Civil War days and flying the flag at old Belinda

Here's another story about Belinda, once a tiny Lucas County village located astraddle Highway 14 between Williamson and the Columbia turn-off.

I wrote yesterday about the village's founding postmaster, Samuel Scott Walker. This story involves his youngest daughters, Quintilla Jane (born 1845) and Rosalee Melissa (born 1848). It was published first in the Marshalltown Times-Republican during early February, 1926, then republished in The Chariton Leader of Feb. 23.

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Down in Lucas county, at the little town of Belinda, during the days of the Civil War, lived the family of Samuel Scott Walker, who for 20 years was village postmaster. Today, although Belinda is on the map, the post office long has been discontinued.

When President Lincoln called for volunteers to preserve the union, two of Walker's sons, Cyrus A. and James F., enlisted and served until the close of the war, Cyrus in the 9th Iowa Cavalry and James, in the 34th Iowa Infantry, which served under General Grant.

At home, anxiously awaiting every bit of news which came from the front, were two of the Walker girls, Quintilla and Melissa. They conceived the idea of making a flag to be flown from a high staff in the Walker yard, the post office being situated in their father's home.

The flag was made by hand by the two girls, and was sixteen feet in length by eight feet in width. The field and stripes of red were of wool and the white was cotton. It was understood in the neighborhood that if news of a victory of the Union forces was received at the post office, the flag was to be run to the top of the staff, from where it could be seen for some distance. If the victory were especially notable, a huge kite,  which one of the Walker boys had made, was used to carry the flag high into the air, the flag acting as a balance for the kite.

The flag became famous in that part of the country, and the air was scanned each day to see if there were a tale of another big victory for the boys in blue.

After the war the flag went to Cyrus Walker, and upon his death to his son, George, who now has the old relic at his home in Eldon, Illinois. 

One of the girls who made the flag now is Mrs. Quintilla Walker, of 606 West Boone Street. Mrs. Walker married a man of her own name, and came here from Carroll county, Missouri, a little more than a year ago, following the death of her husband. Mrs. Walker now is 80 years old and is bright and active.

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Quintilla had a good many years left to her when this story was reported. She died at 94 on Jan. 1, 1940, and was buried beside her husband, George, in Smith Cemetery, Carroll County, Missouri. During 1926, she was spending time at Marshalltown with grandchildren --- offspring of her son, James, who had been killed in a railroading accident during 1918.