Do you remember celebrating Flag Day in school? I remember wearing red, white and blue from head to toe; my friends wore the colors too. At Clara Macy Elementary School in Bellingham, where I attended, we learned about the American Flag, made a flag related craft and then ended the day with an assembly. It was always fun, we sang patriotic songs like Your A Grand Old Flag and America The Beautiful.
The first American Flag was approved by the Continental Congress on June 14, 1777. The stripes were to represent the colonies and the stars to represent the union. The stars to be white in a blue field representing a new Constellation. It was in 1818, after 5 states joined the Union, Congress passed legislation fixing the number of stripes at 13 and requiring the stars on the flag equal the number of states. The idea of an annual day specifically celebrating the Flag is believed to have first originated in 1885 by a school teacher in Wisconsin who celebrated “Flag Birthday.” Woodrow Wilson officially established June 14 as Flag Day when in 1916 he issued a proclamation and President Truman signed an Act of Congress making June 14 of every year National Flag Day.
Many communities celebrate Flag Day with ceremonies and often Boy Scout Troops hold flag burning ceremonies.
Are you wearing red, white and blue today?
Here is a photo of how one community celebrates Flag Day – my cousin’s daughter is somewhere in this photo of a living flag.
UPTON DAILY 