Historic U.S. Flags  - - -  27 Legal Flags

The U.S. Stars and Stripes have evolved over the past 200+ years. During this time there have been 27 legal flags, which have flown over our country. Contrary to popular opinion, the "Betsy Ross Flag" was not the first official U.S. Flag. The Flag known as the Betsy Ross Flag is the flag, which has the thirteen stars in a circle on the blue union. The first official U.S. Flag had the 13 stars displayed in five staggered rows.

On June 14, 1777, in order to establish an official flag for the new nation, the Continental Congress passed the first Flag Act." This act resolved that the flag of the United States be made of thirteen stripes, alternating red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new Constellation."  However, dimensions and the order of the stars were not specified. Thus in the early years, before the dimensions and arrangement of the stars were standardized, there were many renditions, flag proportions and arrangements of the 13 stars. It seemed to depend somewhat on the design of the flag-maker.

By law, a star is added to the U.S. Flag on the 4th of July following the admission of a State(s) to the Union. Thus the 27 different flags, each with more stars than the previous flag, as states were added over the years. However, it was not until the Executive Order of June 24, 1912, that the order of the stars and the proportions of the flag was prescribed.