But first, let's add more context to this tale
The War of 1812 raged on for 2 years and 8 months, ending in early1815. But the home front wouldn't be quiet for long. No sooner would James Monroe transiton from Warr Secretary to becoming the 5th president of the United States, when rumblings were heard in Washington from the 5 newest states added to the union. They were not happy about their lack of representation on the American Flag.
After much debate over the form of the flag itself, the United States Congress passed the Third Flag Act on April 13, 1818, which established a new flag design for the growing nation. The new American flag would have 13 stripes representing the original 13 colonies, and 20 stars representing the 20 states that had joined the union by that time.
Several months later, the US Navy would go a step further by establishing technical guidelines and specifications for manufacturing this new 20 Star Naval Ensign. The stars were to be arranged in four parallel rows of five stars each.
War of 1812 at Louisville, Kentucky
Hard work and perseverence
It was in this historical context that we'll jump back to learning about young riverboat enthusiast named George Nicholson. If he hadn't already been fascinated with the waterfront and the growing number of steamboat that lined the town's docks, he was now completely committed to his dream of becoming a boat captain after watching the river pilots and privateers who had valiantly served during the War of 1812.
So, George set his sights on becoming a riverboat captain and began spending much of his time getting to know the people who worked at the growing, colonial riverside port. He was eager to learn and stood at the beckon call of the boat captains and crews, monitoring their every move in an effort to learn as much as he could from them.
Starting out as an apprentice, he began working on a boat as part of the crew, running their weekly route from Knoxville, Tennessee, to Decatur, Alabama, and all stops in between. George quickly picked up the skills required to become an engineer. A keen observer, he also learned every curve, rock and obstruction on the river route, becoming quite the co-pilot.
In 1832, an almost 20 years old, George became an engineer on the storied steamboat Knoxville. The following year, after learning the ropes, he transferred to the sidewheeler Guide and honed his piloting skills.
Just a year later, in 1834, George achieved his dream when he was named Captain of the newly christened sidewheel paddle steamer Harkaway. On his first journey piloting the Harkaway down the treacherous Tennessee River, George proved his mettle as a riverboat captain.
Glimpses into Captain Nicholson's caeer on the Harkaway and others boats are disucssed in this book by Donald Davidson. Extracted pages from this book can be found here. Or read the whole book for free on the Internet Archive library.
Leave a legacy in your wake
The Harkaway became and important boat in the context of it's work on the water. It's believe she and Captain Nicholson worked as privateers for the US Navy, as were many of those early steamboats and captains. Meaning, along with her commerical packet delivery and passenegers, she would also transport munitions, supplies and soldiers through the rocky shallows and rapids of the Tennessee, often on behalf of the US Navy. He and his crew would also be charged with continuing to patrol the inland waterways longer after the War of 1812 to protect their livelihoods which remained at risk from attacking Indian tribes who'd regularly lie in wait for a boat to come around the bends where the waterways were narrow enough for them to leap out of the thick brush and steal their cargo as well as cash and valueable from passengers.
George would remain captain of the Harkaway for 4 to 8 years, depending on who's counting, when in ~1842, he'd be tranferred away from the Harkaway to a new ship.
Which brings us to the reason you're here today reading this story on this very website.
Upon Captain George Nicholson's departure from his first captaincy, he was conferred the Harkaway's 20 Star Flag / US Naval Ensign as a keepsake. This proud flag would have been issued by the US Navy, and flew aboard during George's four years as Harkaway's captain.
In furthurance of his legacy, George would also earn the distinction of having a steamboat named after him, in acknowledgement of his dangerous duty, fearless leadership and persistence in delivering his cargo with an impeccble record of speed, comfort and safety.
George Nicholson went on to pilot several more steamboats along the Tennessee River over his long career, he will be remembered for his as captain of the Harkaway.
The 20 Star Naval Ensign from his first ship was passed down through generations of Nicholson's descendants as an emblem of his early years as a pioneering riverboat captain.
In 1881 after long outliving most of his fellow river men,
George speaks to a reporter, reoounting steamboat history on the river.
George speaks to a reporter, reoounting steamboat history on the river.
Download the information package
Download and save the flag information package! It contains the details and history of the flag, its provance, its siginificance and more.
You can also access an index of 20 star American flags that we compiled of those we found on the internet - including complete details and links to the four other pre-Civil War flags known to exist.
