[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 102 (Thursday, July 9, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1688-E1689]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  REVEREND RICHARDSON ARMSTRONG LIBBY

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. JOHN P. SARBANES

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, July 9, 2009

  Mr. SARBANES. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the Reverend 
Richardson Armstrong Libby, a community leader in Annapolis, MD, that 
is highly regarded for his dedication toward historic preservation--a 
natural pastime in our State's capital. He has become rather famous 
locally because of an important discovery he recently made concerning 
the history of the United States Flag.
  A navigator and intercept controller for the U.S. Air Force during 
the Korean war, Rev. Libby has spent the past 40 years in service to 
the Episcopal Church. Throughout this time, he has maintained a strong 
interest in U.S. History, especially in the flags of the Revolutionary 
War.
  Following his retirement from the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut, 
Rev. Libby and his wife Kathryn moved to Annapolis in 1999, where he 
reconnected with his passion for historic preservation. He is a member 
of the Maryland Historical Society, the Historic Annapolis Foundation, 
and Board of Trustees for

[[Page E1689]]

the Hammond-Harwood House. While following that passion, he managed to 
correct the history of one of Annapolis's proudest moments.
  In 1783, Maryland's governor commissioned the ``Shaw Flag,'' designed 
by a local cabinet maker named John Shaw, to fly over the State House 
when it served as the home to the U.S. Congress. This flag flew over 
the building when General George Washington resigned his commission as 
commander of the Continental Army--an unprecedented act of selfless 
leadership and enduring symbol of democratic government. It was also 
atop the State House during the signing of the Treaty of Paris. After 
the Revolutionary War ended and the Congress moved to Trenton, the Shaw 
Flag was lowered and virtually lost to the history books with no 
replicas available.
  In 1983, a reproduction of the Shaw Flag was designed to celebrate 
the bicentennial of Annapolis' time as our Nation's capital. The flag 
had 13 red and white stripes and 13 stars in a blue field in the upper 
left corner of the flag. Later, Rev. Libby was enjoying a watercolor 
painting by Cotton Millbourne from 1794 that hangs in the Hammond-
Harwood House in Annapolis when he made a surprising discovery. The 
painting depicted the State House during the same era but the flag in 
the painting contained a blue field running vertically the entire 
length of the flag. This discovery prompted Rev. Libby to conduct more 
thorough research on the Shaw Flag and ultimately resulted in a 
correction of the reproduction. It was this corrected flag that hung in 
our State's capitol this Flag Day, June 14.
  Madam Speaker, it is an honor to represent Rev. Libby in the U.S. 
House of Representatives. I appreciate his service to our Nation and 
the State of Maryland, as well as his keen interest in historic 
preservation and our national symbols.

                          ____________________