OVERVIEW

This Whiskey Rebellion flag has thirteen stars on a blue background. In the center is a bald eagle holding a red and white striped ribbon.

It’s a reminder of the brave Americans who weren’t afraid to defend themselves against their own government, and a symbol of the strength of the American people, reminding us that we can’t trust the government with its power.

In 1791, Congress placed an excise tax on whiskey to raise money to pay off Revolutionary War debt. The East Coast distilleries made almost no objection to the excise. However, farmers on the frontier - then anything west of the Allegheny Mountains - protested, leading to a stillborn rebellion.

The Whiskey Rebels used various flags during their rebellion, most quite simple with an anti-Federal theme. The most common were a white flag with red stripes and a flag bearing the inscription "Equal Taxation and no Excise – No Asylum for Traitors and Cowards."

Very few examples survive today, however, one of the more elaborate ones still exists. This Whiskey Rebellion Flag hung on the wall in the bar of the Century Inn in Scenery Hill, Pennsylvania. The flag has a blue field with an eagle carrying a red and white striped ribbon in its beak with thirteen six-pointed stars scattered around the field. Sadly, the building burned in 2015, but the quick-thinking owners grabbed the Whiskey Rebellion flag and saved it from the fire.

Polyester with metal grommets. Measures 3' x 5'.