An exceedingly rare Confederate battle flag that flew at the bloody Battle of Franklin returned home to South Carolina Wednesday.
The Sons of Confederate Veterans and the state of South Carolina worked together to purchase a banner of the 19th South Carolina infantry regiment from a small museum in Oak Ridge, Tenn., for $50,000.
The flag is one of just six known examples of “Macon Arsenal” banners, produced in Macon, Ga.
The wool flag is approximately 48 inches by 52 inches. Macon Arsenal flags are distinctive because the white Cross of St. Andrew extends through the center, isolating the banner’s center star.
The flag’s value is at least $150,000, said Randy Burbage, an official with the South Carolina chapter of the Sons of Confederate Veterans.
Burbage said that a new museum in Franklin, Tenn., wanted the flag, as well, and offered twice what South Carolina paid for it.
