How many stripes are there on the united states flag

Hopkinson was the only person to have made such a claim during his own lifetime, when he sent a bill to Congress for his work. The payment was not made, however, because it was determined he had already received a salary as a member of Congress, and he was not the only person to have contributed to the design.

It should be noted that no one else contested his claim at the time. In , the number of stars and stripes was increased from 13 to 15 to reflect the entry of Vermont and Kentucky as states of the union. For a time the flag was not changed when subsequent states were admitted, probably because it was thought that this would cause too much clutter.

Reid, United States Navy, in which the flag was changed to have 20 stars, with a new star to be added when each new state was admitted, but the number of stripes would remain at thirteen to honor the original colonies. The act specified that new flag designs should become official on the first July 4 Independence Day following admission of one or more new states. Consequently, flags dating before this period sometimes show unusual arrangements of the stars and odd proportions, these features being left to the discretion of the flag maker.

In general, however, straight rows of stars and proportions similar to those later adopted officially were used. The United States Army Institute of Heraldry has plans for flags with up to 56 stars, using similar staggered star arrangements should additional states accede. Skip to main content. Search form Search. Embassy in the U. Construction U. Executive Order specifies proportions for the flag, as recreated here.

Previous iterations For years every flag was constructed by hand. Sources U. Title 4. Chapter 1. Sections United States Executive Order , Aug. Arkansas was part of the Louisiana Purchase and carved out of what became the Missouri Territory to become its own territory. Michigan was admitted to the Union in as a free state to help maintain the balance between slave and free states. Michigan's admission had been thwarted because of a border dispute with Ohio — which had been admitted as a state in — but President Andrew Jackson helped Michigan save face by awarding it land from the Upper Peninsula, and then it was granted statehood, boosting the number of states to Florida, a former possession of the Spanish empire, was admitted to the Union in , raising the total number of U.

It would not remain in the Union for long: Florida would secede in In , the flag would undergo another change, this time because of the admission of Texas. Before becoming the 28th state, the Lone Star state had broken away from Mexico in It was an independent republic before joining the Union and becoming the biggest state in land mass in the contiguous 48 states. Iowa was admitted to the Union on Dec. Its star was added to the U. Originally part of the Louisiana Purchase, Iowa grew dramatically because of its rich farmland.

Iowa had been established as a U. Wisconsin became a state on May 29, , adding the 30th star to the U. Not all residents of Wisconsin were enthusiastic about statehood. They had rejected it four times previously because they were concerned statehood would mean higher taxes.

The Gold Rush that began with the discovery of the precious metal in helped fast-track California to statehood in California became the 31st star on the American flag the following July 4.

The admission of California fulfilled America's manifest destiny of a nation extending from sea to sea. On the eve of the Civil War, Minnesota was admitted to the Union on May 11, , and represented as the 32nd state on the flag less than two months later.

Minnesota was admitted as a free state. America's expansion surged to the Northwest with the admission of Oregon on Feb. Oregon, which had become a U. Kansas became the 34th state to join the Union. Voter fraud over whether the state would be admitted as a slave state or a free state delayed its admission. Kansas joined the Union on Jan. The onset of the Civil War did not halt the admission of states to the Union. The western part of Virginia was pro-Union and contained many abolitionists.

It split from the rest of the state, which had seceded. President Abraham Lincoln was unsure about dividing Virginia and admitting the western portion as a separate state.

He agreed to its admission on the grounds that West Virginia's action was an act of secession in favor of the Constitution. West Virginia joined the Union on June 20, , and a new flag on July 4 included the 35th state.

The Civil War was engulfing the nation when Nevada was admitted as the 36th state on Oct. Nevada was pro-Union and President Abraham Lincoln saw Nevada's admission as a way to buttress support for the war. To speed up statehood, Nevada sent its entire state constitution to Washington, D.