The Forgotten Banners of Defiance: The Whiskey Rebellion Flags of 1794
but among its own citizens. The Whiskey Rebellion (1791–1794) is often reduced to a local tax riot,
yet opposition spanned the backcountry from Pennsylvania toward Georgia and into Kentucky,
entangling frontier politics with international intrigue and debates about federal power that would echo
into the Civil War era.The spark was an excise on distilled spirits, proposed by Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton.
On the frontier, whiskey functioned like cash—“money, medicine, and mendacity”—and the levy, paid at the still,
felt like an assault on liberty and livelihood.
Liberty Poles, Slogans, and Stripes
Protesters raised liberty poles and homemade banners with inscriptions such as
“Equal Taxation and No Excise,” “No Asylum for Traitors and Cowards,” and
“Liberty or Death.” Contemporary accounts also describe striped flags—some with six or seven bars—
representing the western counties acting in concert.
At Parkinson’s Ferry, a flag of six stripes was raised, each bar emblematic of a county represented—an icon of local unity beneath a common cause.
Find a surviving Whiskey Rebellion flag!
You can find the Whiskey Rebellion flag found at the Century Inn a 230 year old Inn, tucked in the little village of Scenery Hill, Pennsylvania, along the historic National Pike. The rebels at the time were poor (frugal) farmers and had little resources to make complex flags.
So when the correspondents of the time describe rebel flags they give us a glimpse of simple patters and/or scripted fabrics that have not, unfortunately, survived to this day. The one they don‟t mention, however, is a flag that actually exists, mounted in a frame, and hanging on the wall in the bar of the Century Inn in Scenery Hill, Pennsylvania.
This flag is a rare artifact of the 1794 Whiskey Rebellion, symbolizing defiance against federal taxation under President Washington’s new republic. The six-pointed stars reflect an earlier American design tradition — precursors to the five-pointed stars that Betsy Ross would later popularize.
At its center, a silver eagle clutches a red, white, and blue banner, a motif signifying unity and independence even amid dissent.
The Design & Symbolism: Stars, Eagle, and the Tricolor
Thirteen Six-Pointed Stars—Before the Betsy Ross Five
A surviving blue-field flag associated with the episode (long displayed at the Century Inn, Scenery Hill shown above)
shows an eagle amid thirteen six-pointed stars. Six-pointed “mullets” were common on late-18th-century flags and colors;
only gradually did five-pointed stars popularize in national use. This places the motif at a fascinating
crossroads—bridging Revolutionary iconography and the early Federal style.
The Eagle—Power, Providence, and Paradox
The American eagle, adopted nationally in 1782, often appeared on regimental standards, sometimes
bearing a ribbon in its beak. In the Whiskey country, the bird’s presence read two ways:
a claim to “true” American liberty by the protesters and, paradoxically, an emblem of Federal authority
marching west to restore order.
Red, White & Blue—Revolution Remembered
While the best-known associated flag is blue with eagle and stars, period testimony also records banners
in the familiar Revolutionary palette and scripted slogans. To the backcountry,
red signaled courage, white the purity of their cause, and blue fidelity to 1776’s ideals—asserting identity
as heirs of the Revolution rather than enemies of the nation.
Washington Responds
In September 1794, President George Washington led roughly 12,950 militia over the Alleghenies—the largest force
he ever commanded—to overwhelm the resistance. By the time the army reached the Monongahela country, the movement had ebbed;
the symbolism remained.
“Respect for its authority, compliance with its laws, acquiescence in its measures, are duties enjoined by the fundamental
maxims of true liberty….” — George Washington
Legacy of the Whiskey Flags
Whether striped or scripted, stitched on homespun or painted on silk, these flags voiced a frontier creed:
liberty must be visible. Their six-pointed stars, liberty slogans, and eagle devices narrate America’s earliest struggle
to balance local freedom with national power—a conversation still ongoing.
Own a Piece of Early American Defiance
Honor this chapter of courage with our historically inspired
Made-in-USA Whiskey Rebellion Flag.
For a wider context, explore our Revolutionary War Flags
collection and connect the symbols of 1776 to the debates of 1794.
FAQ: Whiskey Rebellion Flags
What did the Whiskey Rebellion flags say?
Common inscriptions included “Equal Taxation and No Excise,” “No Asylum for Traitors and Cowards,” and “Liberty or Death.”
Did a “Whiskey Rebellion Flag” survive?
A blue silk flag with an eagle and thirteen six-pointed stars—long linked to the episode—survives in regional memory,
though scholars debate whether it was rebel or Federal in origin.
Why six-pointed stars?
Six-pointed stars (mullets) appear on late-18th-century American flags and military colors; five-pointed stars rose to prominence soon after,
associated popularly with Betsy Ross-style motifs.
