The American Flag

Did Betsy Ross really sew the first American flag? Probably not. There seems to be no truth to the popular legend that a committee headed by George Washington asked Ross, a Philadelphia seamstress to make the first “Stars and Stripes.”

Nobody knows who really designed the flag adopted by the new United States of America on June 14, 1777. That first flag had 13 stars and 13 stripes, representing the original states of the Union. The colors---red, white, and blue---were borrowed from the British flag, symbolizing the country’s English heritage. Additional stripes and new stars were added when Vermont and Kentucky joined the Union, but in 1818, Congress decided to return to 13 stripes to honor the original states, anticipating the addition of a new star for each new state. The current flag, with its 50 stars, was adopted in 1960 after Hawaii gained statehood.

There are many names for the American flag, such as “Old Glory,”, “the Star Spangled Banner,” and “the Stars and Stripes.” It remains a symbol of democracy and freedom whereever it is unfurled.

Since 1916, the U.S. has remembered the anniversary of the flag’s adoption by celebrating Flag Day on June 14th.