1. The Truth Behind Betsy Ross and the Flag
Betsy Ross actually did make flags for the Patriots during the American Revolution. However, she was not the only flag maker. For example, the Grand Union Flag, which featured the British Union Jack where the stars are today and served as the national flag from 1775 to 1776, was sewn by Rebecca Young. Betsy Ross’s relative, Colonel George Ross, might well have recommended her to sew the Stars and Stripes. And it is conceivable that she was acquainted with George Washington and Robert Morris, both of whom attended her church. However, there is no proof – other than her grandson’s assertion a century later – that she made the original Stars and Stripes. Furthermore, William Canby’s account that his grandmother sewed the original Stars and Stripes has some serious holes.
Canby claimed that a Continental Congress committee had commissioned a new flag in 1776. No records of such a committee exist. He claimed that said committee was headed by George Washington. However, Washington had left Congress to head the Continental Army in 1775, so he could not have served on a congressional committee in 1776. The first documented congressional discussion about a national flag did not take place until 1777. The only flag payments made to Betsy Ross in 1777 were not from Congress for the Stars and Stripes, but from Pennsylvania’s State Naval Board for Pennsylvania naval flags. It is thus highly unlikely that the tale of Betsy Ross and the first Stars and Stripes is anything more than a myth.