Is it just me? Does anyone else still have a holiday exhaustion? I just can’t seem to get my head straight. Maybe it’s because I still have a gift or two that need exchanging. Shhh! Don’t tell my mom. She thinks I really loved all of my gifts. Oh, who knows. I might just keep the stuff – I always feel guilty telling someone I didn’t really like a gift. But seriously: what am I going to do with a ceramic cat statue? I’m allergic to the real thing. I think my mom thought I liked cats, but couldn’t be around them without sneezing, so she got this thing for me. It’s kind of funny, I guess. But, as psychosomatic as it sounds, I get the slightest feeling that I might sneeze whenever I look at it. Oh boy!
John Adams Miniseries
So, did everyone have a good start to the new year? Anyone make and break a resolution yet? I made a resolution to not eat so many hot dogs. I do need to maintain my girlish figure. If I keep eating hot dogs, I’ll never fit in to one of those beautiful evening gowns that all of the pretty actresses wore to the Golden Globes. Yes… I am a girl, and I loooooove me some awards shows! I was really excited about this year’s awards show, though, because a really good TV mini-series that I absolutely adored was nominated for a few awards: HBO made a mini-series out of historian David McCullough’s Pulitzer Prize winning biography, John Adams. I’m happy to announce, in case you missed the Golden Globes ceremony, that HBO’s John Adams swept the four categories in which it was nominated. Paul Giamatti won Best Actor for his portrayal of our second U.S. President, John Adams. Actress Laura Linney won Best Actress as Adams’ wife, Abagail, and Tom Wilkinson won Best Supporting Actor as Benjamin Franklin. Last but certainly not least, John Adams the mini-series won, uh, yeah, Best Mini-Series. 
Okay… I will stop gushing about this now. But I will recommend that If you have not seen the HBO series or read the McCullough book, you should consider snatching up both. They’re very good.
Now that I’m done with all of the goofy stuff, I need to continue telling you all the story about the creation of the American Flag. A couple weeks ago we learned that Betsy Ross did not experience creative genius when sewing the first flag. By the way, boys and girls, the history of Betsy Ross even sewing the first American Flag is rather foggy. It is a true fact that she was a seamstress and flag maker, and there is evidence that she participated in flag projects. But proof that Betsy Ross sewed the first Star Spangled Banner is not to be found anywhere, and is more less a historical fairy tale. Sorry, Betsy. I still love ya!
First Navy Jack Flag
Okay, so where were we? Oh yeah… several flags from Great Britain and Scotland hold great significance in the design of Old Glory. Britain’s King’s Colors inspired the red, white and blue. English flags such as the Red Ensign and the British Red Ensign, flown from British ships, inspired our flag’s layout design: a canton (where our star field is located), and a field (where we see the alternating 13 red and white stripes). So. Those red and white stripes. Where did those come from? The alternating red and white stripes were actually designed for one of the first flags to represent the 13 colonies. The flag was called the Continental Navy Jack, and is believed to have flown aboard the Continental Fleet’s flagship Alfred. Adorned ahead of the 13 stripes on this flag is a rattlesnake, and below the serpent there are the words, “Don’t Tread on Me.” The snake, and the statement, were put on the flag as a warning to the British monarchy. The Continental Navy Jack still exists today, and actually on May 23, 2002, the Secretary of the Navy announcced that it would be revived for all US Navy vessels beginning September 11, 2002. The flag will be flown until the end of the global war on terrorism. The Ensign flags, with their field and canton design, and the Continental Navy Jack with its 13 stripes, were the starting ground for the design of Old Glory. However, we still have s’more history to sift through before we actually get to the design we’re familiar with.
In the winter of 1775, American colonists began flying a flag that looked similar our national flag but, instead of a blue background and stars in the canton, it adorned something that looked like Britain’s King’s Colors. The flag was called a number of names: The Continental Colors, The Cambridge Flag, The Congress Flag, and the Grand Union Flag. Despite all of the names it became the unofficial flag of the U.S. Navy in 1777.
Alrighty then. So, you remember a couple minutes ago when I told you that the Betsy Ross story was kind of a fairy tale, right? I bet you started thinking to yourself, “Well if she didn’t make the flag, then who did?” I can end that suspense for ya. There was this guy, Francis Hopkinson, and he had his hands in a little bit of everything. He was New Jersey’s delegate to the Continental Congress, a member of the Marine Committee, and a member of the Navy Committee, too. Plus, he was one of the fine gentlemen with exquisite penmanship who signed the Declaration of Independence. He was a busy dude. LOL! Anyway, as history goes, the United States flew the unofficial Continental Colors Flag (or whichever name you’d like to call it) for for almost a full year following the first Independence Day in 1776. It’s said that Hopkinson, while serving as a member of the Navy Board, wanted to deep six (did you catch the Naval term? hee hee) the King’s Colors design in the canton. He thought our ships, which flew the unofficial flag, needed a new ensign, so he began a new design with stars over a blue background. Now, if y’all know anything about politics, Congress can be a fickle bunch. But Hopkinson’s flag design must’ve been something jazzy, because in June of 1777, Congress accepted his design.
The American Flag was taking real shape now, but she still had a ways to go. A little bit, anyway. You see, the stars in the canton were not always the same. Some had six points, and some flags had eight points on a star. Could you imagine having to doodle a star with eight points? I have enough trouble with the five-pointed variety! Ughh. It wasn’t until sometime in the early 1780’s that the American Flag started being produced that showed the stars we know of today. Mullets! HAHA! No, not that kind of mullet! That’s what a star with five points is referred to as. How, over the course of history, a hairdo would find itself sharing the same name with a five-pointed star is beyond my wildest imagination. So, yeah, it was about 1781 when the single design using the mullet star was established. And at some point in 1783, a couple years after the end of the Revolutionary War, and around about the same time that the U.S. Signed a peace treaty with Great Britain, The United States, flying a flag with 13 stars and 13 alternating red and white stripes, was officially recognized internationally as a nation of it’s own.
Well that’s about all the history can I write about today. I’ve got much more to come so check back periodically because there’s never not enough information on flags for me
Lexi
