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CLEAR Temp: 62 °F Wind: NW at 6 mph Saturday, June 1, 2002 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA Cyberchef E The People Golf Job Network Headbone Zone Wellness Connection Movie Times Newspaper in Education Oregon CarZone Outdoor Journal Personals Prime Times Real Estate Tempo A & E TV Times W3 Magazine CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Destinations Automotive Communities Employment Entertainment Publications Real Estate Recreation Shopping Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Jobs @ Mail Tribune Email Story to a Friend June 1, 2002 Since you asked Reader, flag share same date of birth My birthday is June 14 which is Flag Day. Can you tell me how, when and why June 14 became Flag Day? — Geri C., Medford The anniversary of your birth does correspond with the birth of our nation’s flag, albeit yours came a bit later, Geri. The Stars and Stripes was officially adopted by our newborn nation on June 14, 1777. That’s when the Continental Congress decreed that the flag be "13 stripes alternate red and white; that the Union be 13 stars white in a blue field representing a new constellation." Of course, the union has grown a bit since then. Congress got into the act in 1877 when it decided to honor Old Glory’s 100th birthday. It decided that June 14 would be "Flag Day" and that the flag be flown on all public buildings that day. In 1885, Bernard J. Cigrand, a school teacher in Waubeka, Wis., launched a lifelong battle to establish Flag Day as an annual national celebration. The governor of New York apparently agreed, proclaiming June 14 as an annual Flag Day celebration in his state. The move went national when President Woodrow Wilson established June 14 as Flag Day throughout the land in a proclamation signed on May 30, 1916. Have a happy birthday and a patriotic Flag Day, Geri. Send questions to "Since You Asked," Mail Tribune Newsroom, P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501; by fax to 541-776-4376; or by e-mail to [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright 1997-2002 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy web master feedback A D V E R T I S E R S