The History of Flag Day

June 14th is observed as Flag Day each year because on June
14, 1777, the Second Continental Congress adopted the Stars and Stripes for the
flag of the United States.

The first national observance of Flag Day took place 100
years after the original resolution on June 14, 1877.

President Woodrow Wilson issued a 1916 proclamation for the
national observance of Flag Day on the 14th of June. Read the Presidential
Proclamation as printed in the June 3, 1916, issue of the Congressional Record.

H.J. Res 170 (81st Congress) was signed into law by
President Truman on August 3, 1949 (see the August 9, 1949 issue of the Congressional Record). This
made Flag Day a permanent observance you as you can see in 36
U.S.C. 110.

This history of Flag Day is recorded in Senate Document
109-18, Our Flag, which briefly describes the history of the flag
and sets forth the practices and observances appropriate to its display. You’ll
find out much more about the flag in this publication including these fun
facts:

• Flag proportions were designated by President Eisenhower’s
  August 21,1959, Executive Order.
• A flag should not be stored wet which can cause permanent
  creases.
• If a flagpole is 40 feet, the flag dimensions should be 6 by
  10 feet.
• The custom of flying flags 24 hours a day over the east and
  west fronts of the Capitol building started during World War I.
• The original “Star-Spangled Banner,” was 30 by 42 feet and
  made by Mary Pickersgill in her home in Baltimore, Maryland from 1807 to 1857.

(Photo: Minot Air Force Base, ND by Airman 1st Class Andrew Crawford)

A giant flag flows gently above the 5th Medical Group facility at Minot Air Force Base, N.D., Nov. 16, 2012. The 5th MDG serves both the 5th Bomb Wing and 91st Missile Wing, keeping Minot’s airmen and their families healthy and mission ready.

200911-N-CO784-0291 FORT WORTH, Texas (Sept. 11, 2020) Firefighters attached to Naval Air Station (NAS) Joint Reserve Base (JRB) Fort Worth’s Fire and Emergency Service, stand in front of their fire truck during a Patriots Day’s ceremony. The Patriots Day ceremony was held at NAS JRB Fort Worth honoring the victims of the attack on September 11. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Nolan Pennington/Released)  Photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Nolan Pennington 

Naval
Air Station Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base 

200911-N-CO784-0271 FORT WORTH, Texas (Sept. 11, 2020) Lt.
Charles Daniels III, chaplain, salutes the ensign during morning colors at
Naval Air Station (NAS) Joint Reserve Base (JRB) Fort Worth. A Patriots Day
ceremony was held at NAS JRB Fort Worth honoring the victims of the 9/11
attack. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Nolan
Pennington/Released)