June 14, 2023 – Flag Day

Happy Flag Day! Today commemorates the adoption of the U.S. flag on June 14, 1777, by resolution of the Second Continental Congress. While the flag was adopted in 1777, it would be another 150 years until it got its own holiday, when President Woodrow Wilson issued a proclamation establishing it in 1916. The flag has been officially modified 26 times since 1777. The current 50 star flag is the longest-used version, having been adopted in 1960 after Alaska and Hawaii became states. We’ve all heard the story about Betsy Ross sewing the first flag from a pencil sketch given to her by George Washington. Turns out, no evidence exists to back up that claim, either in George Washington’s diaries or the records from the Continental Congress. It was more than a century later that Ross’ grandson first publically suggested the story. Most historians now dismiss the story as there is no evidence to support it. When Alaska and Hawaii were being considered for statehood, more than 1,500 designs for a new flag were submitted to President Dwight D. Eisenhower. The current 50-star design was supposedly designed by an Ohio teenager named Robert Heft as a class project. Heft claimed he got a B- on his project, but reached an agreement with his teacher that if his design was selected by Congress, he could have a better grade. He said his design was the one ultimately chosen and that his teacher changed his grade to an A. But his claim is now disputed and it’s believed to be a hoax. Learn more here.