”

“She never wounds ’till she has generously given notice, even to her enemy, and cautioned him against the danger of treading on her.”

Franklin continued:

“Was I wrong, Sir, in thinking this a strong picture of the temper and conduct of America? The poison of her teeth is the necessary means of digesting her food, and at the same time is certain destruction to her enemies. This may be understood to intimate that those things which are destructive to our enemies, may be to us not only harmless, but absolutely necessary to our existence.”

“I confess I was wholly at a loss what to make of the rattles, ’till I went back and counted them and found them just thirteen, exactly the number of the Colonies united in America; and I recollected too that this was the only part of the Snake which increased in numbers.”

‘Tis curious and amazing to observe how distinct and independent of each other the rattles of this animal are, and yet how firmly they are united together, so as never to be separated but by breaking them to pieces. One of those rattles singly, is incapable of producing sound, but the ringing of thirteen together, is sufficient to alarm the boldest man living.”

“The Rattle-Snake is solitary, and associates with her kind only when it is necessary for their preservation. In winter, the warmth of a number together will preserve their lives, while singly, they would probably perish.”

She strongly resembles America in this, that she is beautiful in youth and her beauty increaseth with her age, ‘her tongue also is blue and forked as the lightning, and her abode is among impenetrable rocks.’”

Within a year of this letter, the rattlesnake found its way onto one of the first American flags, the bright yellow Gadsden Flag, with the words, “Don’t Tread on Me.” Later on, the Continental Congress officially adopted the rattlesnake to serve as the nation’s first symbol, approving the design for the official Seal of the War Office.

The rattlesnake made its way onto famous flags of the Revolution, like the Gadsden and the Culpeper Minute Men. Rattlesnakes were seen on military drums, paper currency, and playing cards. In 1776 a British newspaper printed an image of the American First Navy Jack, displaying a rattlesnake.

The rattlesnake shown here was on the $20 bill issued in 1778 by Georgia. The Latin motto (Nemo me impune lacesset) means, “No one will provoke me with impunity.”

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The War of 1812 was fought between the United States and Great Britain over violations of American maritime rights. The Americans objected to the British Empire restricting their trade and snatching their sailors to serve on British ships.

During this conflict Oliver Hazard Perry was aboard the USS Chesapeake as it engaged the British ship HMS Shannon.  Perry’s commanding officer, Captain Lawrence, was mortally wounded in the battle.  As Lawrence lay dying he implored Perry to not give up the ship.  Perry later had a personal flag made with the words, “Don’t Give up the Ship.”

Perry was appointed commander of a new American Lake Erie fleet being built. Perry and his men completed six vessels by July of 1813. On September 10, 1813, Perry was aboard his flagship Lawrence, his “Don’t give up the ship” flag flying. Suddenly the lookout spotted a British squadron, and Perry ordered his ships into action, cannons unleashed.

A few hours later the British ships struck their colors. Immediately following his victory, Perry wrote these famous words in a report:

“We have met the enemy, and they are ours…”  

Perry became the first Naval Commodore in history to defeat an entire British squadron and bring back every ship as a prize of war.

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Navy Jack Flag in Cotton	Star Spangled Banner 15 Stars & Stripes Flag
We support our Troops Flag	Home of the Free Because of the Brave Flag

What happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence? What kind of men were they?

The men were lawyers, jurists, merchants, farmers, large plantation owners; men of means, well educated. But they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well what they were putting at risk. They were British subjects at the time, and knew that the penalty for treason was death by hanging.

They were not wild-eyed, rabble-rousers, but mostly soft-spoken men of means and education. They had security, but valued liberty more. Each one surely had more to lose from revolution than he had to gain by it. But they stood tall, and unwavering and pledged:  

“For the support of this declaration, with firm reliance on the protection of the divine providence, we mutually pledge to each other, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor.”

Here are the fates of the signers:

Nine fought and died from wounds or hardships during the war.

Five  were captured by the British, charged with treason and were tortured before they died.

Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.

Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army

Another had two sons captured.

Several lost wives, sons or entire families.

One lost his 13 children.

Two wives were brutally treated.

All were at one time or another the victims of manhunts and driven from their homes.

Seventeen lost everything they owned.

Yet not one of them defected or went back on his pledged word.

Of note is the New Jersey Signer, Abraham Clark. He had two sons serving in the Revolutionary Army. They were captured and sent to the infamous British prison boat known as the hell ship “Jersey” in New York Harbor where 11,000 Americans were to die.

The sons received extra brutal treatment because of their father. One was in solitary and given no food. With the war almost over and won, no one could have blamed Abraham Clark if he had accepted the British offer of sparing his sons’ lives if he would recant and come out for the King and Parliament. Certainly with utter despair and anguish in his heart and soul, his answer was “No.” The 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence proved by their every deed that they made no idle boast when they composed that magnificent pledge. They ultimately gave us a free and independent America whose liberties should never be taken for granted.

Freedom is never free. This is why we honor them and all those who have stood against tyranny.  We Proudly fly our Flag and ALWAYS stand during the National Anthem in honor and memory of them.

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13 Star Patriotic American Flag	Gadsden Dont Tread on Me Flag
Culpeper Minute Men Flag	III 1776 George Washington Quote Flag

Year: 1751

Source: Pennsylvania Gazette

Benjamin Franklin wrote a commentary suggesting a way to thank the Brits for their policy of sending convicted felons to America – the colonists should send rattlesnakes to England!Three years later, Franklin created and published the first known political cartoon in an American newspaper. It was the image of a snake cut into eight sections, representing the colonies and coastline. Written under the snake were words of warning: “Join, or Die.“This was not a reference to independence, but a plea for unity in defending the colonies during the French and Indian War. Superstition told: if a snake was cut into pieces it could come back to life if you joined the sections together before sunset.So, from then on, Franklin’s snake “wriggled” its way into American culture as an early symbol of a national identity.

Ten years later in 1765, it was again time for American colonies to unite against the despised Stamp Act. The British needed to get more control of the colonies and get more money from them to pay off French and Indian War debts. In a speech Colonel Isaac referred to the colonist “sons of liberty.”These Sons of Liberty became increasingly resentful of English interference, and public opinion was moving toward rebellion. Ben Franklin’s disjointed snake continued to be the symbol of American unity, and independence. By 1775 the snake symbol was everywhere – in newspapers,  on uniform buttons,  on paper money, and on banners and flags.The symbol changed from a snake cut into pieces to a single, united snake, and became generally known as the American timber rattlesnake, rather than a generic serpent.In the fall of 1775, the British were occupying Boston and the Continental Army in Cambridge, was short on arms and ammunition. The Continental Congress learned that the British were sending two ships loaded with gunpowder and arms to America.

Congress formed a plan to get the cargo into the hands of General Washington. So, Congress gave birth to the Continental Navy with its first four ships. Congress then authorized the  mustering of five companies of Marines. Some of those Marines were carrying drums painted yellow, decorated with a fierce rattlesnake, coiled and ready to strike, with thirteen rattles, and sporting the motto “Don’t Tread on Me.“

In December  “An American Guesser” (really Benjamin Franklin) anonymously wrote to the Pennsylvania Journal:“I observed on one of the drums belonging to the marines now raising, there was painted a Rattle-Snake, with this modest motto under it, ‘Don’t tread on me.’ As I know it is the custom to have some device on the arms of every country, I supposed this may have been intended for the arms of America.”

Benjamin speculated on why a snake is a symbol for America:“The Rattle-Snake is found in no other quarter of the world besides America.”The rattlesnake also has sharp eyes, and “may therefore be esteemed an emblem of vigilance.”

“She never begins an attack, nor, when once engaged, ever surrenders: She is therefore an emblem of magnanimity and true courage. … she never wounds ’till she has generously given notice, even to her enemy, and cautioned him against the danger of treading on her.”And finally he writes:“I confess I was wholly at a loss what to make of the rattles, ’till I went back and counted them and found them just thirteen, exactly the number of the Colonies united in America; and I recollected too that this was the only part of the Snake which increased in numbers. …

 “‘Tis curious and amazing to observe how distinct and independent of each other the rattles of this animal are, and yet how firmly they are united together, so as never to be separated but by breaking them to pieces. One of those rattles singly, is incapable of producing sound, but the ringing of thirteen together, is sufficient to alarm the boldest man living.”

So, Franklin helped created the American rattlesnake symbol, but why isn’t his name attached to it?  How did this yellow standard become commonly known as the Gadsden flag (or Hopkins flag)?

Christopher Gadsden, an American patriot leader of the Sons of Liberty since 1765, and Congress chose Commodore Esek Hopkins, as the commander-in-chief of the Navy.

Gadsden presented to Congress the standard to be used by the commander. I had the yellow field, with a representation of a rattle-snake in the middle, about to strike,with the words underneath “Don’t Tread on Me!”So, the flag, became known as the “Gadsden flag.” This and other rattlesnake flags were widely used during the American Revolution.

After the Revolution, the rattlesnake flags became less common. General Washington and Congress preferred stars, stripes, and the more “conventional” symbols, like the  American bald eagle.Whatever your call it, the Gadsden flag remains a popular symbol for keeping alive and celebrating that spirit of July 4, 1776. And it would be totally okay if you were to display this flag on any day, especially in times like these!

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