STATEHOUSE CALENDAR

An historic thirty-six star flag that flew over Capitol Square during the repose of President Lincoln on April 29, 1865 is displayed in the Ohio Statehouse Rotunda. The flag had been given to David Nevin Murray of Portsmouth, Ohio for his contributions to the war effort on behalf of the Union Army during the American Civil War.

Since then, Murray and succeeding members of his family lent the flag for parades, memorials, and special events, including the inaugurations of Governor John W. Bricker and Governor Frank Lausche at the Ohio Statehouse. In 1945, the flag hung in the Ohio Statehouse Rotunda as a memorial for President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

The flag was donated to the Ohio History Connection in 2016 by David N. Murray’s great, great granddaughters, Lt. Colonel Mary K. Van Tilburg and Dr. Emmalou Van Tilburg.

Also on display is an exhibit of Civil War artifacts on loan from the descendants of Brig. General John C. Caldwell, a member of the Guard of Honor on Abraham Lincoln’s funeral train in 1865. 

This exhibit is open to the public in the Ohio Statehouse Rotunda between Memorial Day and Veterans Day. The Ohio Statehouse is closed on Memorial Day and on Veterans Day.