Monitor-Merrimac flag disappears, reappears

After a few weeks' absence, the Stars and Stripes flies again on the rocky shore of the James River.

The fluttering Old Glory appeared mysteriously six years ago on the shoreline of the Tidewater Community College's Portsmouth campus, at the southern end of the Monitor-Merrimac Memorial Bridge-Tunnel.

Turned out at least one phantom patriot had slipped through a half mile of dense undergrowth, past snakes and other critters, to plant - and maintain - the flag on the prominent point where it became a popular landmark.

But the flag was unlit, therefore technically illegal. So in June 2003, the college installed a solar-powered light to illuminate the flag on its new 15-foot pole.

To the dismay of bridge-tunnel regulars, the flag and pole vanished earlier this year. Frank Dunn, TCC vice president, speculated that was snatched either by the weather or vandals.

Before the college could install a replacement, some good citizen, Dunn said, erected a new pole and flag. After TCC checks out the security of the apparatus, he hopes the flag will fly again for another five years.