Taylor’s Army Flag Trans-Mississippi Flags Reverse Color Sewn Double Nylon Embroidered 3 x 5 ft.

Trans Mississippi Flag – Taylor’s Army Flag

Reverse Confederate Colors Flag

2 Ply Nylon Flag – Heavy Duty Outdoor Flags

Size: 3 x 5 ft

During the Civil War, many Confederate units used flags with reversed colors, especially in the western areas. The Trans‑Mississippi Department included Missouri, Arkansas, Texas, Indian Territory (now Oklahoma), and Louisiana west of the Mississippi River. In this region, flags were made with a blue background and red bars. This style of flag is often called the Taylor Battle Flag because General Richard Taylor’s army used it in West Louisiana from 1864 until the end of the war. (General Taylor was the son of Mexican War hero and US President Zachary Taylor.) Today, only two flags of this type from Taylor’s army still exist.

There were several kinds of reversed color flags. One example is the flag of the 3rd Texas Infantry. This flag was made in Cuba and paid for by Confederate expatriates who lived there. They donated the flag to the regiment. The stars and the unit’s name were embroidered with silver wire, and the fringe was made of knotted silk.

Reversed colors were not only used in the West. There is a surviving flag sewn by the ladies of Asheville for the 39th North Carolina Regiment, which fought in Mississippi. Also, the garrison flag of Fort Fisher (located south of Wilmington, NC) was captured when the fort surrendered on January 15, 1865. This flag was a second national pattern for the Confederate States and used the battle flag in the upper corner (called the canton). Although the canton had reversed colors, it was still edged with white trim.

It is also worth noting that some battle flags with an upright cross used reverse colors. An example of this is the Polk Battle Flag, which you can find by searching on our website. Confederate units from Alabama to Kentucky used these flags at various times.