Alabama Secession Flag
In January 1861, a Secession Convention in Alabama voted to leave the Union and marked their decision for independence by designating this pennant — created by a group of Montgomery women — as their official flag. Like John Gast’s American Progress, the Goddess of Liberty forms the central image. Here she holds a sword and a flag with a single star, symbolizing Alabama’s new status as an independent republic. Alabama Department of Archives and History.