Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Yellow ribbons making appearance in Gurdon

As with the first Gulf War, Desert Storm, Americans began to slowly see the appearance of the yellow ribbons.

But, where have these come from? When did the yellow ribbon become a symbol, and what do they stand for?

Few persons 30 years of age and over, fail to recall the popularized song made famous by Tony Orlando and Dawn in the late 1970's entitled, "Tie A Yellow Ribbon (around the old oak tree)." Younger people may be familiar with it because of a Behind the Music' on VH1 music television episode featuring Tony Orlando.

But in an article for The American Folklife Center part of the Library of Congress, historian Gerald E. Parsons wrote, "How the Yellow Ribbon Became a National Folk Symbol."

In this article, Parsons traces back through time, the history of the Yellow Ribbon.'

The actual use of the yellow ribbon' as a symbol for remembering service personnel began with Mrs. Penelope Lainge of Bethesda, Maryland, during the Iranian Hostage Crisis, 1979.

One of the hostages was Lainge's husband, Bruce Lainge who was serving as the U.S. Chargee' d'Affaires in Tehran, Iran.

She's quoted in the article, "It just came to me, to give people something to do, rather than throw dog food at Iranians. I said, Why don't they tie a yellow ribbon around an old oak tree. That's how it started." She was on a CBS news broadcast when she said it on January 28, 1979.

She continues in the article to reference her inspiration to the song recorded by more than 30 musical artist in the late 1970's, Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole' Oak Tree."

The song was written by Irwin Levine and Larry Russell and was copyrighted in 1972. Russell confessed he had heard the story of the prisoner returning home after a long absence, while in the army. The article quotes him from another interview from the Washington Post on January 27, 1981.

But even further back in history, the term or starting of the yellow ribbon as a symbol could be recalled from the 1949 motion picture featuring America's favorite movie hero, John Wayne, in "She Wore A Yellow Ribbon." In this movie was the hit song, "(Round Her Neck) She Wore A Yellow Ribbon."

In the 1920's and 1930's the lyrics to this song were first seen in a song entitled, "Round Her Neck She Wears A Yeller Ribbon (For Her Lover Who Is Fur, Fur Away)," copyrighted by composer, George A. Norton in 1917.

The wearing of yellow or a ribbon may have had their roots in roots.' An older 1830's song, recalls the wearing of a green willow,' in "All Around My Hat." The green willow' was not only an earlier version of the other songs, but the symbols of plants such as willow can be linked to the yellow ribbon. Willow stood for faithfulness and chastity.

Plants and flowers as statements were popular during the first few decades of the 1800's. It would have been commonplace perhaps to see a woman saying what society would not let her speak of aloud in a group of flowers around her neck, i.e. A yellow ribbon round her neck.'

For example from the book "The Language of Flowers, 1819 France," the yellow daffodil is said to represent chivalry, with all other daffodils representing regard.

Americans have taken to placing a yellow ribbons somewhere to honor our troops and home-front service personnel. The yellow ribbon is the American citizens' way of showing regard for the chivalry of all those who put their lives between us and those who would harm its peoples.