The Betsy Ross House is a landmark in Philadelphia purported to be the site where the seamstress and flag-maker

Betsy Ross Elizabeth Griscom Ross (née Griscom;Addie Guthrie Weaver, ''"The Story of Our Flag..."'', 2nd Edition, A. G. Weaver, publ., 1898, p. 73 January 1, 1752 – January 30, 1836), also known by her second and third married names, Ashburn an ...

(1752-1836) lived when she is said to have sewed the first

American Flag The national flag of the United States of America, often referred to as the ''American flag'' or the ''U.S. flag'', consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the c ...

. The origins of the

myth trace back to her relatives, particularly her grandsons, William and George Canby, and the celebrations of the Centennial of 1876. Evidence for the precise location of Ross's home came from verification provided by several surviving family members,Official website
/ref> although the best archival evidence indicates the house would have been adjacent to the one that still stands today as The Betsy Ross House. The 1937 Philadelphia Guide noted that, after the current Betsy Ross House was selected as the Flag House, the adjacent building where Ross may have indeed lived "was torn down to lessen the hazards of fire, perhaps adding a touch of irony to what may well have been an error in research." Although the house is one of the most visited tourist sites in Philadelphia, the claim that Ross once lived there, and that she designed and sewed the first American flag, sometimes called the Betsy Ross flag, are considered false by most historians. The house sits on

Arch Street Arch Street is a major east-west street in Center City Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. History The street was called Mulberry Street in William Penn's original city grid, but it was renamed Arch in 1854. Other parts of the street were once called Hol ...

, several blocks from

Independence Hall Independence Hall is a historic civic building in Philadelphia, where both the United States Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution were debated and adopted by America's Founding Fathers. The structure forms the center ...

and the

Liberty Bell The Liberty Bell, previously called the State House Bell or Old State House Bell, is an iconic symbol of American independence, located in Philadelphia. Originally placed in the steeple of the Pennsylvania State House (now renamed Independen ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Ma ...

. The front part of the building was built around 1740, in the Pennsylvania colonial style, with the stair hall and the rear section added 10 to 20 years later. Had she lived here, Ross would have resided in the house from 1776, the death of her first husband, John Ross, until about 1779.

Restoration

Birthplace of Old Glory Betsy Ross House Philadelphia Pa 1903

Over the years, various structural changes and general wear and tear left the house in dire need of restoration. In 1937, Philadelphia

radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transm ...

mogul, A. Atwater Kent offered up to $25,000 for the restoration of the house and commissioned historical architect Richardson Brognard Okie to do the work. Original elements were kept wherever possible. Otherwise, materials from demolished period homes were used. A new structure was added in the rear, made from period bricks. The front stairway and dormer were entirely replaced. The front doorway was moved to the opposite corner, and a new window was installed. Kent then purchased the two adjacent properties to develop a "civic garden." In 1941, the entire property, including the historic house and courtyard, were given to the city of Philadelphia. In 1965 an annex building was added to the property, and in 1974 the courtyard was renovated and a fountain added. In preparation for the

United States Bicentennial The United States Bicentennial was a series of celebrations and observances during the mid-1970s that paid tribute to historical events leading up to the creation of the United States of America as an independent republic. It was a central event ...

, remains deemed to be those of Ross and her third husband, John Claypoole, were moved to graves in the courtyard."Corrections", ''

The Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper's circulation is the largest in both the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley metropolitan region of Southeastern Penns ...

'' (November 22, 2005) A private nonprofit organization, Historic Philadelphia, Inc., began leasing the property from the City of Philadelphia in 1995 and continues to manage the site to this day. Betsy Ross' Gravestone

The Betsy Ross House has long been the site of Philadelphia's observance of Flag Day.

References

External links

*
Betsy Ross House
at UShistory.org
"Site Where Mrs. Elizabeth Ross made the First American Flag"
at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania
Photo ca. 1900
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ross, Betsy, House Houses in Philadelphia Historic house museums in Philadelphia Old City, Philadelphia Biographical museums in Pennsylvania Women's museums in the United States Houses completed in 1740 Landmarks in Philadelphia Philadelphia in the American Revolution 18th-century architecture in the United States Colonial architecture in Pennsylvania 1740 establishments in Pennsylvania Betsy Ross

Restoration

See also

References

External links