The Symbol of America

1. The Symbol of America

2. The Flag

The national flag of the United States of
America consists of thirteen equal
horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom)
alternating with white, with a blue
rectangle in the canton bearing fifty small,
white, five-pointed stars arranged in nine
offset horizontal rows of six stars
alternating with rows of five stars. The fifty
stars on the flag represent the 50 states and
the 13 stripes represent the original thirteen
colonies that rebelled against the British
monarchy and became the first states in the
Union. Nicknames for the flag include the
Stars and Stripes, Old Glory, and The StarSpangled Banner.

3. Significance of the colors

Ever wonder why the flag is red, white, and
blue? While the flag's colors did not have a
specific meaning at the time, the colors
were significant for the Great Seal of 1782.
– White: signifies purity and innocence
– Red: signifies valor and bravery
– Blue: signifies vigilance, perseverance, and
justice

4. Significance of the stars and stripes

Why stars and stripes?
• Stars are considered a
symbol of the heavens
and the divine goal to
which man has aspired
from time immemorial
• The stripe is symbolic of
the rays of light
emanating from the sun.

5. Why thirteen?

Thirteen represents the first thirteen states
Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island,
New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey,
Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, Maryland,
North Carolina, South Carolina, and
Georgia.

6. First flag

• At the time of the signing of the Declaration
of Independence, July 4, 1776, the United
States had no official national flag. The Grand
Union Flag has historically been referred to as
the "First National Flag"; although it has never
had any official status, it was used early in the
American Revolutionary War by George
Washington and formed the basis for the
design of the first official U.S. flag. It closely
resembles the British East India Company flag
of the same era. However, the Company flag
could have from 9 to 13 stripes, and was not
allowed to be flown outside the Indian Ocean
Both flags could have been easily constructed
by adding white stripes to a British Red
Ensign, a common flag throughout Britain and
its colonies.

7. The Flag Resolution of 1777

• On June 14, 1777, the Marine Committee of the
Second Continental Congress passed the Flag
Resolution which stated: "Resolved, That the flag of
the United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and
white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue
field, representing a new Constellation. Flag Day is
now observed on June 14 of each year.
• The 1777 resolution was probably meant to define a
naval ensign, rather than a national flag. It appears
between other resolutions from the Marine Committee..
• The Flag Resolution did not specify any particular
arrangement, number of points, nor orientation for the
stars. The pictured flag shows 13 outwardly-oriented
five-pointed stars arranged in a circle, the so-called
Betsy Ross flag. Although the Betsy Ross legend is
controversial, the design is among the oldest of any
U.S. flags. Popular designs at the time were varied.

8. Other Symbols of The United States

The Bald Eagle
The Great Seal
The Liberty Bell
The Statue of Liberty
Uncle Sam
The White House
Mount Rushmore

9. The Bald Eagle

• The bald eagle is a large, powerful, brown bird with a
white head and tail. The term "bald" does not mean that
this bird lacks feathers. Instead, it comes from the word
piebald, an old word, meaning "marked with white."
• The bald eagle was made the national bird of the
United States in 1782. The image of the bald eagle can
be found in many places in the U.S., such as on the
Great Seal, Federal agency seals, the President's flag,
and on the one-dollar bill.
• The Founding Fathers wanted to choose an animal
that was unique to the United States. For six years, the
members of Congress engaged in a dispute over what
the national emblem should be. As a result of the
debate, the bald eagle was chosen because it
symbolized strength, courage, freedom, and
immortality and that it would look much better as our
national symbol.

10. The Great Seal

On July 4, 1776, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and
Thomas Jefferson were given the task of creating a seal for
the United States of America. They believed an emblem and
national coat of arms would be evidence of an independent
nation and a free people with high aspirations and grand
hopes for the future.
In the center of the seal is an bald eagle, their national bird. It
holds in its beak a scroll inscribed E pluribus unum, which is
Latin meaning "out of many, one" and stands for one nation
that was created from 13 colonies. In one claw is an olive
branch, while the other holds a bundle of thirteen arrows. The
olive branch and arrows "denote the power of peace and war."
A shield with thirteen red and white stripes covers the eagle's
breast. The shield is supported by the American eagle to
denote that Americans should rely on their own virtue. The
red and white stripes of the shield represent the states united
under and supporting the blue, representing the President and
Congress. The color white signifies purity and innocence; red,
hardiness and valor; and blue signifies vigilance,
perseverance, and justice. Above the eagle's head is a cloud
surrounding a blue field containing thirteen stars, which forms
a constellation. The constellation denotes that a new State is
taking its place among other nations.

11. The Liberty Bell

• The Liberty Bell rang when the
Continental Congress signed the
Declaration of Independence and
has become the symbol of freedom
in the United States. The bell
weighs about 2000 pounds and is
made mostly of copper (70%) and
tin (25%).
• Today, the Liberty Bell hangs in
Philadelphia at the Liberty Bell
Pavilion on Market Street for all to
see and is still gently rung each
July 4th.

12. The Statue of Liberty

• Located in New York, at 151 feet (46
meters) tall (305 feet including base and
pedestal), the Statue of Liberty symbolizes
freedom throughout the world. Its formal
name is Liberty Enlightening the World.
The Statue was actually a gift from the
people of France.
• The statue, made of copper sheets with an
iron framework, depicts a woman escaping
the chains of tyranny, which lie at her feet.
Her right hand holds aloft a burning torch
that represents liberty. Her left hand holds a
tablet inscribed with the date "July 4, 1776"
, the day the United States declared its
independence from England. She is
wearing flowing robes and the seven rays
of her spiked crown symbolize the seven
seas and continents.

13. Uncle Sam

• Uncle Sam, a figure symbolizing the
United States, is portrayed as a tall, whitehaired man with a goatee. He is often
dressed in red, white, and blue, and wears
a top hat. The exact origins of Uncle Sam
as a symbol for the United States are
unknown. But the most widely accepted
theory is that Uncle Sam was named after
Samuel Wilson, a businessman from Troy,
N.Y. that supplied the U.S. Army with beef
in barrels During the War of 1812. The
barrels were labeled "U.S." When asked
what the initials stood for, one of Wilson's
workers said it stood for Uncle Sam
Wilson. The suggestion that the meat
shipments came from "Uncle Sam" led to
the idea that Uncle Sam symbolized the
Federal Government and association stuck.

14. Made by Tulokina Tatiana Chechkova Ekaterina