This Day in History: , Congress Adopts the
Stars and Stripes.
June 14, 1777.
The basic design for the
American flag was adopted
at the Continental Congress
during the American Revolution.
Legend has it seamstress
Betsy Ross sewed the
first flag at the request of
General George Washington.
The flag had thirteen
alternating red and white
stripes and thirteen stars set
in a circle against a blue field.
As new states declared
their statehood, the flag
added both stars and stripes.
Congress restored the
original 13 stripes in the
early 1800s to represent
the original 13 colonies.
The inaugural Flag Day
was held on June 14, 1877,
and was designated officially
by Congress in 1949