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The Betsy Ross flag is an early design of the flag of the United States, popularly — but very likely incorrectly — attributed to Betsy Ross, using the common motifs of alternating red-and-white striped field with five-pointed stars in a blue canton. The flag was designed during the American Revolution and features 13 stars to represent the original 13 colonies. The distinctive feature of the Ross flag is the arrangement of the stars in a circle. ==The Betsy Ross story== Although this early version of an American flag is now commonly termed "the Betsy Ross Flag," the claim by her descendants in the 1870s, and some self-proclaimed historians of that time, that Betsy Ross designed and sewed this version of the American flag is almost certainly historically false, and not accepted by modern American scholars and vexillologists.〔Leepson, Marc. ("Five myths about the American flag" ), ''"The Washington Post"'', (June 12, 2011)〕 The National Museum of American History notes that the story first entered into American consciousness about the time of the 1876 Centennial Exposition celebrations.〔The Star-Spangled Banner, Lonn Taylor, Kathleen M. Kendrick, and Jeffrey L Brodie. Smithsonian Books/Collins Publishing (New York:2008)〕 In 1870, Ross's grandson, William J. Canby, presented a paper to the Historical Society of Pennsylvania in which he claimed that his grandmother had "made with her hands the first flag" of the United States.〔Buescher, John. ("All Wrapped up in the Flag" ) (Teachinghistory.org ), accessed August 21, 2011.〕 Canby said he first obtained this information from his aunt Clarissa Sydney (Claypoole) Wilson in 1857, twenty years after Betsy Ross's death. Canby dates the historic episode based on Washington's journey to Philadelphia, in late spring 1776, a year before Congress passed the Flag Act.〔("The History of the Flag of the United States" by William Canby )〕 In the 2008 book ''The Star-Spangled Banner: The Making of an American Icon'', Smithsonian experts point out that Canby's recounting of the event appealed to Americans eager for stories about the revolution and its heroes and heroines. Betsy Ross was promoted as a patriotic role model for young girls and a symbol of women's contributions to American history.〔What About Betsy Ross, pp.68–69〕 Historian Laurel Thatcher Ulrich further explored this line of enquiry in a 2007 article, "How Betsy Ross Became Famous: Oral Tradition, Nationalism, and the Invention of History."〔http://common-place.org/vol-08/no-01/ulrich〕 Ross biographer Marla Miller points out, however, that even if one accepts Canby's presentation, Betsy Ross was merely one of several flag makers in Philadelphia, and her only contribution to the design was to change the 6-pointed stars to the easier 5-pointed stars.〔Miller, 176〕 According to the traditional account, the original flag was made in June 1776, when a small committee — including George Washington, Robert Morris and relative George Ross — visited Betsy and discussed the need for a new American flag. Betsy accepted the job to manufacture the flag, altering the committee's design by replacing the six-pointed stars with five-pointed stars. Betsy Ross's story was published in 1870, 34 years after her death, by her only surviving grandson, William J. Canby, in a paper presented to the Historical Society of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. The paper included stories he had heard from family members throughout the years. According to Canby's paper:〔Canby, William. "(The History of the Flag of the United States - A Paper read before the Historical Society of Pennsylvania (March 1870) )". Accessed March 24, 2014.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Betsy Ross flag」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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