It comes up on the calendar every year, but many Americans aren’t aware of the significance, or the meaning, behind the yearly observation of Flag Day.
While there are many arguments to be had surrounding the design of the Stars and Stripes, the one thing we do know is why June 14 was selected as the day to observe Flag Day.
According to the United States’ Department of Veterans Affairs, the observance celebrates the anniversary of June 14, 1777, when the Continental Congress approved the design of a flag for the United States, which featured 13 stars and 13 stripes, representing the 13 colonies.
“Resolved, that the flag of the United States be 13 stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be 13 stars, white in a blue field representing a new constellation,” the resolution read.
That flag was carried into battle in the Battle of the Brandywine, according to the VA, and slowly came into more regular use as the American Revolution continued.
As to how the day of observance came into practice, the situation gets murkier. In fact, multiple states, including New York, Connecticut and Pennsylvania, all make claims to having originated the commemoration of Flag Day, according to the VA.
Even with those debates, which persisted throughout the 19th century, it wasn’t until 1949 when President Harry Truman signed a bill making Flag Day a day of “national observance.”
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The United States flag now flies over all publicly-run buildings in the country, featuring 50 stars representing each of the 50 states. The flag still has 13 stripes, representing the original colonies. At one point the flag did have 15 stripes, but it was reduced back to 13 as the nation continued to grow.
The theory over what inspired the flag is also hotly-debated, with George Washington’s family coat of arms and the flag of the British East India company both floated as potential points of inspiration. Of course, many Americans remember the story of Betsy Ross sewing the flag during the American Revolution in 1776, but historians have cast doubt upon that origin story as well.
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Flag Day is not a national holiday in the United States, but it still inspires parades, essay contests and ceremonies throughout the United States, according to Military.com.
