From time to time Inner Harbor Yacht Club (and other yacht clubs) get inquires from people who think we are
displaying the US Flag incorrectly. The problem is that people are confusing the IHYC gaff-rigged pole with the more traditional
single flag staff. While on a single pole, the American flag should be in the top spot, the place of honor
on a gaff-rigged pole, with its seagoing origins, is different. Because of the sails carried by ships of
old, the flag of a nation couldn't be seen clearly if placed at the top of the mast. Instead, it was placed at the gaff peak,
which juts out from the pole. According to long-standing maritime tradition, the gaff is the position of honor on a
ship and thus is where the U.S. Flag should be flown. Yachting organizations, following the tradition of the seas, erect
land-based, gaff-rigged flagpoles and fly the U.S. Flag at the gaff as well; feeling that the gaff is the position of honor
on the pole. We suggest visiting the Web sites for Chapman's Piloting or the New York Yacht Club, or simply
Googling "flag etiquette" if you still think it's improper, we also supply this link to the United States Power
Squadron web site.
