The Story Of The High Schooler Who Got A B- For Designing The Current American Flag
For a 4th of July, here’s a little-known story of a kid, his unfit teacher, and a stately 50-star flag.
In 1958, a 17-year-old Bob Heft set out to finish an open-ended assignment for his American History category in Lancaster, Ohio. “Like a scholarship fair” project, he would after explain, students could make whatever they wanted.
To hear him pronounce about it
Inspired by a Betsy Ross story — fable has it, a seamstress was called upon
“He said, ‘Why we got too many stars? You don’t even know how many states we have,'” Heft recalled. (Harsh, teach.)
He warranted a B- for his efforts — that concerned dissecting a 48-star dwindle his relatives had perceived as a marriage present and sewing it behind together himself with believe he’d gleaned by examination his mother. The whole routine had taken over 12 hours, he later told
“Now, a B-minus ain’t that bad of a grade,” Heft admitted. “However, a crony of mine, Jim, he’d picked adult 5 leaves off a belligerent — he’s taping these leaves down to a cover and labeling them elm, hickory, maple — and a clergyman gave him a class of an A. we was unequivocally — we was upset.”
An A for leaves taped to paper, and a B- for a hand-sewn button of a good nation. The clergyman — who, during this point, might have simply had it out for immature Bob Heft — pronounced he’d strike adult a class if a U.S. supervision strictly adopted his design. The perfect violation of it all gave Heft a movement he needed.
In Aug 1959, 21 letters and 18 phone calls after — not to his parents’ good pleasure on saying their phone check — Heft got a call from afterwards President Dwight D. Eisenhower, mouth-watering Heft to see his origination hoisted adult a flagpole. But Heft was operative and didn’t know if his trainer would let him take a discerning vacation. So, to his boss’ horror
On Jul 4, 1960, a 50-star dwindle was strictly raised
Bob Heft after turn a clergyman himself. He kept a sprightly report of motivational vocalization engagements — over 200
Happy 4th!
Eisenhower shows off a new 50-star pattern in Aug 1959.