Ben,

I have a proposal for you with regards to the ID of the flag which you claim to be of Rucker's Brigade. Please hear me out before responding.

I propose that you and I present our evidence here in a concise manner; you presenting evidence that this was the flag captured with Col. Edmund Rucker at the Battle of the Barricades in Nashville on December 16th, 1864. I will present my evidence as to why this ID cannot be determined at this time.

The evidence is to be presented in a calm manner with no insults, name calling, etc. as real historians would do when they disagree on something. Just let the evidence speak for itself. This can be done in several posts to this board or a long post. Whatever works best for you is fine with me.

Then when we are both finished let the readers of this forum decide for themselves or they can even vote here their opinions based on the evidence we present as to who makes the better case for their side.

I think this is a most reasonable way to handle this. Please note two things - and I want to be very clear about this so there are no misunderstandings. First, I do not doubt that the flag is of the Civil War period. I have been given evidence to that end and I have no reason to not accept that at this time. Secondly, I have always stated, and continue to state, that if there is rock solid evidence placing this flag at Nashville with Rucker that I would be more than happy to change my mind about the ID. You seem to think that I am closed minded about it; but I am not. I have had my mind changed before based on evidence that others have found over time (including myself) and am happy to do so because all that I seek for flag identifications is the truth. I have no dogs in any hunts nor hidden agendas. It would be terrific to finally ID your flag correctly.

So what say you?

Greg Biggs