Taos Plaza - American Flag

American Flag

Taos Plaza has the distinction of being the first place in the United States, by tradition, to fly the United States Flag both day and night. In 1861, Southern sympathizers repeatedly tore down the flag flying over the Plaza. Captain Smith Simpson with the help of Kit Carson, Ceran St. Vrain, and others nailed the flag to a tall cottonwood pole and raised it over the Plaza, with the threat that anyone who molested the flag would be shot. To assure it was not torn down, the group went to St. Vrain's nearby store and took turns standing guard over the flag day and night. Since the flag was nailed to the cottonwood, it could not be lowered at dark. When military officials in Santa Fe learned of the incident, they permitted Taos to fly the flag twenty-four hours a day.