The Bennington Flag is one of the oldest and best-known American flags in existence, a distinction it shares with its contemporary, the Stars and Stripes which flew over Ft. McHenry in 1814 and inspired our national anthem. The Bennington Flag is instantly recognizable for its unusual design features: the "76" in the blue field, seven-pointed stars, and the use of white stripes for the outer bars rather than red.

As the earliest known flag made entirely of cotton, it is an important document for the history of textiles in America. Family tradition suggested that this flag was used in the Battle of Bennington. However, several factors argue against this. First, the extremely large size of the flag suggests that this was probably a stationary flag, raised above a fort, headquarters, or armory, rather than a small portable battle stand.

Since the Bennington Flag was glued into a bronze and plate-glass frame almost immediately after its arrival at the museum in 1926, scientific analysis of the fibers was not possible until after it was removed for conservation in 1995.