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For over a year after
the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the United States
did not have an official flag. Meeting in Philadelphia in June,
the Continental Congress declared: "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."
No guidelines, however, were provided for the arrangement of the
stars, and an amazing number of variations were created. Perhaps
the most popular was to arrange the stars in a circle or wreath.
Credit for this design is usually--and mistakenly--given to Betsy
Ross. In fact, no clear author of the "first" American
flag can be identified, and the Betsy Ross legend was created by
the grandson nearly 100 years after the Congressional resolution.
Francis Hopkinson represented New Jersey in the Continental Congress,
signed the Declaration of Independence and designed seals for various
departments of the government and may well have designed the first
flag.
See the Flag
Size and Pricing Guide...
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