Flag Day in the United States commemorates the adoption of the national flag on June 14, 1777, and was officially established as a national observance in 1949.

The United States flag was officially adopted on June 14, 1777, when the Second Continental Congress passed a resolution stating: “That the flag of the United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new constellation”. This design symbolized the original thirteen colonies. The flag was first carried into battle on September 11, 1777, at the Battle of Brandywine, and it was first saluted by a foreign naval vessel in February 1778 in France. Francis Hopkinson, a delegate from New Jersey, is credited with designing the flag, while the popular story of Betsy Ross sewing the first flag remains largely anecdotal.

The first state to officially celebrate Flag Day was Pennsylvania in 1937, beginning in Rennerdale. In 1916, President Woodrow Wilson issued a proclamation designating June 14 as Flag Day, and on August 3, 1949, the U.S. Congress officially established National Flag Day by law. Although Flag Day is not a federal holiday, the president annually proclaims the week of June 14 as National Flag Week, encouraging Americans to display the flag. 

Today, Flag Day is observed nationwide with ceremonies in schools, public buildings, and communities. The Betsy Ross House in Philadelphia has celebrated Flag Day since 1911, and modern events like Flag Fest continue to honor the flag’s history and patriotic significance. The holiday serves as a reminder of the flag’s role in American identity and unity.