Private Signals of the Merchants of Boston

This 19th century broadside identifies the private house flags of all the major shipowners operating out of the city of Boston, home port for many American clipper ships in China trade.

It depicts 112 different Boston merchant flags with the names of each firm printed below. These private signals were worn at a ship's masthead to identify the vessel's owners to other ships at sea or associates on shore when arriving offshore at their destination.