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The Flag of
the United States of America was born almost a year after the
Declaration of Independence. The Stars and Stripes to which we
pledge allegiance was authorized on June 14, 1777. Just as we
celebrate the birth of independence on July 4th each year, the
people of our Nation celebrate the birth of our Flag every year
on June 14th.
The United States Flag first
flew in a Flag Day celebration during the first summer of the
Civil war, when it was flown at Hartford, Connecticut on June
14, 1861. A few years later on June 14, 1877 the flag celebrated
it's 100th birthday. At that time the U.S. Government requested
that the flag be flown from all public buildings to celebrate
its first century. From that point on, Flag Day celebrations
became a popular but not yet official, celebrations.
Most early (1885 - 1900) Flag Day celebrations were independent
activities, often as a part of school educational programs. A
school district in Fredonia, Wisconsin began as early as 1885 to
celebrate "Flag Birthday", followed by schools in New York a few
years later. The Betsy Ross House in Philadelphia conducted a
Flag Day celebration in 1891. By 1893 the children of
Philadelphia were gathering at Independence Square to celebrate
the birth of the flag. (To this day the Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania is the only state where Flag Day is a legal
holiday, though it is observed in all 50 states as a day of
honoring our Flag.)
The following year (1894) 300,000 school children participated
in Flag Day celebrations promoted by the Illinois American Flag
Day Association. The popularity of the event, promoted by
Veterans' and other patriotic organizations, quickly gained more
support. Flag Day became a true "grass-roots" movement,
flourishing under the patriotic efforts of educators and school
children. Finally, in 1916, President Woodrow Wilson issued a
Presidential proclamation making June 14th a day of honoring our
flag and celebrating its birth.
It seemed that United States citizens enjoyed displaying their
flags and celebrating its birth each year, but there was little
consistency as there were no federal or state regulations to
provide guidelines regarding display of the flag. Thus on Flag
Day, 1923 the National Flag Code was adopted by the National
Flag Conference. A similar conference the following year made
some slight changes, and these guidelines became the basis for a
joint resolution of Congress on June 22, 1942 (and amended
December 22, 1942) to become Public Law 829; Chapter 806, 77th
Congress, 2nd session. This series of activities provided all
citizens with some basic principles to follow in display of the
Flag. You can find these guidelines in Title 36 of the United
States Code.
Not until 1949 did the United States Congress take formal action
on the matter of Flag Day. On August 3, 1949 President Harry S
Truman signed their resolution "That the 14th day of June in
each year is hereby designated as Flag Day." Today it is the
right of every American to proudly display the flag that speaks
of our freedom. But with every RIGHT comes some RESPONSIBILITY
as well...including the responsibility to display the flag
properly and with respect. In the following pages we will share
with you just what that means.
The Flag was defined by the Second Continental Congress, meeting
at Philadelphia on June 14, 1777 in a resolution that read:
"Resolved, that the flag of the United States be thirteen
stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen
stars, white in a blue field representing a new constellation."
(§1.)*
Of course, we know our flag now has 50 stars, after Congress
determined that:
"On the admission of a new State into the union one star shall
be added to the union of the flag, and such addition shall take
effect on the fourth day of July then next succeeding such
admission." (§2.)*
*(United States Code, Title 4, Chapter 1, as amended)
The UNION of the flag is the field of blue containing the 50
stars.
The length of the flag is called the FLY and its height from top
to bottom is called the HOIST.
The pole on which the flag is mounted is called the STAFF, the
top of which is the PEAK, and if the flag is attached to the
staff with a rope, that rope is called the HALYARD.
Another term you will need to understand is what is meant by
"THE FLAG'S OWN RIGHT." To understand this, think of yourself as
the flag facing the audience. The Flag's Own Right would be the
side where your right hand is located. As we look at proper
display of the flag in the following pages, we will include
pictures and diagrams to help you understand how to properly
display the flag.
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