Carved bone unofficial badge of the 5th New York Infantry (alt. Duryee's Zouaves, National Zouaves). N.p., [1863]. Approx. 1 9/16 in. diam. Loss to one star arm. Ex-CHS, poss. Chicago Historical Society, accession number 1966-564 to verso.

Provenance: Howard "Howie" Madaus Collection

Per the accompanying envelope, the badge belonged to Private William McGuffage (alt. McGuffin, 1840-1940). McGuffage was born in Hampton, England, and emigrated to the United States ca. 1850. He mustered into Company F of the 5th New York on 10 July 1861. After engaging unmarred at the battles of Hanover Courthouse and Malvern Hill, McGuffage would find himself wounded in action, the victim of accidental discharge while loading his m1842 Springfield musket, at the Second Battle of Bull Run. The injuries to his hand caused by the expulsion of the ramrod and a .69 caliber bullet resulted in his discharge. 

McGuffage relocated to Chicago in 1880 and remained heavily involved in G.A.R. affairs until his passing, 2 months shy of 100 years old, in 1940. He was the final surviving member of the Zouave regiment.

The 5th New York Infantry was organized on 9 May 1861. At the Second Battle of Bull Run, where McGuffage was wounded, the regiment sustained 80 deaths and 120 men injured. 

Any resemblance to the badges employed by the 7th (VII) Army Corps, Department of Arkansas, is superficial. Period photographs of Zouaves sporting identical badges, distinct from standard Seventh Corps badges by their inverted star, reinforce the notion that the symbol saw use by Zouaves. 

From the collection of author, historian, and extensive collector, Howard “Howie” Madaus (1943-2007). Accompanied by a small envelope with a description of the badge handwritten by Madaus.

The ambition of Madaus’ badge collection was to assemble representative examples of every major type of Civil War corps badge worn by the various branches of the Union Army, including specimens from each division of every army corps, along with numerous rare and previously undocumented varieties. In both its breadth and depth, his private holdings likely surpassed those of many public institutions, and a portion of the collection is now offered here for the first time at public auction. 

Howard Madaus was a distinguished scholar and curator whose expertise in American military history and flags earned him national recognition. An active member of the Company of Military Historians, the American Society of Arms Collectors, the North-South Skirmish Association, and the Maryland Arms Collectors Association, he built his reputation through decades of dedicated scholarship. From 1968 to 1992, he served as assistant curator of history at the Milwaukee Public Museum, later becoming curator of the Cody Firearms Museum at the Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody, Wyoming, and finally Chief Curator of the National Civil War Museum in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, in 2000.

In addition to his museum work, Madaus authored numerous influential books and articles on firearms, the Civil War, and American flags. His groundbreaking Battle Flags of the Confederate Army of Tennessee (1976) established him as a national authority, followed by major studies such as The Flags of the Iron Brigade (1997) and The American Flag: Two Centuries of Concord & Conflict (2006). His expertise reached broad audiences through appearances on the History Channel, A&E, and PBS, and over the course of his career he emerged as one of the foremost authorities on United States Civil War flags.

[Civil War, Union, Confederate] [Relics, Militaria] [Medals, Corps Badges, Badges]