Flag Day Chronicles

By Kaitlyn Kiepert

Sunday, June 14, 2026

 

From fireworks to parades, the Fourth of July is one of America’s most festive holidays. But Americans often overlook another patriotic occasion worth celebrating: Flag Day.

 

Flag Day, though not a federal holiday, has been around for decades. Former Presidents Woodrow Wilson and Calvin Coolidge issued proclamations in the early 1900s designating June 14 as Flag Day. In 1949, the occasion became a legally recognized national observance under then-President Harry Truman.

 

The design of the iconic flag has evolved over the years, taking 183 years to reach its current iteration. Congress approved America’s first flag on June 14, 1777, while the flag as we know it today emerged in 1960. According to the National Flag Foundation, the design for the 50-star American flag first originated with a 17-year-old’s junior-year class project.

 

In 1958, Robert Heft and his classmates at Ohio’s Lancaster High School were each tasked with creating something and bringing it to school to show their classmates. Heft’s project was a redesign of the 48-star flag to have 50 stars since he predicted Alaska and Hawaii would soon become part of the union.

 

His teacher gave him a B minus on the project but promised to change his grade if Heft could convince Congress to adopt his design.

 

Though then-President Eisenhower did not directly select Heft’s flag, the 50-star flag design that was chosen looked exactly the same, and Heft’s grade was changed to an A. 

 

Over the past 250 years, Americans have regarded Old Glory as a sign of national identity and have used it in displays of reverence for national heroes. Flying the American flag at half-staff is used to symbolize mourning for a government official, a first responder, a military member, a national day of remembrance, a national tragedy, or Memorial Day. Only the U.S. president, a state governor, or the D.C. mayor have the authority to require citizens to fly a flag at half-staff.

 

Burial flags are also meant to honor a deceased active-duty or veteran member of the U.S. Armed Forces, including the president as the commander-in-chief. Usually draped over the casket or set out next to an urn during the funeral, the flag is given to the deceased individual’s next of kin after the ceremony.

 

No matter its star count or what it may mean to an individual, the flag has several timeless characteristics.

 

Each color represents several of America’s core values. The blue symbolizes determination, justice, and vigilance. The white represents innocence and purity, the red courage and valor.

 

The American flag is also a popular topic of hundreds of patriotic tributes, both spoken and sung, from George M. Cohan’s “You’re a Grand Old Flag” to Johnny Cash’s “Ragged Old Flag.”

 

And of course, “The Star-Spangled Banner” was penned by Francis Scott Key after the American flag at Fort McHenry survived British bombardment; it was adopted by the Navy decades before it became the national anthem. Originally a poem titled “The Defense of Fort McHenry,” Key’s tune is actually that of the popular English song “To Anacreon in Heaven.”

 

The American flag has inspired countries’ flags around the world.

 

The Cuban flag displays blue and white stripes with a single white star on a red triangle. Designed by a Cuban exile in New York City, the flag’s origin was fueled by a passion for independence inspired by countries like the U.S.

 

Liberia’s flag has a similar red and white stripe pattern, and its top left corner displays a single white star on a blue background. The similarities point to America’s long history of intervention in the country, from the slave trade to the resettlement concept espoused by the American Colonization Society.

 

The American flag is a reminder of how far this nation has come — and of how much was sacrificed for our republic to carry on.

 

So it is only fitting to celebrate Flag Day today. The flag is so much more than a piece of cloth flapping in the breeze. It draws Americans to remember a long history of bloody battlefields where bravery was shown, crowded courtrooms where truth prevailed, and the timeless cause of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.