On June 14, 1777, the United States Congress announced that it wanted 13 stars on a field of blue to replace the British symbols in George Washington’s Grand Union flag, which had 13 red and white stripes, one for each state. One story says that the seamstress Betsy Ross stitched her winning design of 13 stars in a circle after a visit from George Washington. As the nation grew, a star appeared for each state, while the stripes stopped at 15 and were later reduced to 13. In 1949, President Harry Truman made June 14 a national holiday in honor of the flag. Flag Day is a time for flying flags, parades, and patriotic speeches.