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colnaught · ‎03-12-2023

I’m trying to identify this lapel pin. From my fairly extensive experience as a vintage pin collector, I am stumped (and I’m rarely stumped).
Features of the pin - it’s construction style, wear, and metal indicate that it is probably at least 100 years old. Note that the U. S. style flag is depicted in the obverse, with six stars and five stripes. And finally, the acronym “U. P. C.” (I have searched multiple acronym dictionaries, with no obvious hits).
There is a tenuous search connection to the US suffrage movement. From 1911 to 1912 an obverse 6 star US flag was used when California joined the movement.
Thanks for your time!!!

Colin

maxine*j · ‎03-13-2023

It is puzzling.

I did find some references to a "Universal Peace Committee" in Newspaper Archive dot com: One in 1908 (Baltimore Sun) and two in 1916 (New Castle News and Reading Times, both PA newspapers). I'm not a subscriber and can't access the actual articles, though, or find other references to this group / movement.

The time frame and the flag could fit with a peace movement. Like you, I found scores of UPS abbreviations, but very few that might fit your pin. So, I toss this out there for whatever it might be worth.

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maxine*j · ‎03-13-2023

Typo in above. Not UPS. UPC. Duh!

melda58 · ‎03-13-2023

For what it may be worth, I found this reference to a six-star flag of 1861 Louisiana in which the star arrangement conforms to that of your pin (unlike the women's suffrage flag which has the stars arranged in a circle.) Louisiana was the 6th state to secede from the Union.

https://jeffbridgman.com/inventory/index.php?page=out&id=2262

Rita

maxine*j · ‎03-13-2023

@melda58 wrote:
For what it may be worth, I found this reference to a six-star flag of 1861 Louisiana in which the star arrangement conforms to that of your pin (unlike the women's suffrage flag which has the stars arranged in a circle.) Louisiana was the 6th state to secede from the Union.
https://jeffbridgman.com/inventory/index.php?page=out&id=2262

Rita

I found that, too. It looked to be, and the description made it sound to be, just a flag someone made and held privately; i.e., not an official flag or a flag in general use. So I dismissed it as the source for the flag on this pin, but I may have been hasty in doing so.

Actually, I dismissed the number of stars and stripes as being significant, because I've seen so many bits of jewellery and what-not where the flags had random numbers of stars and / or stripes as suited the designer / manufacturer. But, again, I may have been hasty in doing so.

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colnaught · ‎03-15-2023

I agree about the number of Stars and Stripes - it could simply be an artistic choice, so the viewer could see them.

I found that same Louisiana flag, and sent an email to that site’s administrator. He was very nice (…like all of you have been!), but couldn’t provide any further clues. He agrees that the obverse position of the flag is important.

I’m now leaning in to the possible Universal Peace Committee connection, but what really stuns me is that there are no comps (comparable items or auctions), on what is a very durable pin. There has to be more of them out there - it’s not a “one and done” pin - in my hypothetical time frame, they would have made at least 50 to one hundred.

I am seldom completely stumped by a pin, but this one is tough…