“Resolved, That the flag of the thirteen United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new Constellation.”
—The Flag Act of 1777
Who Needs the Flag Acts, Anyway?
If you’ve ever paused on June 14 to salute Old Glory, you’re part of a tradition that goes back at least more than a century. Although patriotic groups had informally celebrated Flag Day for years, President Woodrow Wilson’s 1916 proclamation officially set June 14 as the day to honor the Stars and Stripes. Seven years later—on Flag Day, June 14, 1923—the American Legion and its fellow flag enthusiasts published the first U.S. Flag Code, spelling out best practices for displaying and caring for the flag. Although these best practices weren’t codified into federal law until 1942, from 1923 on, there was at last a shared playbook for respecting our national banner.
Of course, these rules remain purely advisory. In United States v. Eichman (1990), the Supreme Court (5–4) affirmed that burning the U.S. flag—though deeply offensive to many—is protected speech under the First Amendment, despite Congress’s 1968 Flag Protection Act. In fact, no federal penalties can be imposed for violating the Flag Code itself.
[Photo: First Page of the 1923 Flag Code]
Beyond the Flag Code: Two Modern Flag Statutes
Despite our countless flag parades and patriotic displays, Congress has passed only two binding federal flag laws in the twenty-first century:
-
Freedom to Display the American Flag Act (2005)
Homeowners’ associations may not forbid residents from flying the U.S. flag on their own property. -
All-American Flag Act (2024)
Every U.S. flag purchased by the federal government must be made from domestically grown or manufactured materials—unless there’s a domestic shortage or prohibitive cost.
While influential, these measures affect only specific organizations and leave the flag’s design untouched.
[Photo: The American Flag as It Exists Today]
The Three Foundational “Flag Acts”
Only three statutes have ever defined what the U.S. flag officially is and how it must evolve:
I. The Flag Act of 1777
Text:
Resolved, That the flag of the thirteen United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new Constellation.
Why it mattered:
Enacted June 14, 1777, by the Second Continental Congress, this law gave the fledgling nation its first uniform banner. The stripes honored each of the original colonies, and the stars—arranged however a flag-maker saw fit—stood for those same states.
Lingering questions:
-
Star pattern? Congress left the arrangement unspecified, encouraging a spirit of inclusivity and creativity.
-
Who designed it? Francis Hopkinson claimed authorship in 1780, but the government declined to pay him, citing multiple contributors.
-
Who sewed it? Betsy Ross—lauded by later lore—may have stitched one of the earliest flags, but her exact role remains unconfirmed.
[Photo: The First U.S.—Often Referred to as the “Betsy Ross”—Flag]
II. The Flag Act of 1794
Text:
“From and after May 1, 1795, the flag of the United States, be fifteen stripes alternate red and white. That the Union be fifteen stars, white in a blue field.”
Why it mattered:
When Vermont and Kentucky joined the Union, Congress passed and President George Washington signed a law raising the numbers of both the stars and the stripes to 15, producing the banner that flew over Fort McHenry in 1814—the “Star-Spangled Banner” that inspired our national anthem.
Key takeaway:
By increasing stripes as well as stars, lawmakers sent a message of equal status for the new states—though this unusual 15-stripe flag only lasted until 1818.
[Photo: The “Star-Spangled Banner,” or the American Flag from 1795 to 1818]
III. The Flag Act of 1818
Text (excerpt):
“From July 4 next, the flag of the United States be thirteen horizontal stripes…that the union be twenty stars… And on the admission of every new state…one star be added…effective the next July 4.”
Why it mattered:
Passed by Congress and signed by President James Monroe, this law restored thirteen stripes—honoring the original colonies—and set a clear rule: each new state adds one new star to the flag. In other words, no more tinkering with stripes. That simple principle has governed every flag change from Tennessee (whose star first appeared in 1818) through Hawaii (whose star first appeared in 1959).
[Photo: The American Flag as It First Appeared on July 4, 1818]
Questions the Flag Acts Didn’t Answer
Despite these three concise laws, many practical design details were left open:
-
What exact shades of red and blue should adorn the flag?
-
What should the proportions between the blue section containing the white stars and the stripes, and what should be the flag’s overall height-to-width ratio?
-
What should be the precise placement of stars within the blue section of the flag?
In 1912, President William H. Taft counted more than sixty different official flag versions in U.S. government use—a bewildering lack of uniformity.
[Photo: A William H. Taft Campaign Poster Featuring One of the Many American Flags in Government Use]
Presidential Executive Orders to the Rescue
In the twentieth century, two U.S. presidents—Wiliam H. Taft in 1912 and Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1959—issued at least one executive order to specify as clearly as possible the specifications which would, from the time of these orders’ issuances forward, standardize the appearance of the American flag.
Taft’s 1912 Orders (EO 1556 and EO 1637)
-
Standardized proportions: The most important of these multi-faced proportional standards dictate that the U.S. Flag’s length be 1.9 × its height.
-
Navy Department blueprint: This replica of the Navy Department flag modeled the exact star-placement for the then-48-star flag.
EO 1637 simply formalized the star-layout promised in EO 1556.
Eisenhower’s 1959 Order (EO 10834)
-
Updated Taft’s specifications very slightly.
-
Added stars for Alaska and Hawaii, bringing the total to 50.
[Photo: The Model Flag Presented by Eisenhower’s EO 10834]
A Living Symbol
From its appearances on Revolutionary War battlefields to today’s front porches, our flag has evolved through three landmark Flag Acts, three presidential executive orders, our Flag Code, and a handful of narrow federal statutes. Yet at every twist and turn, Americans have rallied around these bold stripes and bright stars, weaving our shared history into fabric that still flies over homes, battlefields, and government buildings alike. In that way, our flags continue to shape—and for almost two centuries was shaped by shaped by—our nation’s story.
[An American Flag Flutters Proudly Over a Federal Military Cemetery]
Further Reading:
Drexel University. (2025). “History of the American Flag & American Flag Facts.”
Liberty Flags. (2025). “The Flag Act of 1794–The First Official U.S. Flag.”
Mastai, Boleslaw and Marie-Louise d’Otrange. (1973). The American Flag as Art and History from the Birth of the Republic to the Present. Alfred A. Knopf.
The American Legion. (2025). “United States Flag Code.”
Vile, John R. (2018). The American Flag: An Encyclopedia of the Stars and Stripes in U.S. History, Culture, and Law. ABC-CLIO.