Society of Descendants of Pitcairn Settlers (Norfolk Island)

Last modified: 2006-09-02 by jonathan dixon
Keywords: norfolk island | pine tree | tree: norfolk pine | tree: araucaria excelsa | tree: araucaria heterophylla | red ensign |
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image by André Pires Godinho, 22 Feb 2003
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• Description

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• Norfolk Island

Description

The Norfolk Island have a Red Civil Ensign, the society of descendants of Pitcairn Settlers adopted this flag in November 1985. It's based on the flag of H.M.S Bounty.

André Pires Godinho, 20 February 2003

This flag was designed by John Vaughan in 1985 as part of his suite of Australian heritage flags.  I have visited Norfolk Island on three occasions after its claimed adoption and I can advise that I have never seen it in use, nor, on enquiry of residents of Bounty descent, have I located anyone who can recall its existence, even when it is described for them.  The only publications that I am aware of which have shown the flag are a poster by John Vaughan, a Crux Australis [cxa] article by myself (No. 12) and its listing in Longueville Rudy's Badges of the British Commonwealth [lgv96].

Readers should be cautious in ascribing any undue significance to this flag design.  It is correct that it was adopted by the Society of Descendants, however the lack of usage does not support the listing by Rudy that it is a local islander flag.  The Pitcairn Island flag does appear as a decoration in a few shops, suggesting that those who wish to identify with Pitcairn now have an official flag to use. I  note that the Pitcairn flag was only adopted in 1984, and may not have been known to the Norfolk Islanders when they first were presented with Vaughan's proposed design.

Vaughan's design used the pre 1801 British red ensign as its base, to accord with the flag as used at the time of the Bounty mutiny.

Ralph Kelly, 21 February 2003