The American Flag

by: Leah Miller

“This flag, which we honor and under which we serve, is the emblem of our unity, our power, our thought and purpose as a nation. It has no other character than that which we give it from generation to generation. The choices are ours. It floats in majestic silence above the hosts that execute those choices, whether in peace or in war. And yet, though silent, it speaks to us — speaks to us of the past, or the men and women who went before us, and of the records they wrote upon it.” -President Woodrow Wilson

Although the American flag’s physical appearance evolved over almost 200 years, the one thing that remained the same was its symbolism. The American Flag represents many things; the ones that come to mind first are bravery, freedom, unity, and respect. Also history: It has been to war, seen the battle fields, and heard the cries of the American soldiers in the combat zone.

• 1775-The Grand Union flag, which looks much like Britain’s flag (alternating red and white strips with the British Union Jack in the canton) was the first flag of the colonies and was ordered to be flown by George Washington above his base at Prospect Hill
• June 14, 1777-Second Continental Congress passed the First Flag Act, declaring the Betsy Ross flag (13 stars and 13 stripes fro the original colonies) the official
• May 1795-2 stars and 2 stripes were added for Kentucky and Vermont to create the Star Spangled Banner flag
• April 1818-Congress reduced the number of stripes back to 13 and added 5 stars
• 1819-1912 Several revisions were made by adding a star for every new state that joined
• June 1912-Executive Order of President Taft established the proportions of the flag and arranging the stars in six horizontal rows of eight
• 1959-One star was added for Alaska and President Eisenhower re-arranged the stars to 7 rows of 7, staggered horizontally and vertically
• 1960-Finally, the current 50-star Old Glory that we still see today was selected by President Eisenhower, which was designed by 17-year old Bob Heft

The colors of the flag are also symbolic: red for Hardiness and Valor, white symbolizes Purity and Innocence and blue represents Vigilance, Perseverance and Justice.

June 14 was designated as Flag Day to celebrate the adoption of the first American flag on this day back in 1777. To commemorate the President issues an annual proclamation calling for a national observance and for the display of the flag of the United States on all Federal Government buildings. The week during which June 14 falls is “National Flag Week” and all citizens of the United States are called upon to display the flag during that week.