Yesterday Was Flag Day!

 Flag day is a day that has had more celebration associated with it than now.  It is still celebrated but not with as much national ceremonies as Memorial Day or the 4th of July.

The origins of Flag Day began in June of 1775 when the colonists met to create the first flag to unite them as they fought the British for independence.  The result was the Continental colors that provided the umbrella for all to fight under.

Unfortunately, this flag with it's 13 red and white stripes and Union Jack was too close to the British flag so George Washington suggested they create a different flag.  In June 1777, the Second Continental Congress passed a resolution stating the flag would still have the 13 red and white stripes but instead of the union jack, it would have 13 stars representing the 13 colonies.

One hundred years later in 1877, the United States held a 100th anniversary celebration of the creation of the flag but it was not designed to be anything more than a one time event.  In 1885, a small town Wisconsin teacher suggested that the country should hold an annual Flag Day on June 14th across the country.  He convinced his school to celebrate the day that year.  Throughout his life, he kept crusading for Flag Day, even after he switched careers.

The idea spread across the country to the point eventually 36 states and local governments were celebrating Flag Day but it didn't become a national celebration for over 30 years.  On May 30, 1916, Woodrow Wilson used his presidential power to proclaim the Flag Day Resolution of 1777 which stated June 14 would be nationally observed but it wasn't until 1949, Congress designated June 14 as Flag Day officially.

Now for a few interesting facts about the American Flag.

1.  Although the story goes that Betsy Ross created the first flag, there is no real evidence she made it.    At the time, she purportedly made the flag in 1776, no one said anything about it.  It wasn't until her grandson relayed the story to the Historical Society of Pennsylvania which stated George Washington and two other men came to her with a sketch to see if she could make the flag.  She supposedly made a couple of suggestions to improve it before constructing the flag.

In 1873, Harper's Bazaar published the story based on affidavits from Betsy Ross's daughter, niece, and granddaughter as fact.  Unfortunately, there is no real evidence she made the first flag but there is evidence she was paid to make ships colors for the Pennsylvania State Navy Board in 1777.  There is however, some evidence that Francis Hopkinson contributed to the design of the original flag because he filed a claim with the Board of Admiralty in 1780 for payment of his idea.  His claim was denied because they said he was one of many who were consulted.

2.  Since the first flag was made in 1777, there have been 27 different versions of the United States flag.  This is due to the fact that states were added and the flags had to be remade with more stars.  There is a remnant of the 15 stripe, 15 star flag that inspired the Star Spangled Banner in the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.

3. The red, white, and blue of the flag represent valor, liberty, and purity.  In fact, the red and blue have specific colors referred to as Old Glory Blue and Old Glory Red but the white is plain old white.

4. The current version of the flag was designed by a 17 year old student in 1949.  He created his design for a school project and received a B- on it but he still sent it off to President Eisenhower when Hawaii and Alaska gained statehood. His design was chosen out of 1500 entries.

5. There are 6 flags on the moon but only 5 of them are still standing.  The one fell over due to the wind created by landing and taking off ships.

I hope you enjoyed reading this.  Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear.  Have a great day.