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Flag Day in the U.S. celebrates the adoption of the flag of the United States of America, and its history dates back to 1916. This occurred when the Second Continental Congress was resolved in 1777.
President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed that June 14th would be Flag Day in 1916. And the nationwide holiday was established in August of 1949 by an Act of Congress.
Pennsylvania was the first and only state to celebrate Flag Day on June 14, 1937. Now, although not a federal holiday, it is celebrated in every state of the union. Quincy, Massachusetts celebrates by holding the longest-running parade on the day. This has been a practice since 1952. In Wisconsin, in 2009, their parade included the United States Navy. Troy, New York, celebrates with the largest parade in the nation, typically drawing over 50,000 spectators. And The Fairfield, Washington, Flag Day parade celebrated its Centennial parade this year, 2010, as its recognition actually began in 1910.
Some people who were instrumental in establishing this national holiday were: George Morris, in 1861, where the earliest reference of the day was stated and published in “Kansas, a Cyclopedia of State History”; in 1885, Bernard J. Cigrand worked as a teacher in Waubeka, Wisconsin, recognizing it in his school for the first time, and his promoted patriotism around the country, as well; William T. Kerr founded the American Flag Day Association in 1888, in Western Pennsylvania, and, in fact, he attended the signing of that Act of Congress which established the day’s observance; in 1893, the President of Colonial Dames of Pennsylvania, Ellizabeth Duane Gillespie tried to pass a resolution that would require the flag to be displayed on public buildings in Pennsylvania, and she was actually a descendant of Benjamin Franklin; and, of course, many people think of Betsy Ross on Flag Day. The Betsy Ross House has been Philadelphia’s site of observance on Flag Day for generations.
Share
the Flag Day
History with your
kids as a bedtime
story.
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