Flag Day In The United States Article Index for
Flag Day 		Website Links For
Flag Day 		 

Information About

Flag Day In The United States
  CATEGORIES ABOUT FLAG DAY IN THE UNITED STATES
   
flags of the united states
   
holidays in the united states
   
APPAREL
BABY
BEAUTY
BOOKS
CAR TOYS
CELL PHONES
DVD'S
ELECTRONICS
GOURMET FOOD
GROCERIES
HEALTH & PERSONAL
HOME & GARDEN
JEWELRY
MUSIC
MUSIC INSTRUMENTS
OFFICE PRODUCTS
SOFTWARE
SPORTING GOODS
TOOLS & HARDWARE
TOYS
VIDEO GAMES
SHOPPING HOME
MORE SHOPPING...



In 1916 , Woodrow Wilson issued a proclamation that officially established June 14 as Flag Day; in August 1949 , National Flag Day was established by an Act Of Congress .

Flag Day is not an official Federal Holiday , though on June 14 , 1937 , Pennsylvania became the first (and only) U.S. State to celebrate Flag Day as a State Holiday .


COMPETING CLAIMS

Several men are claimed to have played early instrumental roles in the establishment of a National Flag Day.

  • Perhaps the most fervent claim dates to 1885 , when a schoolteacher, Bernard J. Cigrand, reportedly urged the students at the public school in Fredonia, Wisconsin , to observe June 14 as "Flag Birthday." He moved to Chicago to attend dental school, and in June 1886 , wrote an article titled “The Fourteenth of June” which was published in the Chicago ''Argus'' newspaper. He continued to promote the idea and by June 1894 300,000 children gathered in parks throughout Chicago to celebrate the day.


  • Another claim is made on behalf of William T. Kerr, a resident of Collier Township, Pennsylvania for a number of years, who founded the American Flag Day Association of Western Pennsylvania in 1888 , became that organization's national chairman one year later, and served as such for fifty years. He attended Truman's 1949 signing of the Act of Congress which formally established the holiday.


  • An older and less cited claim is in ''Kansas: a cyclopedia of state history'', published by Standard Publishing Company (Chicago) in 1912 . It credits George Morris of Hartford, Connecticut :

    • ::To George Morris of Hartford, Conn., is popularly given the credit of suggesting "Flag Day," the occasion being in honor of the adoption of the American flag on June 14, 1777. The city of Hartford observed the day in 1861, carrying out a program of a patriotic order, praying for the success of the Federal arms and the preservation of the Union.



CULTURAL REFERENCES

In the animated Television series '' The Simpsons '', an episode titled "Hunka Hunka Burns in Love" shows Charles Montgomery Burns receiving a Fortune Cookie written by Homer Simpson saying Burns will find true love on Flag Day, which happens to be the same day he received the cookie.


EXTERNAL LINKS AND SOURCES