Annin & Company - The oldest and largest manufacturer of flags in the United States.

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About Annin - Chronological History


The Great Exhibition of 1851 It was a great day for the all-American Annin & Co. when the New York City based flag company was contracted to supply the flags for Queen Victoria and Prince Albert’s “Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations” in London, England. This event held in 1851 is considered by historians to be the first World’s Fair.

Civil War
Annin & Co. had the honor of supplying all of the US flags for the Union troops during the American Civil War. From 1861 to 1865, Annin & Co. sold 1.5 million flags and emblems. It was during this period of history that private citizens began flying US flags on their homes and businesses as a sign of patriotism.

Abraham Lincoln
Annin & Co. supplied the flag for the inauguration of President Lincoln. Sadly, Annin also furnished the flag that draped his casket as it was taken by train from Washington, D.C. to Illinois for burial after his tragic assassination in 1865.

Yankee Stadium
Annin & Co. made all of the flags and decorations for the opening of Yankee Stadium on April 18, 1923.

Exploration
Exploration and involvement in world affairs consumed America during the 20th century, and Annin was there. The company's flags were carried by Commander Robert E. Peary's expedition to the North Pole in 1909, Admiral Richard E. Byrd's expedition to the South Pole in 1930 and the National Geographic expedition to Mount Everest in 1963.

World War II
Annin’s most famous wartime contribution was the flag planted atop Mount Suribachi on Iwo Jima in 1945. American Marines planted a US flag on the fifth day of the thirty –five day battle to boost the morale of the troops.

United Nations
Annin & Co. became and remains the principal flag supplier to the United Nations when the organization was founded in 1945 with 50 members. While the official flags of the individual countries vary in proportion, all the flags on display at the UN Headquarters worldwide are manufactured to a 1 to 1.5 proportion to achieve a uniform appearance.

Apollo 11 Mission to the Moon
The US flag that Annin & Co. supplied to NASA for the Apollo 11 moon landing was specially made with a sleeve across the top length. This was done so a pole could be inserted to hold it out straight since it would normally hang limp in the moon's windless atmosphere. When astronaut Buzz Aldrin assembled the flagpole, the horizontal part of the pole jammed and the pole did not fully extend. This is why the flag appears to be “waving in a breeze” in the NASA photographs thus giving credence to the false rumor that the entire mission was a hoax.

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