We now have six historic, hand-painted silk flags from the Burnside Memorial Building in Bristol, RI, that have been transferred to the Varnum Memorial Armory Museum for evaluation and conservation.
Having been housed at Burnside since 1883, the flags are believed to be associated with General Ambrose Burnside‘s American Civil War service. Although in poor condition, they can be made displayable again through a painstakingly tedious conservation process (with the generous and valuable help of Maria Vazquez). We plan to unfurl them for the first time in many decades in early February 2020 after carefully humidifying the silk.
We’re excited, proud, and honored to be saving and sharing Rhode Island’s fascinating history, heritage, and culture. Kudos to the Town of Bristol for working with us on this important project.
To help with this amazing project, Andy Santilli built a massive work table in the Varnum Armory’s new archival preservation space to give us the space needed to do the Bristol flag conservation project at the armory. Thank you!
Maria examining the flags. 
Wrapped Burnside flags. 
Flags under inspection at the Varnum Armory. 
Wrapped Burnside flags. 
Bristol War Veterans Honor Roll Garden 
Burnside Building, Bristol, RI 
Flags being removed from the Burnside Building. 
American Civil War memorial in Bristol, RI
