- In 1814, Francis Scott Key wrote a poem, "Defense of Fort
McHenry," when he saw the flag still flying the morning after an attack
by the British. Today, that poem is known by another name: "The
Star-Spangled Banner."
- The Flag Act of 1818 states that a star be added for any new state on the
Fourth of July following that state's admission.
- Flag Day
was observed for the first time in 1877, the 100th anniversary of the
adoption of our country's red-white-and-blue banner.
- Students first said the Pledge of Allegiance in 1892, the 400th
anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the Americas.
- In 1916, President Woodrow Wilson established Flag Day as an annual
national celebration.
- Congress officially recognized Flag Day by passing the National Flag Day
Bill in 1949, during President Harry Truman's administration.
- In 1983, the world's largest flag was displayed in Washington, D.C. The
flag, which measured 411 feet by 210 feet, weighed 7 tons! Each star
measured 13 feet across!