Had the captain of the Catalpa not raised the Stars and Stripes above the mast of his ship, he and his crew could have perished.
At the very least, his actions 150 years ago this week saved six Fenian prisoners from the certainty of a living death – incarceration for life in Fremantle prison in western Australia.
At the time it was the biggest open prison in the world, with thousands of kilometres of ocean on one side and the unforgiving Australian bush on the other.
Their gaolers were so certain of the impregnable nature of the jail that the men involved were able to wander around the town of Fremantle as any attempt to escape would eventually lead to their certain death.
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This complacency was confounded when the men made an extraordinary escape from the prison.
The attempt was prompted by a letter from one of the prisoners, James Wilson, to John Devoy of the Fenians in 1874. Devoy had been released as one of the “civilian” prisoners following the failed Fenian rebellion of 1867, but the Catalpa Six were ex-British soldiers. As such they were regarded as traitors. Their death sentences were commuted to life imprisonment and transportation to Australia. It was a living death for the men, according to Wilson. “Dear Friend,” he wrote, “remember this is a voice from the tomb. For is not this a living tomb?”
The Catalpa, a converted whaling ship, left New Bedford in Massachusetts. It took 10 months to reach Western Australia and a further three weeks before the opportune moment came for the men to escape.
It was the closest of close-run things. They rowed to the Catalpa, but she was twice intercepted by the British Royal Navy steamer the Georgette.
On the morning of April 19th, 1876, the Georgette fired a shot across the bow of the Catalpa and ordered the passengers and crew to surrender.
It was then that Captain George Anthony ran the American flag up the mast and told the captain of the Georgette that they were in international waters. “If you fire on the American flag, it will be a declaration of war on the United States,” he warned them. The Georgette demurred and returned to port.
The Catalpa reached New York four months later.
The flag was kept by Anthony for 20 years. He then gave it to Clann na Gael in Philadelphia, who gave it to a man named Joe Clarke – a veteran of the Easter Rising. He donated it to the National Museum of Ireland in 1972.
“We have many important objects in our collection,” said National Museum of Ireland curator Brenda Malone. “It is rare enough to have an object that played a major part in itself rather than just carrying the story. This flag was a big part of the story.”
It has not gone on public display before because of its size (it’s four metres by three metres) and because its delicate wool bunting fabric would deteriorate further with exposure to light.
The flag must have been around for at least 10 years before the Catalpa incident as it has 36 stars. By 1876 the flag had 37 (Nevada having joined the union).
It will finally go on display as part of the 150th celebrations of the Catalpa rescue.
It will be housed in the Palatine Room in the museum on Saturday and Sunday.
“Because it is not in an exhibition-type space, the Palentine room is the best compromise that we could come up with. Textiles are not appropriate for permanent display,” said textile conservator Lorna Rowley. “They are sensitive to light and they are edible for pests.”
See museum.ie for more details.
