Betsy Ross

Betsy Ross did she make the first American flag or not? The truth is, we may never know. But whether she did or did not, Betsy Ross deserves to be remembered as a strong colonial woman, who succeeded in her personal and professional life when women weren't given the same opportunities as men. Betsy was the 8th of 17 children. Her parents were quakers, which is a religion. They moved to Philadelphia when Patsy was three years old. In those days girls usually prepared for marriage when they had finished school, usually around the age of 15. But Betsy went on to learn how to be an upholsterer, and upholsterer is someone who covers furniture with material. Another skill she learned was flag making. She overcame many hardships. Her first two husbands died before she was 30. Two of her 7 daughters died as infants, and her mother, father, and sister, died within days of each other during a yellow fever epidemic. The story of the flag didn't become known until 1870, when Americans were preparing for their Centennial, the hundred year anniversary of the country. Betsy's grandson told the Pennsylvania historical society, a story that had been passed down in his family's history. In the summer of 1776, three men came to Betsy shop. One of them she recognized as George Washington. They attended the same church, and Washington would have known who Betsy was. Washington asked her to make a flag for his army. He wanted the flag to have 13 red and white stripes, and 13 6 point stars. Betsy decided to change this to 5 point stars because they were easier to make. She also decided to arrange the stars in a circle, rather than in lines. At the time, making an American flag would have been treason, and so it isn't surprising that there is no record of it in history. And being of Quaker upbringing, Betsy would not have been boastful about this event. But three family members swore affidavits to Betsy's story. As Betsy's fame grew in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, so did her marketing appeal, advertisers started to use her name and image to sell products to women for the home, like dishes, irons, sewing needles, and even food products like tea and bread. Whether Betsy Ross sewed the first American flag or not, she certainly deserves a place in our history.