Betsy Ross House

American Spirit

Description

Legend has it that during the spring of 1776, a secretive committee of Continental Army General George Washington, colonial financier Robert Morris, and Mrs. Betsy Ross' uncle George Ross were tasked by Congress to create a new flag. George Ross naturally brought the three men to his niece's sewing and upholstery shop on Arch Street. In his basic sketching, Washington wanted a red and white stripes surrounding a blue area, and inside the blue area were to be 13 six-pointed stars that would each represent an American colony. Ross, the tale goes, showed the men how easy it would be to make a five-studded star as opposed to six--she could make them with a neat folding job and one cut of the scissors. Washington, Morris, and Ross agreed with Betsy and some weeks later, she produced a flag out of Washington's sketch, and on June 14, 1777, the flag was unveiled, a day we still celebrate in the US as Flag Day. Some historians doubt whether Ross was indeed the flag's creator as it was only in the latter portion of the 19th century that some of her family asserted Ross was responsible, describing this meeting with Washington as dictated directly by Betsy Ross herself (the family did so in sworn affidavits, no less). She continued to operate her shop for decades after the conclusion of the Revolutionary War, and was doubtless a great patriot. Whether useful civic legend or true history, it's all fascinating and worth exploring on your own here.