A little bit about Flag Day


Next Wednesday, June 14, is Flag Day. Let’s all be sure to fly our flag on this day!
My trip to Devine for visiting and bunco was great! I got to either see or visit with several friends and had a wonderful lunch with one of my longest-term friends that anyone could have. She was one of the first people that I met when we first moved to Devine and she has put up with me all this time. We don’t always get together, but when we do we always find something to remember or to talk about! Thanks, my friend for all the times you were there for me, encouraged me, or just calmed me down. You are loved more than you know!
My Aunt in LaCoste recently celebrated her 95th birthday; so visiting with her was a true pleasure. She is mostly in good health, but was not doing as well this trip as she sometimes is. She truly enjoys having my daughter and I visit with her especially now that we bring the baby with us. My aunt has only one grand-child and one great-grand-child who is now in third or fourth grade and lives out of town, so she doesn’t get to see her very often, but she has always enjoyed my children and we visited back and forth and she helped me many times. I was able to give her a framed photo of my youngest daughter and her newest grandson, along with my cousin, that was taken at the wedding in December. It seemed to cheer her up a little bit and it got a smile from her! She always seems to be willing to see the pictures my daughter shares of her grandchildren and can tell one from the other and comments about them and how they’re doing.
This week will be a little busy again as the first week of the month always is with my pokeno club on Monday as well as a church group later that evening, Auxiliary meeting and working in the gift shop on Tuesday and least favorite of all things in the world to do, wait around Wednesday for the DirectTV person to show up, supposedly between 8:00 and noon. We’ll see how that goes as I am not looking forward to it.
Have you ever wondered in what order the states came into the Union? Who actually designed the first flag? Why does it have 13 stripes? How many stars were on the first flag? Which were the original 13 states? When was Texas admitted as a state?
Legend has it that Betsy Ross, a widowed seamstress was the one who made the first flag from a sketch given her by George Washington. She is said to have changed the number of points on the stars from six to five and then made the first flag in 1776. However, history has proven that it is just that, a legend.
A second legend claims that John Hulbert designed it a full year before Betsy Ross supposedly did. This flag had 13 stripes and 13 stars in honor of the 13 original colonies.
These colonies were: Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, New Hampshire, Virginia, New York, North Carolina and Rhode Island. They all became states between December 7, 1787 and May 29, 1790.
The First Flag Law was passed by congress on June 14, 1777, giving this country an official national flag, consisting of 13 stripes alternating red and white, and a union of 13 white stars on a blue field.
Congress on May 1, 1795, adding two stripes and two stars in recognition of Virginia and Kentucky, passed the Second Flag Law. This 15-striped, 15-star flag is the second version of the national flag.
The Star Spangled Banner was written as a poem in the Baltimore Patriot newspaper. Frances Scot Key composed the verses while viewing the battle of Fort McHenry during the war of 1812. It became our national anthem on March 3, 1931. (This flag is in the Smithsonian Museum. It is not being restored it is being preserved. The size of this flag, 30 X 42 ft, is astounding, considering the time and place that it flew.)
The Third Flag Act was passed on April 4, 1818 and created the third official version of the flag. Navy Captain Samuel Reid proposed that the flag contain 13 stripes to represent the 13 original colonies. At that time it was decided that a star, representing a state, would automatically be added to the flag on the Fourth of July after each territory was admitted. The flag in 1818 consisted of 13 stripes and 20 stars.
On July 4, 1846, the 10th official design of the Stars and Stripes was created with the addition of Texas into the United States.
June 14, 1861 was the first recorded observance of Flag Day, which was the anniversary of the First Flag Law and took place in Hartford, Connecticut. Bernard Cigrand is generally given the credit for helping to promote Flag Day.
On July 4, 1877, the centennial of the First Flag Act, the 38th star was added honoring the admission of Colorado into the Union. This created the 20th official design of the Stars and Stripes.
The entry of New Mexico and Arizona into the Union on July 4, 1912 created the 25th official design of the flag with the addition of it’s 47th and 48th stars honoring these two states.
From 1912 until 1959, the flag had 48 stars and 13 stripes. In that year, Alaska became the 49th state and the 26th official design of the flag was created. The following year, on July 4, 1960, Hawaii was admitted to the Union and a 50-star flag became the 27th official design. At 12:01 a.m., a 50-star flag was raised over Ft. McHenry by presidential order in honor of the victory described in the national anthem.
THE FLAG
Here is to the red of it-
There’s not a thread of it,
No, not a shred of it, all the
Spread of it, From foot to head, but
Heroes bled for it,
Faced steel and lead for it,
Precious blood shed for it,
BATHING IT RED!
Here’s to the white of it –
Thrilled by the sight of it,
Who knows the right of it,
But feels the might of it
Through day and night?
Womanhood’s care for it
Made manhood dare for it,
Purity’s prayer for it,
KEEPS SO WHITE
Here’s to the blue of it
Beauteous view of it,
Heavenly hue of it,
Star-spangled dew of it,
Constant and true;
Diadems gleam for it,
States stand supreme for it,
Liberty’s beam for it,
BRIGHTENS THE BLUE
Here’s to the whole of it,
Stars, stripes and pole of it,
Body and Soul of it,
O, and the roll of it,
Sun shining through;
Hearts in accord for it,
Swear by the sword for it,
Thanking the Lord for it,
Red, White and Blue!
By John J. Daly
Here is a really delicious chicken salad recipe that my family enjoys.
Light Chicken Salad
3 or 4 chicken breasts, cooked and diced
1 large Granny Smith apple, chopped*
2/3 cup finely diced celery
1/3 cup sweet pickle relish
1 cup toasted walnuts, chopped
2 to 3 tablespoons sunflower seeds
Enough light mayonnaise to moisten
Cook chicken breasts in water seasoned with salt and a small amount of onion and celery, cool until you can handle the meat, remove skin and bones and cut into small pieces.
Wash the apple, and cut it up, and add to the chicken, add remaining ingredients along with enough light mayonnaise to moisten. Serve with crackers, Melba toast rounds or whatever you like best. *When you cut the apple up, place it in a bowl with some 7-up or Sprite and it will not darken! (I kept seeing this hint on Facebook a couple of years ago and finally decided to try it and to my surprise, it worked beautifully.)