Flown flag of the state of New Jersey carried on Apollo 7, 6 x 4, signed and flight-certified at the bottom in black ballpoint, "Flown on Apollo 7, Wally Schirra." The flag is affixed to a signed letter of provenance from Schirra, in part: "This New Jersey state flag was flown on Apollo 7 during October 11 to 22, 1968. Apollo 7 was the first manned flight of the command and service modules. The flight was 101 percent successful! I was born and attended school in New Jersey. I felt it was appropriate to carry the flag of my home state on my final space flight. Walter Cunningham, Donn Eisele, and I carried a very small group of flags during our mission." In fine condition.
Schirra grew up in Oradell, New Jersey, where his father was a barnstorming pilot at county fairs around the state. After graduating from Dwight Morrow High School in June 1940, he enrolled in the Newark College of Engineering. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, he decided to apply to a service academy and enrolled in the United States Naval Academy—the launchpad for his career in aviation, which culminated in his historic Apollo 7 flight.
The New Jersey state flag features a buff colored background surrounding the coat of arms which features three plows, a forward facing medieval helmet having a horse head rest. The female figures of Liberty and Ceres are symbolic of the state motto, “Liberty and Prosperity,” which is written below them. General George Washington selected the buff background which was utilized as a uniform color of the New Jersey Continental soldiers during the Revolutionary War.
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