United States Flag

The national flag of the United States is also referred to as the American Flag. The flag consists of thirteen alternating red and white stripes, and a blue rectangle in the canton known as the Union. The canton contains fifty stars each representing a state in the union. The first flag was officially adopted on June 14, 1777 by Congress, one year after the declaration of independence. The current American flag is its 27th version. It was adopted in July 1960. It has been in service for 57 years and is the longest-serving of the 27 flags.

On the American flag, there are thirteen equal alternating red and white stripes and a blue rectangle at the canton. The fifty white stars represent each state while the thirteen stripes represent the thirteen British colonies who declared independence and became the first members of the union. The stars are arranged in nine alternating horizontal rows made up of five and six stars.

The first flag was designed by naval flag designer Francis Hopkinson of New Jersey between 1776 and 1777. He served at the Continental Navy Board's Middle Department and claimed to have designed the flag for the U.S. Navy. The current flag as we know it was designed by a Robert G. Heft, a high school student who lived with his grandparents. He received a B- for his design, though it was later changed to an A after it was selected out of the 1,500 designs submitted. Heft received a phone call from President Dwight D. Eisenhower inviting him to see the flag with his design being hoisted for the first time in Fort McHenry, Maryland On July 4, 1960.

There have been 26 earlier versions of the American flag. This is mainly because each time a new state was admitted the flag had to be redesigned. The first flag designed by Francis Hopkinson had the "Betsy Ross" variant designed by Betsy Ross. Unlike Hopkinson's design, the Betsy Ross variant had the thirteen stars arranged in a circular manner. Before the declaration of Independence, the British flag in the U.S had the British flag at the canton and the thirteen stripes representing the thirteen British colonies.

This page was last modified on May 1st, 2018

More on Graphicmaps

Published on 2019-11-06


Capital	Washington
Languages	English 79.2%, Spanish 12.9%, other Indo-European 3.8%, Asian and Pacific island 3.3%, other 0.9% (2011 est.)
Ethnic Groups	White 79.96%, black 12.85%, Asian 4.43%, Amerindian and Alaska native 0.97%, native Hawaiian and other Pacific islander 0.18%, two or more races 1.61% (July 2007 estimate)
Religion	Protestant 46.5%, Roman Catholic 20.8%, Mormon 1.6%, Jehovah's Witness 0.8%, other Christian 0.9%, Jewish 1.9%, Muslim 0.9%, Buddhist 0.7%, Hindu 0.7%, other 1.8%, unaffiliated 22.8%, don't know/refused 0.6% (2014 est.)
Government	Constitutional federal republic
Independance	4 July 1776 (declared); 3 September 1783 (recognized by Great Britain)
Area	9,833,517.00 km²
Water Area	685,924.00 km²
Land Area	9,147,593.00 km²
Population	323,995,528.00 Large urban clusters are spread throughout the eastern half of the US (particularly the Great Lakes area, northeast, east, and southeast) and the western tier states; mountainous areas, principally the Rocky Mountains and Appalachian chain, deserts in the southwest, the dense boreal forests in the extreme north, and the central prairie states are less densely populated; Alaska's population is concentrated along its southern coast - with particular emphasis on the city of Anchorage - and Hawaii's is centered on the island of Oahu
Location	North America, bordering both the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Pacific Ocean, between Canada and Mexico
No. Bordering Countries	2
Bordering Countries	Canada 8,893 km (including 2,477 km with Alaska), Mexico 3,155 km
GDP(PPP)	$18,600,000,000,000.00 (USD)
GDP (Per Capita)	$57,300.00 (USD)
Export Partners	Its major export partners are Canada, Mexico, and China.
Export Commodities	Its main exports are agricultural products, industrial supplies, and capital goods.
Import Partners	Its major import partners are China, Canada, and Mexico.
Import Commodities	Its major imports include agricultural products, industrial supplies, capital goods, and consumer goods.
Climate	Warm temperate; freezing temperatures almost unknown
Terrain	Vast central plain, mountains in west, hills and low mountains in east; rugged mountains and broad river valleys in Alaska; rugged, volcanic topography in Hawaii
Learn More	United States

United States Flag

More on Graphicmaps

What is a Trade Embargo?

Which Two Countries Used to Have the Same Flag?

What Is the Only Two-Sided State Flag?

Which Country Flag Looks Like the Texas Flag?

Flags That Resemble the US Flag

What is Demography?