"Flags are visual symbols, and few symbols are as universally recognized
as the American flag. Despite the widespread familiarity of the flag,
however, not many people are familiar with its history. While most
Americans can effortlessly recite the Pledge of Allegiance, most know
little about the origins of the flag itself. The tale of Betsy Ross, for
most people, is the beginning and the end of their impression of how the
Stars and Stripes came to be.
This is hardly surprising, as one of the facts about the flag is that
there are, indeed, very few facts about its origin. Historians have
combed through all of our literature, all of our archives, all of our
attics, but have found little to illuminate the inspiration for the
simple statement, known as the First Flag Resolution, that created the
Stars and Stripes.
But from the time the Stars and Stripes was born in Philadelphia on June
14, 1777, its warp and weft have provided the fabric of our nation's
story." --excerpted from book
"Books About the South" is from the November 2007 issue of Southern Living.