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Some Flag
History
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The Flag's Creator
Mary Pickersgill, of Baltimore,
made the actual 30-by-42-foot flag, which she sold for
$405.90. Lt. Col. George Armistead acquired it when
he left the military, and it remained
in his family
until a grandson donated it to the Smithsonian
Institution in 1912. The flag recently has been restored
and is on display in the newly reopened National Museum
of American History in Washington, D.C.
Betsy Ross Flag
Most historians question the possibility of Betsy
Ross being the designer of the first American flag.The
story is a historical myth made public after the close
of the Civil War.
Betsy Ross
story did not surface until thirty-four years after her
death when her son, William J. Canby presented a paper
he wrote to the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. He
claims stories were verbally passed down throughout the
years by Betsy and other family members about her
designing the first American flag.
There are
several reasons historians question Betsy Ross
involvement with the first American flag. No records
indicate that Continental Congress had a committee to
design the national flag in the spring of 1776. Even
though Betsy Ross kept detailedstore records, no invoice
or document has been found linking to this transaction.
The first
meeting, discussion or debate by Congress to discuss a
national flag did not occur until the Flag Resolution of
1777.Many historians speculate there wereat least
seventeen flag makers and upholsters working in
Philadelphia during the time the flag was created.
Some historians theorize Margaret Manny may have
designed the first Continental Colors Flag, but lack
evidence to link her with the first national flag. Other
flag makers working in Philadelphia during that time
include Rebecca Young, Anne King, Cornelia Bridges, and
William Barrett. Any flag maker in Philadelphia could
have designed the first American flag.While everyone
enjoys the story of Betsy Ross been the designer of the
first American flag, historians are still
searching.
Who Designed
the Fifty Star American Flag?
A seventeen-year-old
high school student named Robert Heft designed the
50-star American flag.
In 1958 Heft was a student at
Lancaster High School creating a project for a history
class. He set
out to design a 50-star flag for his
history class anticipating the addition of Alaska and
Hawaii into the Union. He designed the flag utilizing
his mothers sewing machine and a hot iron to add a new
blue canton and 100 hand-cut stars (50 on each side) to
the field of an old 48-star flag. Heft toiled
for
twelve hours to complete his history
project
50-Star Flag
Little did he know his
teacher would offer him the ultimate challenge that
would make history. The next day Heft submitted his flag
for history class and his teacher, Stanly Pratt asked
wherehe got his crystal ball. Pratt was referencing the
use of fifty stars instead of forty-eight. Of course,
Heft explained he believed Hawaii and Alaska would
be added to the Union. In response, Pratt made Heft an
offer if Congress accepted the flag then his grade would
be raised.
Because Heft accepted the
challenge, he made history alongside President
Eisenhower on July 4, 1960 when his flag became the
first 50-star flag raised in Washington.
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