"This Flag-Staff is the Glory of the Fort": Archeological Investigations of the Fort Union Flagpole Remains

The flag and flagpole at Fort Union were important visual symbols to the inhabitants and visitors to the Upper Missouri region as is clearly evidenced by Edwin Denig's quote. The flag and the pole it flew upon were visible reminders of a place of safety and rest for the person approaching the fort from land or water. The flag and pole were a part of the every day scene at Fort Union and yet they served a more important, although less tangible role as a visual symbol of American control of the Upper Missouri. In addition it was a symbolic statement that American culture and western civilization were present in "this far western wild". As important a role as the flag and pole may have played in the life
of Fort Union it is one of the least documented features of the historic site.