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History of the American Flag
For
more than 200 years, the American flag has been the symbol of our nation's
strength and unity. It's been a source of pride and inspiration for millions
of citizens. And it has been a prominent icon in our national history. Here
are the highlights of its unique past.
 On January 1, 1776, the
Continental Army was reorganized in accordance with a Congressional
resolution which placed American forces under George Washington's control.
On that New Year's Day the Continental Army was laying siege to Boston which
had been taken over by the British Army. Washington ordered the Grand Union
flag hoisted above his base at Prospect Hill. It had 13 alternate red and
white stripes and the British Union Jack in the upper left-hand corner (the
canton).
In May of 1776, Betsy
Ross reported that she sewed the first American flag.
On June 14, 1777, in order to establish an official flag for the new nation,
the Continental Congress passed the first Flag Act: "Resolved, That the flag
of the United States be made of thirteen stripes, alternate red and white;
that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new
Constellation."
Between 1777 and 1960, Congress passed several acts that changed the shape,
design and arrangement of the flag and allowed for additional stars and
stripes to be added to reflect the admission of each new state.
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Act of January 13,
1794 - provided for 15 stripes and 15 stars after May 1795.
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Act of April 4, 1818
- provided for 13 stripes and one star for each state, to be added to
the flag on the 4th of July following the admission of each new state,
signed by President Monroe.
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Executive Order of
President Taft dated June 24, 1912 - established proportions of the flag
and provided for arrangement of the stars in six horizontal rows of
eight each, a single point of each star to be upward.
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Executive Order of
President Eisenhower dated January 3, 1959 - provided for the
arrangement of the stars in seven rows of seven stars each, staggered
horizontally and vertically.
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Executive Order of
President Eisenhower dated August 21, 1959 - provided for the
arrangement of the stars in nine rows of stars staggered horizontally
and eleven rows of stars staggered vertically.
Today the flag consists
of thirteen horizontal stripes, seven red alternating with 6 white. The
stripes represent the original 13 colonies, the stars represent the 50
states of the Union. The colors of the flag are symbolic as well: Red
symbolizes Hardiness and Valor, White symbolizes Purity and Innocence and
Blue represents Vigilance, Perseverance and Justice.
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American ships in New England waters
flew a "Liberty Tree" flag in 1775. It shows a green pine tree on a
white background. |
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The Continental Navy used this flag
upon its inception. |
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The "Grand Union" shown here is also
called The "Cambridge Flag." It was flown over Prospect Hill,
overlooking Boston, January 1, 1776. In the canton (the square in
the corner) are the crosses of Saint Andrew and Saint George,
borrowed from the British flag. |
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The "Betsy Ross" flag. |
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According to some sources, this flag
was first used in 1777. It was used by the Third Maryland Regiment.
There was no official pattern for how the stars were to be arranged.
The flag was carried at the Battle of Cowpens, which took place on
January 17, 1781, in South Carolina. The actual flag from that
battle hangs in the Maryland State House. |
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At the Battle of Bennington in August 1777 were two
famous flags. One, shown here, is called the Bennington Flag or the
Fillmore Flag. Nathaniel Fillmore took this flag home from the
battlefield. The flag was passed down through generations of
Fillmores, including Millard, and today it can be seen at Vermont's
Bennington Museum. |
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Vermont and Kentucky joined the union
in 1791 and 1792. This flag with 15 stars and 15 stripes, was
adopted by a Congressional act of 1794. The flag became effective
May 1, 1795. |
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By 1818, the union consisted of 20
states. A Congressional act mandated that the number of stripes be
fixed at 13 and that one new star was to be added for each new
state, the July 4 following its admission. However, nothing was
written about what arrangement the stars should be in. This and the
following two flags were all used simultaneously. |
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Another 1818 flag (see above). |
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And another 1818 flag (see above).
This was called the "Grand Star" flag. |
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Following the Mexican-American War in
1846, the nation had 28 states. |
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By 1861, the nation had 34 states.
Even after the South seceded from the Union, President Lincoln would
not allow any stars to be removed from the flag. |
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In 1908, the United States had 46
states. It's interesting to note that there was no official design
for the 46-star flag used from 1908 to 1912. |
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In 1912, the United States had 48
states. A Presidential order was issued fixing the position of the
stars for this flag. Presidential orders followed the adoption of
the flags of 1959 and 1960, as well. |
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This flag was used starting on July
4, 1959, after the admission of Alaska to the Union on Jan. 3, 1959. |
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The United States flag today. The
50th star was added on July 4, 1960 for Hawaii, which entered the
Union on August |
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