June 14th is Flag Day. This is the date that was established for the Stars and Stripes birthday when it was officially adopted as the Flag of the United States of America on August 3rd, 1949. On that date President Truman signed an Act of Congress designating June 14th as National Flag Day.
This was not the start of Flag Day, however. That honor goes to a schoolteacher from Wisconsin, who in 1885 began to celebrate 'Flag Birthday' with his students.
For years after, BJ Cigrand continued to make addresses advocating for the United States to celebrate 'Flag Birthday', or as it is now known, 'Flag Day'.
The State Board of Education in New York began to celebrate Flag Day in 1891, and the first celebration in Philadelphia took place the following year. It took three more decades before a Proclamation established Flag Day, and another three decades before the Act of Congress was signed designating June 14th as National Flag Day.
To learn more about Flag Day, you can visit USFlag.org or http://www.nationalflagday.com/.
Comments