In Memory of Devereaux Cannon (1954-2007)

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Picture from his website Flags of the Confederacy Devereaux Cannon October 2005 NAVA 39

Devereaux Cannon Jr. (1954-2007)   His Personal flag Born 5 November 1954 - died 29 December 2007. He was 54 years old. He graduated from the University of Tennessee with a BS in Business Administration in 1976, receiving his law degree in 1979, was admitted into the Tennessee Bar, and entered into the private practice of law. He married Nora Katherine Tickle in 1976, his son Devereaux III was born in 1978, and his daughter Kate in 1996. He was active in politics as an Alternate Delegate to the 1980 Republican National Convention, an unsuccessful candidate for the legislature for the 15th house district in Knox County in 1982, a Presidential Elector for Ronald Reagan in 1984, and ran unsuccessfully for the legislature for the 44th House District in Sumner County in 1994. In 1991, he took a position as Assistant Vice President and Associate Title Counsel with the Nashville office of Title Insurance Company of Minnesota. Devereaux held the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and was Staff Judge Advocate General for the 2d Infantry Brigade of the Tennessee State Guard. He also commanded the 201st Military Police Battalion between 1997 and 1999. He is the author of three books on flags, "Flags of the Confederacy - An Illustrated History," "Flags of the Union - An Illustrated History," and "The Flags of Tennessee." He was also author of the non-flag related history book "The Wit and Wisdom of Robert E. Lee." Dev was a member of FOTW family, the Flag Institute, and the North American Vexillological Association, where he was the NAVA 1st Vice-President from 2004 until his death in 2007. He was the Editor-in-Chief of the FlagWire News (now-inactive), and his Flags of the Confederacy website is still considered a top resource for information on Confederate flags. NAVA has established a yearly Devereaux Cannon award - a Grant for Research in Vexillology. The photo of Devereaux at the NAVA 39 Conference in Nashville, Tennessee, was taken by Dev himself!

Messages from/for his FOTW Family and Friends:

Devereaux Cannon, distinguished vexillologist and First Vice-President of NAVA, died suddenly this morning of an embolism. Dev was a pillar of our vexi-community and a good friend to many of us; his loss is a terrible, shocking blow. I know that you will join me and the other members of the NAVA Board of Directors in expressing our deepest sympathies to his wife Nora and his family.
The FIAV, NAVA and CBFA flags will fly at half-staff here at my house tomorrow. I am urging all NAVA members and friends to follow suit in honor of our friend and colleague.
Peter Ansoff, NAVA President, Annandale, Virginia, USA

This is very, very sad news. I had some dealings in the past with Devereaux concerning details of his books and he was always peerlessly accurate, helpful and supportive.
FotW has lost one of its most outstanding members. Countless flags worldwide are flying at half-staff.
António MARTINS-Tuválkin, Lisbon, Portugal

We share your shock and distress at this sad news at this end of the world also. I did not know Devereaux personally, but I had considerable correspondence with him some years ago and he sent me a copy of his book on the Confederate flags. You have my deepest sympathy.
Andries Burgers, Cape Town South Africa

This mail is a shock to me. Devereaux has always been a good friend and I'm really sad not to have had a chance to meet him one day. He often kindly asked me to create animated flags for his websites or pages and I was always more than happy to do it for him. This is a great loss for our community and for vexillology as a whole.
Pascal Gross

The news of Dev's death also has shocked me. While I also regret not having the chance to meet him in person, I loved his personality, his honesty, his wisdom and his Southern Charm. I offer my sincere condolences to Dev's family.
Zachary Harden, Oceanside, California, United States

Sad news, my friends. Rest in peace Devereaux.
Valentin Poposki

It is indeed a sad lost to our Vexillological family, the news of the sudden death of Devereaux D. Cannon, Jr. (1954-2007). While I did not know him personally, I certainly knew of his extensive vexillological work, especially to do with the Confederacy flags, together with his roles in N.A.V.A. & C.B.F.A. I have in my library his excellent book, "The Flags of the Confederacy - An Illustrated History." I should like to extend my sincere condolences to Devereaux's family and all his vexillolgical friends.
Ralph Bartlett, President, Flags Australia

This is sad, sad news. Deveraux Cannon was one of the best among us. Heartfelt sympathy from across the Atlantic.
Jorge Candeias

I never met Deveraux in person, but from some E-mail exchanges, he was always kind, cheerful, and would rather improve things than correct them. A loss to our world.
Peter Hans van den Muijzenberg, Sneek, Frisia, The Netherlands

Thank You, Mr. Cannon, for your contribution to vexillological community.
Ivan Sarajcic, Belgrade, Serbia

Devereaux Cannon was a respected member of SAVA. He had a significant collection of flags from southern Africa and I personally was in touch with him on a number of occasions over the years. On behalf of the Executive and members of SAVA, would those attending the funeral please pass on our deepest condolences to all his family. In fond memory of a distinguished vexillologist, the SAVA flag will be flying at half mast.
Bruce Berry, Secretary/Treasurer, Southern African Vexillological Association (SAVA)

I got the news while on the way to Chicago from Tennessee yesterday from a mutual friend of Devereaux's and mine. I just spoke to Devereaux this past Thursday with regards to a fraudulent Civil War flags case in Eastern Tennessee that he asked me to get involved with as an expert witness and I called him to let him know how the testimony to the police went.
He was his usual cheerful self and was nursing a broken arm from a fall from his horse earlier in the week. That never diminished his humor or attitude one bit I can assure you! Those of you that know him only via his work with flags, in particular of the American Civil War and the State of Tennessee, did not get to know one of the kindest, gentlest men I have ever met who was a fine scholar, devoted husband and terrific father to both of his kids, Devereaux III (now in the US Army) and Kate.
He certainly taught me a lot about flags and I was looking forward to learning much more. He was also going to be one of the peer reviewers for the manuscript for the book that I am writing for the Tennessee State Museum on Tennessee's Civil War flags. His knowledge and wisdom for that project will be sorely missed!
Devereaux and I, along with Bob Bradley of the Alabama Department of Archives and History, were planning to write the definitive study of the Confederate First National flag and, after talking to Bob earlier today, we will go forward with this book in Devereaux's honor as we know that it meant a lot to him to be part of it.
Lastly, Devereaux, Bradley, myself, the late Howard Madaus and a number of other scholars of flags of the American Civil War, are behind the Flags of the Confederacy website. He was the webmaster for it. That site will continue, somehow, to be the best and most accurate site pertaining to Confederate flags on the Internet. I know he would want it to continue.
The world flag community has lost two giants in 2007; Howard Madaus in July, THE dean of Civil War flags scholarship, and now Devereaux Cannon. Such shows will never be filled both in terms of their work and as people that I knew well and dearly loved.
Greg Biggs, Clarksville, Tenn

This is indeed a sad news. Like many others here, I never had chance to meet Devereaux in person, but being in often contact with him through FOTW and off-list made me think of him as one of my close friends nevertheless. I have always admired his work on flags of CSA and I consider high his ability to do the academic study on this often hot political issue with the vexillologic unbiased viewpoint and I have often though of his work as model how to deal with such subjects in my dealing with flags. The FOTW and the vexillologic community shall miss a devoted scholar and a dear friend.
Željko Heimer, Zagreb, Croatia

I had intended to call him last Wednesday and had decided to wait until today. We're headed to Australia for a vacation, and I was going to see if he might want anything interesting from down under. I wish that I could back the clock up. He will be missed!
Clay Moss, Penang, Malaysia

I will certainly fly my flags at half mast and make a special trip to church tomorrow to pray for Dev and especially for his family. May he rest in peace.
Wayne Lovit, Palos Verdes Estates, California, USA

in memoriam ce 2007