Friday 5: Things you didn’t know about Flag Day

June 13, 2014
by NWSidebar
Flag Day

Do you ever look at your calendar, see a holiday, and wonder what the holiday is actually celebrating? With Flag Day falling between Memorial Day and Independence Day, you might assume it’s related to the military. Perhaps we’ve seen flags flying to commemorate Flag Day, but do we really know why? We’ve been keeping you updated with little-known facts about each holiday, so let’s take a moment and learn about Flag Day.

  1. Flag Day is celebrated on June 14 and commemorates the adoption of the flag of the United States. The flag was adopted June 14, 1777. Flag Day also celebrates the birthday of the U.S. Army.
  2. Flag Day is not an official federal holiday. It is at the president’s discretion to officially proclaim the federal observance of Flag Day.
  3. Washington state is an important part of Flag Day! Fairfield, Washington, is host to what is thought to be the oldest continuing Flag Day parade. Fairfield has held a Flag Day parade every year since 1909 (or 1910), with the possible exception of 1918. They celebrated their 100th Flag Day parade in 2010.
  4. Flag Day is part of “National Flag Week.” During the week of June 14, the president will issue a statement encouraging citizens to fly the American flag for the week (if you have not done this yet, you can start now, as President Obama issued his Presidential Proclamation earlier this week!)
  5. Since the entire week is dedicated to celebrating the American flag, we thought it was important to throw in a lesser-known fact about the flag itself — Robert G. Heft is the man credited with designing the current 50-star American flag. At the time he designed it, Robert was only 17 and created the design as a high school class project.

So go forth this weekend and let your flag fly. Happy Flag Day!

About the Author

marya purringtonMarya Purrington. Marya works in the WSBA Communications department. She helps edit NWLawyer, update the Bar’s social media presence and does various other communications tasks at the Bar. Marya recently graduated from Western Washington University with a degree in Public Relations. Outside of the office, Marya enjoys hanging out with friends and family, baking and is an avid fan of pug dogs.