June 14 is Flag Day, which commemorates the adoption of the flag of the United States in 1777. Our nation"s first official flag had 13 stars and 13 red and white stripes to represent the original 13 colonies that broke from British rule. The stars were arranged on a blue background to represent a "new constellation." In 1795, two more stars and two stripes were added to reflect the entry of Vermont and Kentucky to the Union. Then in 1818, Congress passed a plan to go back to 13 stripes and add only stars for new states. The current version of the flag has been in effect since 1960, after Hawaii became a state the prior year. The flags we"re looking at here are flying in New Jersey"s Liberty State Park, with the Statue of Liberty in the background.
Celebrating Flag Day
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
-
Menton, France
-
Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
-
Bridge over the River Tara
-
Aýna, Albacete, Spain
-
A cutting-edge art gallery opens in Paris
-
Bathing boxes at Brighton Beach, Australia
-
Rosa Parks Day
-
For the love of bikes
-
Happy Birthday, J.R.R. Tolkien!
-
Salt of the earth
-
Spring comes to the Palouse
-
International Polar Bear Day
-
Rice processing in Bangladesh
-
Mount Rainier National Park
-
Celebrating 200 years of statehood
-
Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument anniversary
-
Farmers Day
-
El Valle de la Luna, Chile
-
International Sloth Day
-
The Sonoran Desert, Arizona
-
Make your way up a picturesque passageway of Chefchaouen
-
Góða ólavsøku, from the Faroes!
-
Mooncake time
-
International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival, Harbin, China
-
Bavljenac Island
-
Design for Each and All
-
What happened to these clouds?
-
Glacial spires in the fog
-
A monastery in the mountain
-
International Day of Friendship
Bing Wallpaper Gallery

