Town Flag (Almost) Ready To Flap

 Amherst Town Flag

The final tweak to the Amherst town flag -- incorporating 1759, our date of founding -- has been rendered and the design is now only weeks away from a limited production run of around a dozen units. 

Renowned illustrator Barry Moser had originally submitted nine designs last year.  The Design Review Board and Historical Commission by unanimous vote whittled it down to one, with the only suggestion being to add 1759. 

The proud project, a brainchild of Select Board member Diana Stein, started in the summer of 2010 as a contest, but none of the submissions passed muster. 

Selectman Jim Wald, a booster of all  (well, most) things historic, contacted Barry Moser who volunteered to do the project.  Thus no tax money is involved.

A large town flag will hang in the Statehouse Hall of Flags and smaller versions will be available for town buildings, civic organizations and die hard fans of Amherst, where even the h is silent. 

Run it up the flagpole

Amherst Town Flag draft

A joint meeting of Amherst Historical Commission and the Design Review Board pretty much saluted artist Barry Moser's design proposal incorporating a shield, open book and sheaves of wheat for an official town flag (even though Amherst was never known for wheat harvest) winnowed down from nine variations he submitted.

The only recommendation is to add the date 1759 in a subtle way to the background. The Amherst Select Board --a body not known as flag connoisseurs--will have final approval.

Select Board member Diana Stein first raised the idea for a town flag in June, 2010 and the town encouraged citizen submissions which resulted in 8 designs, but none of them a clear winner. Select Board member Jim Wald contacted renowned artist Barry Moser, who agreed to volunteer his design services.

The flag will hang at the Massachusetts State House in the Great Hall alongside pennants from most cities and towns in Massachusetts . Twenty years ago the state came up with the idea of hanging flags as a means of improving the acoustics in the spacious hall.

Who would have thought state government could be so practical?

And yes, Amherst is the same town that restricts the flying of 29 commemorative Americans flags on 9/11, to once every five years.

Town flag inches forward

Although it seems to be taking longer than the American Revolution, the Amherst town flag quest received positive feedback at the 4/20 Select Board meeting, even from Alisa Brewer who was a tad crabby about the process a couple months back.

Although you have to wonder what she meant by the Amherst schools not being interested in purchasing town flags considering their devotion to American flags, since state regulations do require an American flag in every home room.

The six town flags will cost $88.48 each and costs will be covered by the Amherst Chamber of Commerce ($530.88) and the Amherst Rotary Club will cover the slightly more expensive one for the State House Great Hall of Flags.

Nationally renowned designer Barry Moser has agreed to volunteer his professional artistic talent to design the flag (based on citizen submissions earlier in the process) as long as the town can wait until the fall. And since it has been this long in the making...