Written by Michael J. Perullo

This is the story of two powerful Navy Flags you may have seen, but likely did not recognize the significance of: the First Navy Jack and the South Carolina Navy Flag.

What is a “Jack”?

A jack is the name of a special flag that flies from a short “jackstaff” or “bowsprit” at the bow (the front of the vessel, for you landlubbers). It can also fly from forestay lines when hung vertically. This contrasts with an ensign, which is a special flag used to denote a vessel’s nationality and is usually flown from the stern (the back of the vessel). You may see a Navy ship with an American Flag astern and a jack at the bow. “Jack” is an antiquated term that once meant “small in size.” Some say the term was first used by Charles II, King of 17th century England (and Scotland and Ireland), in his regulations concerning how flags were to be flown from Royal Naval vessels. A jack is a very special flag with outsized significance to sailors through the centuries.

The First Navy Jack

The exact contemporaneous design of the First Navy Jack is unknown, but it is understood today to be in the style and spirit of the First Navy Jacks you see flying today. The First Navy Jack looks like a combination of the Sons of Liberty Flag (1777), also known as the “Post-Crown Outlaw Flag,” and the Gadsden Flag (1775, yellow), so popular today.

The First Navy Jack has 13 stripes alternating red and white, with a timber rattlesnake stretched from upper left to lower right above the phrase “DONT TREAD ON ME,” written within the lowest white stripe. No—the “DONT” does not have an apostrophe. If it does, this is usually a cheaply produced flag with inattention to fine historical detail.

We know of two military units during the Revolutionary War that used an image of the rattlesnake and “DONT TREAD ON ME” as a motto: Proctor’s Independent Battalion of Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, and Sullivan’s Life Guard during the Rhode Island actions of 1777. As early as February 1777, Continental Navy officers proposed that their dress uniform include a gold epaulet on the right shoulder with a rattlesnake embroidered with the motto “DONT TREAD ON ME.”

The First Navy Jack first flew from October 13, 1975 (the bicentennial anniversary of the founding of the [Continental] United States Navy) through December 31, 1976 as a United States Navy Jack from commissioned vessels’ jackstaffs while moored pier-side or at anchor. It was an important symbol during America’s Bicentennial celebration of 1975–76. It was replaced with the United States Union Jack on January 1, 1977—fifty white stars on a field of blue. The United States Union Jack should not be confused with the “Union Jack” of the United Kingdom, which is a completely different flag.

On September 11, 2002—the one-year anniversary of the 9/11 attacks—the Navy re-adopted the First Navy Jack to fly from all commissioned vessels at the proper times through June 4, 2019. The First Navy Jack became a powerful symbol during America’s Global War on Terror, and many service members wore it as an officially sanctioned patch on their uniforms.

Originally, I was mystified as to the significance of switching back to the United States Union Jack on June 4, 2019. Then I understood: the Navy used the occasion to commemorate the beginning of the Battle of Midway, which began on June 4, 1942. Midway turned the tide in the Pacific during World War II, lest we forget. This is what jacks and flags and ensigns do: they communicate passion, and they help us to remember.

In 1775, the very first ships in the Continental Navy in the Delaware River were instructed to fly a “striped Jack” and an ensign (Flag of the United States). This order by Commodore Esek Hopkins was likely for identification purposes. Flags were important to Hopkins; he used as his personal standard a design by Christopher Gadsden of South Carolina—the Gadsden Flag.

Recall that the first Flag of the still-forming United States of America was the Continental Union Flag (Continental Colours), also known as the American Flag, Cambridge Flag, or Grand Union Flag (as referred to in the 19th century). The Continental Union Flag combined the British Union with thirteen alternating red and white stripes — one for each colony. The British Union in the canton expressed America’s hope that reconciliation with England might still be possible—which, after a second war (1812–15), eventually occurred. Being able to distinguish ships at sea was—and remains—vitally important during wartime, especially for shore-based cannon batteries.

Below: The Continental Navy ship Columbus (center) flies the Grand Union flag in a painting that depicts events from 1776. 

A Flag Flown Around the World

Back to the “striped Navy Jack.” No one truly knows what these original Flags looked like in the 1770s; but since about 1880, it has been widely believed that the First Navy Jack looked much like it does today.

You may have heard about the famous 1778 letter written by John Adams and Benjamin Franklin to the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Sicily, thanking him for allowing American vessels to make port calls at Sicilian ports. Yes—American ships were in the Mediterranean during the War of Independence. This letter described the first official Flag of the United States adopted June 14, 1777 (the Betsy Ross Flag). It also mentioned a flag from South Carolina with thirteen stripes and a rattlesnake across its fly—a flag not many Americans know about today.

The letter states:

“…some of the states have vessels of war distinct from those of the United States. For example, the vessels of war of the state of Massachusetts Bay have sometimes a pine tree; and those of the state of South Carolina a rattlesnake in the middle of thirteen stripes. Merchant ships often only have thirteen stripes, but the Flag of the United States ordained by Congress is the thirteen stripes and the thirteen stars above described…”

Above: A 1782 political cartoon uses the rattlesnake as a symbol of the United States, a tradition that started with Benjamin Franklin's "Join or Die" image of 1754.

The Lore Behind the Rattlesnake

What about the rattlesnake? What is its significance on the First Navy Jack, the South Carolina Navy Flag, and other historical Flags such as Join or Die and the Gadsden Flag?

The phrase “DONT TREAD ON ME” emerged during the Revolutionary era, reflecting the Colonials’ readiness to defend against oppression. The rattlesnake traces back to Benjamin Franklin’s 1754 drawing in the Pennsylvania Gazette—later associated with the “Join or Die” image. Franklin used the timber rattlesnake as a metaphor for the American spirit: vigilance, caution, restraint—and decisive action if provoked.

The American timber rattlesnake will not strike unless provoked. This characteristic—which became a hallmark of American power—is expressed in the succinct admonition: DONT TREAD ON ME. Think back to the grievances documented by Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence, and you can readily identify the kernel of provocation that buttressed Colonial resolve and birthed an American nation.

Above: The First Navy Jack aboard the USS Salt Lake City on September 11, 2002

Where the First Navy Jack is Flown Today

I have always found it interesting that the First Navy Jack combines elements of other historical flags, yet it has flown as the official Navy Jack only during relatively short periods since the Bicentennial.

After being retired at the end of 1976, it was recommissioned on August 18, 1980, to fly from the oldest United States Ship in active service. On May 31, 2002, Navy Secretary Gordon England directed all Naval vessels to fly the First Navy Jack as a temporary substitution for the Jack of the United States. Remarkably, this order stemmed from a suggestion by retired Captain Brayton Harris, who in 1975 had served as a special assistant to the Naval Secretary during the Bicentennial celebration.

By September 11, 2002, nearly all Navy ships had made the switch. The authorization continued through June 4, 2019, when a new order restored the Union Jack fleetwide and returned the First Navy Jack to the oldest commissioned United States ship (except the USS Constitution, which is used only for ceremonial purposes). Naval installations were also permitted to fly it ashore. The First Navy Jack patch was authorized for wear on certain Navy and Army uniforms opposite the sleeve displaying the American Flag. The First Navy Jack and the Serapis Flag are also found in the crest of the guided missile destroyer USS John Paul Jones.

The First Navy Jack is often used by non-Navy persons for protest and remembrance, such as in 2013 when it was placed at the makeshift memorial on Boylston Street following the Boston Marathon bombing.

Above: The South Carolina Navy Flag. Notice the distinct color scheme and placement of the text.

The South Carolina Navy Flag

The American Revolution was truly a time of great flags. This was when the “Washington’s Cruisers” Flag (“An Appeal to Heaven”) flew on mortar barges in Boston Harbor, and Massachusetts rekindled interest in the 1686 Pine Tree Flag. South Carolina had its own Navy Flag with alternating red and blue stripes and a rattlesnake with a motto similar to the First Navy Jack.

South Carolina was so serious about naval defense that its Navy was founded about three months before the Continental Navy. Coastal vulnerability was a serious issue for a state whose trade and wealth flowed through its ports. During the summer of 1775, Provincial soldiers launched from Beaufort to intercept a British ship delivering gunpowder and supplies to Crown forces. They captured 16,000 pounds of gunpowder—and, in an early testament to “Join or Die,” sent 4,000 pounds north to George Washington in Cambridge. It was an early sign of southern support for northern Patriots fighting a common enemy.

Like other colonial forces, South Carolina’s Navy consisted largely of converted merchant ships. It fought valiantly during the Siege of Charleston but was disbanded in 1783 when the Revolution ended.

While the red and blue striped rattlesnake flag was widely recognized as the South Carolina Naval ensign, the Provincial Legislature adopted a different official Flag: a blue field with a gold rice sheaf in the center, surrounded by thirteen silver stars in a circle. Still, the striped rattlesnake Flag was the one most commonly used at sea.

The South Carolina Navy Flag placed its motto in the second red stripe from the top, to the right of the snake’s head. Few American Flags have featured blue stripes; the Serapis Flag had four blue stripes, and the South Carolina Navy Flag had six. The blue stripes paid homage to Scotland, and the red to England. Between 1717 and 1775, more than 200,000 Scots-Irish immigrated to America, many settling in port cities such as Philadelphia, Charleston, and Savannah. Many became determined American fighters, and their spirit lives in these stripes—and throughout America—today.

Above: The First Navy Jack flown at the Presidio of Monterey, a U.S. Army installation.

The Legacy of Two Legendary Flags

Displaying the First Navy Jack and the South Carolina Navy Flag always generates interest and conversation—on the beach, in your yard, or on your vessel. These flags are relatively rare, and patriots everywhere enjoy seeing them flown, knowing that those who display them most assuredly understand some of the stories behind them.