I just have not had the time to complete the search and it sounds like you know how to do this. I have found some dry goods dealers who sold flag silks and cloth this way by getting the dry goods dealers of a city and just hitting them one at a time. That's how I found the two stores in Richmond that sold the silk for the November 1861 ANV silk flags.

I have found that the search feature does not always catch the right word so I just get the names and scroll.

Here's the names for Southern flag staff makers that I have found so far:

Lewis L. Barnes - Richmond, VA (he also did flag spears)
Edward D. Crandall - Memphis, TN
RW Gale - Charleston, SC
Goethchius, Hodges & Co. - Columbus, GA
NS Harp - Raleigh, NC
Harvey Jones - Norfolk, VA
Moore, Halstead & Co. - Memphis, TN
WP Russell & Co. - Charleston, SC
Smith & McLure - Memphis, TN
HC Stephens - Savannah, GA
West & Brother - Richmond, VA

Some of the items I have for a couple of these people are from the Virginia State Archives and poles made for VA troops which the state paid for. Some of the books at the National Archives also have details for these flag staff purchases that Footnote does not have online.

If anyone has any other names not on this list I would appreciate hearing about them as well as where you found them.

Greg Biggs