About the Evolution of the U.S. Flag
The current American flag, as we know it, features 50 stars on a blue field accompanied by 13 alternating red and white bars. The flag has evolved; the alignment of the stars has changed 26 times between 1777 and 1960.
Invented
At the time of the American Revolution, there was no official American flag; American soldiers used the Grand Union Flag. While recognized as the first National flag, there is no historical evidence as to the nature of the flag. It bears a close resemblance to the British East India Company's flag, differing in the width of the field at the top left. Others liken it to the flag of the Sons of Liberty, a secret society of revolutionaries who led the charge against the British. Their flag featured nine vertical bars, alternating between red and white.
Misconceptions
The first flag was defined in 1777 by the Second Continental Congress, when the Flag Resolution was passed. The resolution said the flag would bear 13 stripes, alternating between red and white, and a blue field with 13 stars representing the 13 colonies. The resolution was passed on June 14, giving a natural anniversary date to the current holiday of Flag Day. This is the flag that bore the legend of Betsy Ross sewing the flag from a pencil sketch by George Washington. It is more likely that the flag was designed by Francis Hopkinson of New Jersey, a signer of the Declaration of Independence and the Chairman of the Continental Navy's Middle Board. It is believed that the 1777 flag was originally designed to be the ensign of the Navy but was adopted as the national flag.
Evolution
There have been 26 American flags from the 13-star flag of 1777 to today's 50-star flag. The evolution has come with the admission of new states to the union. This is the list of changes to the American flag:
13 stars: 1777-1795
15: 1795-1818 (addition of Vermont and Kentucky)
20: 1818-1819 (Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, Ohio, Tennessee)
21: 1819-1820 (Illinois)
23: 1820-1822 (Alabama and Maine)
24: 1822-1836 (Missouri)
25: 1836-1837 (Arkansas)
26: 1837-1845 (Michigan)
27: 1845-1846 (Florida)
28: 1846-1847 (Texas)
29: 1847-1848 (Iowa)
30: 1848-1851 (Wisconsin)
31: 1851-1858 (California)
32: 1858-1859 (Minnesota)
33: 1859-1861 (Oregon)
34: 1861-1863 (Kansas)
35: 1863-1865 (West Virginia)
36: 1865-1867 (Nevada)
37: 1867-1877 (Nebraska)
38: 1877-1890 (Colorado)
43: 1890-1891 (Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota and Washington)
44: 1891-1896 (Wyoming)
45: 1896-1908 (Utah)
46: 1908-1912 (Oklahoma)
48: 1912-1959 (Arizona, New Mexico)
49: 1959-1960 (Alaska)
50: 1960-Present (Hawaii)
Identification
The original flag was created without many rules. Thirteen stars arranged in a circle on a blue field and 13 stripes, alternating between red and white, were the only identifiable marks. Since there were no uniform standards for an American flag, there was little consistency from flag-maker to flag-maker.
An 1818 act signed by President Monroe dictated that the flag should have 13 stripes and one star representing each state, which would be added on the Fourth of July following the admission date of that state. President Taft's 1912 executive order set the proportions of the flag and determined that stars should be lined up in six rows of eight stars each, with a tip of each star pointed upward.
An executive order signed by President Eisenhower in 1959, following the admission of Alaska as the 49th state, rearranged the stars into seven rows of seven stars. Eisenhower issued a second order later that year when Hawaii was admitted. This order stated that starts should be arranged in nine horizontally staggered rows and 11 vertically staggered rows, matching a design submitted by a Michigan child that was adopted on July 4, 1960.
Expert Insight
The current American flag was not a creation of the government or an American legend, but a schoolboy from Saginaw, Mich. Robert Heft designed the flag as a class project while Hawaii and Alaska were being considered as possible states. His teacher gave him a B-minus for the assignment on the grounds that it lacked creativity. His teacher said he could get a higher grade if Congress adopted the flag. Heft sent his flag design to his Congressman and President Eisenhower used it as the model for his second flag-related executive order of 1959.
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