Flagsplusflags by AGAS - the Flag Company

Flag Timeline

1776

The Grand Union flag is displayed on Prospect Hill. It has 13 alternate red and white stripes and the British Union Jack in the upper left-hand corner (the canton).

1777 Stars represent Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, New Hampshire, Virginia, New York, North Carolina, and Rhode Island.

1795 Flag with 15 stars and 15 stripes Vermont and Kentucky added.

1818 Flag with 20 stars and 13 stripes (it remains at 13 hereafter). Tennessee, Ohio, Louisiana, Indiana and Mississippi added.

1819 Flag with 21 stars. Illinois added.

1820 Flag with 23 stars. Alabama and Maine added.

1822 Flag with 24 stars. Missouri added.

1836 Flag with 25 stars. Arkansas added.

1837 Flag with 26 stars. Michigan added.

1845 Flag with 27 stars. Florida added.

1846 Flag with 28 stars. Texas added.

1847 Flag with 29 stars. Iowa added.

1848 Flag with 30 stars. Wisconsin added.

1851 Flag with 31 stars. California added.

1858 Flag with 32 stars. Minnesota added.

1859 Flag with 33 stars. Oregon added.

1861
Flag with 34 stars. Kansas added.
First Confederate Flag was adopted in Montgomery, Alabama.

1863 Flag with 35 stars. West Virginia added.

1865
Flag with 36 stars. Nevada added.

1867 Flag with 37 stars .Nebraska added.

1877 Flag with 38 stars. Colorado added.

1890
Flag with 43 stars. North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Washington and Idaho added.

1891 Flag with 44 stars. Wyoming added.

1896
Flag with 45 stars. Utah added.

1897 Adoption of State Flag Desecration Statutes — By the late 1800's an organized flag protection movement was born in reaction to perceived commercial and political misuse of the flag. After supporters failed to obtain federal legislation, Illinois, Pennsylvania, and South Dakota became the first States to adopt flag desecration statutes. By 1932, all of the States had adopted flag desecration laws.

In general, these State laws outlawed: (i) placing any kind of marking on the flag, whether for commercial, political, or other purposes; (ii) using the flag in any form of advertising; and (iii) publicly mutilating, trampling, defacing, defiling, defying or casting contempt, either by words or by act, upon the flag. Under the model flag desecration law, the term "flag" was defined to include any flag, standard, ensign, or color, or any representation of such made of any substance whatsoever and of any size that evidently purported to be said flag or a picture or representation thereof, upon which shall be shown the colors, the stars and stripes in any number, or by which the person seeing the same without deliberation may believe the same to represent the flag of the U.S.

1908 Flag with 46 stars. Oklahoma added.

1912 Flag with 48 stars. New Mexico and Arizona added.

1959
Flag with 49 stars. Alaska added.

1960
Flag with 50 stars. Hawaii added.

???? Proposed flag with 51 stars, to be used if a 51st state is added.