SPEARSVILLE — Members of the Hickory Ridge Community Center are looking for information regarding a 48-star American flag they found.

While cleaning and helping with updates to the community center, members of the seniors group that meets at the center found the old flag and saw it was in very good condition. However, no documentation about the flag or its origins were found with it.

The members began doing research and found that the U.S. flag grew to 48 stars on July 4, 1912, after the additions of Arizona and New Mexico to the country went into effect. The 48-star flag was used in the U.S. for 47 years until a version with 49 stars became official on July 4, 1959.

If the flag found at the community center was an original, that would mean it is at least 71 years old.

The group that found the flag wants to preserve it and has decided to donate it to the Brown County Historical Society, but are still seeking additional information about its past. According to a press release, all founding members of the Hamblen Township Civic League, which founded the center, have died, and all information they might have had about the flag has been lost.

Members of the community center have theorized that the flag may be the original one flown at Hickory Ridge, or that a historical or community group that meets at the center may have donated it in the past. Or, the flag could have been donated in memory of a family member who died.

The senior center said in the press release that not knowing the flag’s full history in no way diminishes its historic value, but that being able to share its story would be a gift to future generations.

If you have information about the flag’s origin or history, the center asks that you contact Linda Outcalt, president of the Hickory Ridge Senior Citizens, at 317-474-0680.