On June 14, 1777, the U.S. first adopted the design for the American flag.

Now, 246 years later, Old Glory is still celebrated on June 14th of each year with Flag Day observance.

Flag Day is not a federal holiday so government offices will be open and mail will run. Still, it is a time to recognize the history of the flag and what it represents.

Some flag history

According to legend, in 1776, George Washington commissioned Philadelphia seamstress Betsy Ross to create a new flag. According to the Library of Congress, however, credit for the flag’s design likely should go to Francis Hopkinson, who also designed the Great Seal and first coin of the U.S.

It’s believed Ross likely met with Washington and sewed an early flag in her family’s Philadelphia upholstery shop.

To date, there have been 27 official versions of the flag with the arrangement of the stars varying until 1912 when President Howard Taft standardized the then 48-star arrangement into six rows of eight. The current version of the flag dates to July 4, 1960, after Hawaii became the fiftieth state on August 21, 1959.

How did Flag Day start?

According to the Library of Congress, President Woodrow Wilson issued a presidential proclamation in 1916 establishing Flag Day on June 14. On that day, Americans were encouraged to display flags in front of their homes and with parades and patriotic observances.

Congressional legislation designating that date as the national Flag Day was signed into law by President Harry Truman in 1949; the legislation also called upon the president to issue a flag day proclamation every year.

Symbols of the flag

The flag’s 50 white stars represent the country’s 50 states while the 13 stripes – 7 red and 6 white – represent the number of original colonies.

Red on the flag represents valor and bravery, white is for purity and innocence and blue is for vigilance, perseverance, and justice.

There are numerous regulations on how to flag should be flown and displayed. You can see more on flag etiquette here.