Victory Banner and Flag

It is in small things that we often see the human spirit triumph over adversity.

Click here for a larger image of this crocheted flag.

Ella Hughes Darrow Volkert wanted to do something to honor her son, Otis Hughes Darrow, who was serving in the Army Medical Corps during World War II.

As she was skilled in needlework, she chose to crochet an American flag and a victory banner. Victory banners usually were displayed in windows to indicate family members' war-time service. This banner (pictured below, right) features one star, indicating that Mrs. Volkert's son was in the armed forces. Her second husband, William Volkert, a carpenter, made the frames for the flag and banner.

Although victory banners were common, Mrs. Volkert's was exceptional because she had been blind since the age of 15. After graduating from the Kansas City School for the Blind in 1917, she would take teaching courses from Emporia State Teachers College and the Hadley Correspondence School in Illinois.

Click here for a larger image of this victory banner.

Mrs. Volkert ran a gift shop from her home, taught the blind, and gave needlework courses, among other activities.

The flag and banner were given to the museum by her daughter-in-law, Bernice Shelton Darrow. You may click on both images for close-up views of the flag (pictured at upper left) and victory banner (at right).

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