Q I read your column on Flag Day and Betsy Ross came to mind. I think I remember hearing that there was some question about whether she was really involved in sewing the first U.S. flag. Did your source mention Ross?
A. Yes. “The American Book of Days” does talk about the maker of the first flag: “The 1777 legislation provided only the barest specifications for the new flag. It did not limit the number of points in the design of the stars, it did not set forth a particular arrangement for the stars and stripes, nor did it designate a designer for the national banner.
“Numerous contradictory and unsubstantiated legends attribute the creation of the first Stars and Stripes flag to such various personages as John Hulbert of Long Island, New York; John Paul Jones, the American naval hero; and Frances Hopkinson, a signer of the Declaration of Independence.
