Flag Man Of Crail

When Robert Anderson bought a house in Crail, he decided to put a flagpole in the garden. Before too long, thanks to his everchanging display of colourful flags, he’d earned a new nickname: the Flag Man.

Passers-by were so interested in his flags that he eventually attached an information board to his gatepost, letting everyone know which country he’d chosen each day.

People sent him flags from all around the world, and he even received an American flag that had once flown above the Capitol, unfurled in his garden to mark President Obama’s inauguration.

When Robert died in 2011 at the age of 88, his friend George stepped in to continue the flag-raising tradition. A flag flew at half-mast in the days following his death, and condolences flooded in from friends and strangers alike.

For Obama’s second term in office, two years after Robert’s death, his Star-spangled Banner was raised again, with local schoolchildren gathering to sing the American national anthem.

It was more than a tribute to the president – this was a commemoration of the sorely missed Flag Man of Crail.