Gadsden Flag T-Shirts

September 27, 2010 ~ emilyrex ~ Leave a comment

The United States Flag Store has a fantastic selection of Gadsden Flag T-Shirts. The Gadsden flag is an American historical flag. It has a yellow background with a coiled rattlesnake. Underneath the rattlesnake reads the phrase: “Don’t tread on me.” The American general Christopher Gadsden designed this flag. The Gadsden flag was used for by the United States Navy, and it has most recently been adopted by the Tea Party Movement.

The Original Don’t Tread On Me T-Shirt features an authentic image of the Gadsden flag on a bright yellow t-shirt. These shirts are printed in-house on high-quality, value-priced, 100% heavy-duty Fruit of the Loom cotton. Shirts are available in sizes small through triple extra large, and at only $14.95, they are truly a great value and make great gifts!

If you’re looking for something more formal, United States Flag Store also offers a classy Gadsden Flag Polo Shirt. The image is featured in the upper left-hand corner. These great shirts are only $19.99 and available in sizes small through double extra large.

If you’re looking for something more animated, take a look at the United States Flag Store’s Gadsden t-shirts in diamond and fire designs. These t-shirts feature a profile image of the rattlesnake, ready to bite. An American flag and Declaration of Independence appear in the background of these snazzy shirts, and you can choose from diamond or fire text for the slogan. These great shirts are available in sizes small through triple extra large, and discounts are available for ordering two or more!

The scrolls version of the Gadsden t-shirt is particularly flashy because it features the open-mouthed rattlesnake facing out, allowing both beady eyes and long, sharp fangs to be completely visible. Like the diamond and fire t-shirts, the American flag and Declaration of Independence are featured in the background. The famous slogan appears on two scrolls, one above and one below the rattlesnake image.

Be sure to check out more great varieties of the Gadsden flag t-shirt at United States Flag Store’s website. Printed on the highest quality, heavy-duty cotton, these shirts are truly a great value and fantastic way to voice your political views!

Gadsden Flag T-Shirts – Don’t Tread On Me

January 27, 2010January 27, 2010 ~ Online Stores ~ 1 Comment

The Gadsden flag: it’s a symbol of freedom, a sign of resistance, a warning shot fired across the bow of those that might think it fit to infringe upon the freedoms of the citizens of this great nation. It bears but few simple words, but within their meaning lie the force of a great hurricane, and all those that gaze upon it cannot help but understand its most singular message: Don’t Tread on Me. Those that carry the Gadsden flag, whether it be with their hands or in their hearts, believe in the principles upon which the United States of America was founded, and upon which she shall continue to thrive.

In light of these immutable truths, the United States Flag Store has decided to offer its customers the chance to not only own the Gadsden flag, but to wear it upon their chests as well. Created by our own team of local designers, these Gadsden flag t-shirts are available exclusively on our Website. Choose between six original designs, each one unique from the next, and which have been given such fitting names as Patriots, Guns, and Fire.

The Gadsden flag was created by Christopher Gadsden in 1775. At the time, Gadsden was taking part in the Second Continental Congress, which had just created the United States Navy to keep British ships from reaching the colonies. A small group Marines, which happened to carry yellow drums with a rattlesnake and the words “Don’t Tread on Me” painted upon them, was given the mission of accompanying the Navy on its first mission.

Whether Gadsden was inspired by the drums or in fact created them himself is the subject of some debate. However, it’s an undeniable fact that Gadsden soon presented the Navy’s commander with a flag bearing the same design, and, as the saying goes, the rest is history.

Celebrate the Gadsden and all that it stands for by picking up a Gadsden t-shirt today!

Gadsden Flag: Its Place in Today’s Society

September 21, 2009September 25, 2009 ~ Online Stores ~ 2 Comments

Since the horrific attacks of September 11, 2001, the Gadsden flag has been flown throughout the United States by a great number of people.

Customs officials at US ports as well as military personnel in every part of the country hoist the Gadsden flag on a daily basis. In fact, it’s now flown on all active naval ships, and the snake from the flag’s imagery now appears on the US Army Drill Sergeant Identification Badge.

US soccer fans have also begun using the Gadsden flag to support the nation’s team. Nike even uses the image of a snake wrapped around a soccer ball for its patriotic “Don’t Tread on Me” campaign, which supports the US men’s national team.

The Free State Project presented the town manager of Killington, Vermont, with a Gadsden flag after Killington decided to pursue secession from the state. The Free State Project also customized the Gadsden flag by switching out the rattlesnake for a porcupine, which is the organization’s official mascot.

The Gadsden flag is also flown for historical reasons in places like Charleston, South Carolina, where the flag’s designer, Christopher Gadsden, first presented the flag.

Band’s such as Metallica, who put the Gadsden flag’s snake of the cover of their “Black Album”, and 311 have used the flag as inspiration. The Gadsden flag can also be seen in the film, “The Patriot”.

Most recently, the Gadsden flag has been used during the 2009 Tea Party protests.

Christopher Gadsden – Creator of the Gadsden Flag

September 3, 2009September 3, 2009 ~ Online Stores ~ 3 Comments

Christopher Gadsden lived a long a storied life. He was, among other things, deeply involved in the American Revolution. However, Gadsden may be best known for having designed the Gadsden Flag.

Gadsden was born in Charleston, South Carolina on February 16, 1724. His father, Thomas Gadsden, sent him to be educated at a school near Bristol, England. Upon returning the States in 1740, Gadsden became an apprentice in a Philadelphia court house, and when his parents died one year later in 1741, he inherited a sizable fortune.

Starting in 1745, Gadsden spent time serving as a purser on a British warship, and by 1747 he had saved enough money to buy back the land that his father, a chronic gambler, had lost more than a decade earlier.

Gadsden soon became a prominent merchant in Charleston, and a wharf that he built there still bears his name to this day. However, despite being busy with his mercantile ventures, Gadsden found time in 1759 to captain a militia company during an expedition against the Cherokees.

In 1757, he was elected to the Common House of Assembly, and in 1765 the Assembly made him one of its delegates to the Stamp Act Congress in New York City. During the Congress, Gadsden’s addresses caught the attention of Samuel Adams and the two began a long friendship; Gadsden eventually came to be known as the “Samuel Adams of the South”.

Upon returning to South Carolina, Gadsden became a member of a secret organization of American patriots known as the Sons of Liberty, and by 1774 he’d been elected as a delegate to the First Continental Congress.

One year later, in 1775, Gadsden was serving as a member of the Second Continental Congress when it created the United States Navy to stop British ships from reaching the Colonies. The Congress also ordered that a group of Marines be got together to accompany the new Navy on its first mission, and the first men enlisted happened to carry yellow drums with the image of a rattlesnake poised to attack and the motto “Don’t Tread on Me” painted upon them.

Whether Gadsden was inspired by the drums or had designed them himself is to this day unclear. However, what is clear is that the commander of the Navy, Esek Hopkins, received a flag from Gadsden bearing the same imagery as the soldiers’ drums before disembarking on the first mission. The South Carolina congressional journals also record that Gadsden presented a copy of the same flag to the state legislature in Charleston.

Later in life, Gadsden held a number of positions in South Carolina’s state government, including Lieutenant Governor, and became a prisoner of war before dying of an accidental fall in 1805. He is buried in St. Phillip’s Churchyard in Charleston, South Carolina.

Gadsden Flag: What’s Up With The Snake?

August 19, 2009August 24, 2009 ~ Online Stores ~ Leave a comment

Whenever those Americans that don’t enjoy being “tread on” want to make their feelings known to anyone willing to listen, they’ll typically display the Gadsden Flag in some fashion. But what’s the deal with the rattlesnake? I mean, why not a lion or a bear? Personally, I’m much more afraid of spiders than any old rattlesnake.

Well, folks, looks like we’ve got ol’ Ben Franklin to thank for the inspiration behind the Gadsden Flag, same as we’ve got him to thank for the lightning rod, Franklin stove, bifocal glasses, and, my own personal favorite, the flexible urinary catheter.

In 1754, during the time of the French and Indian War, Franklin published a woodcut of a snake chopped up into 8 sections in his Pennsylvania Gazette. This was meant to represent 8 different regions of the British colonies, with New England joined together to form the head and South Carolina bringing up the rear. Along with the image of the snake, Franklin also published the phrase “Join or Die”, which referred to his water polo team — just kidding, it obviously referred to the Union.

As the American Revolution began to draw near, many people began using the rattlesnake as a symbol of the colonies, and even Paul Revere – yes, the famous “the British are coming” Paul Revere – got in on the act by adding the rattlesnake to the title of his paper, The Massachusetts Spy.

Finally, in December of 1775, Franklin published an essay in the Pennsylvania Journal. In the essay, he argued that the Colonies resembled a rattlesnake in that a rattlesnake never attacks without first giving a warning, or, in the words of Franklin, cautioning “against treading on her”. However, according to Franklin, once in a fight, a rattlesnake never backs down. Also, Franklin believed that by keeping its fangs hidden inside its mouth, the rattlesnake wished to avoid any and all confrontations.

So those are the origins of the Gadsden Flag’s image of a mean rattlesnake. Stay tuned for more information on the Gadsden Flag!

The Gadsden Flag: Symbol of Freedom

April 15, 2009April 15, 2009 ~ Tommy McLaughlin ~ 8 Comments

Today American taxpayers in more than 300 locations in all 50 states will hold rallies – dubbed “tea parties” – to protest higher taxes and out-of-control government spending. And the banner uniting all of these concerned Americans? Well, the Gadsden Flag of course!

The Gadsden Flag has traditionally been seen as a symbol of American patriotism. The traditional imagery associated with the Gadsden Flag was first seen in the year 1775. The Second Continental Congress had just authorized the first ever mission for the new American Navy, and among the first marines to enlist during this time were men from Philadephia. These marines are best known for carrying their symbolic yellow drums depicting a coiled rattlesnake with 13 rattles, with “Don’t Tread On Me” being their now famous motto.

It is commonly believed that the flag itself had been inspired by these symbolic drum-carrying Marines from Philadelphia, with Continental Colonel Christopher Gadsden of South Carolina as its creator. At the second Continental Congress, Gadsden submitted his flag to then commander in chief of the Navy Esek Hopkins, and the rest was history!

The Gadsden Flag is still flown in Charleston, South Carolina – the city where Chrisopher Gadsden first presented the flag. It was flown in the wake of the September 11th attacks, most notably by US Customs officials and harbor patrol boats in US ports. The Gadsden Flag is also commonly flown by many Boy Scouts troops, and has even been featured in a few movies and television shows, most notably in the 2000 film The Patriot. But now, the Gadsden Flag is prepared to take on its new role — as the banner of the Tax Day Tea Party rallies popping up all over America.

According to The Wall Street Journal,

“The protests began with bloggers in Seattle, Wash., who organized a demonstration on Feb. 16. As word of this spread, rallies in Denver and Mesa, Ariz., were quickly organized for the next day. Then came CNBC talker Rick Santelli’s Feb. 19 “rant heard round the world” in which he called for a “Chicago tea party” on July Fourth. The tea-party moniker stuck, but angry taxpayers weren’t willing to wait until July. Soon, tea-party protests were appearing in one city after another, drawing at first hundreds, and then thousands, to marches in cities from Orlando to Kansas City to Cincinnati.”

There are currently between 300 and 500 protests planned to occur in various cities around the world today, and there is sure to be a tea party near you. For more information or for tea party locations, be sure to check out www.taxdayteaparty.com

If you’re planning on attending one of the many Tax Day Tea Parties across the country, or if you already have, feel free to drop off a comment and let us know how it went!