Forest Preserve District debuts video series on community-made American flag project
A new eight-part video series documenting the creation of a community-made American flag debuts June 26 on the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County’s social media channels.
The series, titled The Work of Many Hands, follows the journey of a 3-by-5-foot American flag crafted with the help of 840 students and dozens of volunteers, visitors, and employees. The project was led by Abigail Douglass, heritage interpreter at the Forest Preserve District’s Graue Mill and Museum in Oak Brook. According to Douglass, “When people watch the videos and look at the flag, I want them to think about the people who had a hand in its creation, from schoolkids, carpenters, and lawyers to cooks, immigrants, and teachers. The flag symbolizes many things to many people, but it is also a tangible thing that we all have a part in making.”
The flag was made from 3,000 yards of dyed and felted yarn, produced from the wool of heritage Cotswold sheep at Kline Creek Farm, the District’s 1890s living history farm in West Chicago. The video series documents each step of the flag-making process and explores topics such as Revolutionary-era homespun textile crafts, natural dyes, and the evolution of American flag designs. It also highlights the homespun movement, when women resisted British taxes and tariffs by producing fabric and clothing at home. The series title is inspired by historian Laurel Thatcher Ulrich’s observation that “the flag, like the revolution it represents, was the work of many hands.”
Jonathan Mullen, the Forest Preserve District’s multimedia content specialist and the series’ producer, said, “All of these processes remind us how much we take for granted when it comes to the origins of our clothes today. The project made me think about the complexities of modern supply chains and how our global economy has made products that once required an enormous amount of time readily available and affordable.”
The completed flag will be displayed starting July 1 at the visitor center of St. James Farm in Warrenville as part of the Stars and Stripes: Our American Flag exhibit. The exhibit will be open Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. through October 31.
The Forest Preserve District of DuPage County manages more than 26,000 acres of preserves and over 145 miles of trails, provides facilities such as nature centers and educational programs, and supports wildlife restoration and community engagement through events and volunteer opportunities, according to the official website.