Happy Flag Day!
NEWPRO wishes everyone a happy Flag Day! For this holiday, let’s take a look at some of the most interesting facts about our American Flag (from PBS).
On this day in history, June 14, 1777, the United States of America adopted the American Flag by the resolution of the 2 Continental Congress. While this the 240 birthday of the American Flag, from 1777 to 1960, it has undergone several changes and arrangements. These changes normally reflected states being added.
The current American flag consists of 13 horizontal stripes, seven red and six white, along with 50 stars. The stripes represent the original 13 colonies, while the stars represent the 50 states of the union. Even the colors have symbolic meaning, red stands for hardiness and valor, white symbolizes purity and innocence while blue represents perseverance and justice.
The flag that inspired our National Anthem, “The Star-Spangled Banner” is still around! The National Museum of American has undertaken a long-term preservation project of the 1814 Fort-McHenry Garrison flag. This flag (Known as the Star-Spangled Banner) was last displayed in December 1998, but as since been removed and stored for its preservation. The preservation project is in its 18 year, starting in 1999, and the flag is currently stored at a 10-degree angle in a special low-oxygen, filtered light chamber. The Star-Spangled Banner is periodically examined at a microscopic level to detect any signs of decay of damage within its individual fibers.
