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45-662: The founder of the Betsy Ross Air Corps, aviator Opal Kunz , had been disappointed that an earlier organization of women aviators, the Ninety-Nines , had not answered her goal of creating a women's national defense corps. So in 1931, Kunz formed the Betsy Ross Air Corps as a paramilitary service to support the Army Air Corps (the precursor to the U.S. Air Force) in national defense and to serve as humanitarian "air minutemen" in times of emergency. It also had

90-538: A "Women’s Reserve Corp" [sic]. As it turned out, it was flier Pancho Barnes who afterwards formed the Women's Air Reserve as an unofficial branch of the U.S. Air Force. Opal Kunz Opal Kunz (November 6, 1894 – May 15, 1967) was an early American aviator , the chief organizer of the Betsy Ross Air Corps , and a charter member of the Ninety-Nines organization of women pilots. In 1930, she became

135-437: A disease found in the 19th century to be spread by infected mosquitoes. After two decades of poor health, John Claypoole died in 1817. Ross continued the upholstery business for 10 more years. Upon retirement, she moved in with her daughter Susanna Claypoole (1786–1875), in a section of Abington Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania , while Susanna's older sister Clarissa (1785–1864) took over their mother's business back in

180-400: A long, narrow pennant; and (3) a short, narrow pennant. The ensign was a blue flag with 13 stripes—seven red stripes and six white stripes in the flag's canton (upper-left-hand corner). It was flown from a pole at the rear of the ship. The long pennant had 13 vertical, red-and-white stripes near the mast; the rest was solid red. It flew from the top of the ship's mainmast, the center pole holding

225-447: A peaceful post-war existence, as Philadelphia prospered as the temporary national capital (1790–1800) of the newly independent United States of America, with the first president, George Washington , his vice president, John Adams , and the convening members of the new federal government and the U.S. Congress . In 1793, her mother, father, and sister Deborah Griscom Bolton (1743–1793) all died in another severe epidemic of yellow fever ,

270-537: A research paper to the Historical Society of Pennsylvania in which he claimed that his grandmother had "made with her hands the first flag" of the United States. Canby said he first obtained this information from his aunt Clarissa Sydney (Claypoole) Wilson in 1857, 20 years after Ross's death. Canby dates the historic episode based on Washington's journey to Philadelphia, in the late spring of 1776,

315-567: A single flag, but rather what her story tells us about working women and men during the American Revolution. Betsy Ross School in Mahwah, New Jersey is named for her. On January 1, 1952, the U.S. Post Office issued a commemorative postage stamp to honor the 200th anniversary of her birth. It shows her presenting the new 13-striped, 13-starred flag to George Washington , with Robert Morris , and George Ross present. The design

360-545: A symbol of women's contributions to American history. American historian Laurel Thatcher Ulrich further explored this line of enquiry in a 2007 article, "How Betsy Ross Became Famous: Oral Tradition, Nationalism, and the Invention of History". Ross was merely one of several flag makers in Philadelphia (such as Rebecca Young , who is historically documented to have made the earlier Grand Union Flag of 1775–76, with

405-619: A year before the Second Continental Congress passed the first Flag Act of June 14, 1777 . In the 2008 book The Star-Spangled Banner: the Making of an American Icon , Smithsonian Institution experts point out that Canby's recounting of the event appealed to patriotic Americans then eager for stories about the Revolution and its heroes and heroines. Betsy Ross was promoted as a patriotic role model for young girls and

450-525: Is a popular tourist site in Philadelphia, but it is still a matter of historical academic dispute whether she actually lived there, as evidence indicates she actually lived from 1776 to 1779 in a house next door that was torn down after the remaining house was designated. Ross' body was first interred at the Free Quaker burial grounds on North Fifth Street in Philadelphia. In 1856, the remains of Ross and her third husband John Claypoole were moved from

495-651: The Betsy Ross House . However, cemetery workers found no remains beneath her tombstone. Bones found elsewhere in the family plot were deemed to be hers and were reinterred in the current grave visited by tourists at the Betsy Ross House. The Betsy Ross Bridge , connecting Philadelphia with Pennsauken Township, New Jersey , across the Delaware River is named in her honor. Biographer Marla Miller argues that Ross' legacy should not be about

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540-740: The Continental Army . There is speculation that Ross was the "beautiful young widow" who distracted Carl von Donop in Mount Holly, New Jersey , after the Battle of Iron Works Hill , thus keeping his forces out of the crucial "turning-of-the-tide" Battle of Trenton on the morning of December 26, 1776, in which Hessian soldiers were defeated after the crossing of the Delaware River . On June 15, 1777, she married her second husband, mariner Joseph Ashburn. In 1780, Ashburn's ship

585-679: The National Museum of American History of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. , notes that the story of Betsy Ross making the first U.S. flag for General George Washington entered into the U.S. consciousness about the time of the 1876 centennial celebrations, with the Centennial Exposition then scheduled to be held in Philadelphia. In 1870, Ross's grandson, William J. Canby, presented

630-895: The Pennsylvania Navy during the American Revolution. After the Revolution, she made U.S. flags for over 50 years, including 50 garrison flags for the U.S. Arsenal on the Schuylkill River during 1811. The flags of the Pennsylvania navy were overseen by the Pennsylvania Navy Board. The board reported to the Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly's Committee of Safety. In July 1775, the President of the Committee of Safety

675-510: The British Union Jack of the crosses of St. George and St. Andrew , in the upper corner canton and 13 alternating red and white stripes for the "United Colonies") for the Continental Army , along with many other ships' colors, banners, and flags which were advertised in local newspapers. Rebecca Young's daughter Mary Young Pickersgill (1776–1857) made the flag of 15 stars and stripes in 1813, begun at her house and finished on

720-543: The English Old Mill Prison and had informed Ross of her husband's circumstances and death. John Claypoole's diary and family Bible was rediscovered 240 years later in June 2020. The couple had five daughters: Clarissa, Susanna, Jane, Rachel, and Harriet (who died in infancy). With the birth of their second daughter Susanna in 1786, they moved to a larger house on Philadelphia's Second Street, settling down to

765-565: The Free Quaker Burying Ground to Mount Moriah Cemetery . The practice of cemeteries purchasing the remains of famous historical individuals was common in order to drive additional business. The Daughters of the American Revolution erected a flagpole at the site of her grave in her memory. In 1975, in preparation for the American Bicentennial , city leaders ordered the remains moved to the courtyard of

810-489: The Pennsylvanian fleet. An entry dated May 29, 1777, in the records of the Pennsylvania Navy Board, includes an order to pay her for her work. It is worded as follows: An order on William Webb to Elizabeth Ross for fourteen pounds twelve shillings and two pence for Making Ships Colours [etc.] put into William Richards store……………………………………….£14.12.2 The Pennsylvania navy's ship color included (1) an ensign; (2)

855-523: The Philadelphia American Legion Benefit Air Meet, she became the first woman to race with men in open competition. She won the race. Kunz gave frequent press interviews and radio addresses to urge more women to take up flying. In 1929, Kunz participated in the first Women's Air Derby , later dubbed the "Powder Puff Derby" by humorist Will Rogers. At the time, there were only 70 licensed female pilots in

900-772: The Rev. Aeneas Ross, a Church of England (later Episcopal ) priest and assistant rector at the historic city parish of Christ Church . Griscom and Ross eloped in 1773, marrying at Hugg's Tavern in Gloucester City, New Jersey . The marriage caused a split from her Griscom family and meant her expulsion from the Quaker congregation. The young couple soon started their own upholstery business and later joined Christ Church, where their fellow congregants occasionally included visiting colony of Virginia militia regimental commander, colonel, and soon-to-be-general George Washington (of

945-606: The Rosses had been married for two years. As a member of the local Pennsylvania Provincial Militia and its units from the city of Philadelphia , John Ross was assigned to guard munitions. He died in 1775. According to one legend, he was killed by a gunpowder explosion, but family sources provide doubts about this claim. The 24-year-old Elizabeth ("Betsy") continued working in the upholstery business repairing uniforms and making tents, blankets, and stuffed paper tube cartridges with musket balls for prepared packaged ammunition in 1779 for

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990-424: The U.S. Air Force) in national defense and to serve as humanitarian "air minutemen" in times of emergency. It also had the goal of offering flight instruction to women in order to build a reserve group of women aviators. Kunz grew the corps to about 100 members, partially funding it herself. She served as the corps' first commander, and her husband designed its insignia. The short-lived corps (1931–1933)

1035-685: The city. Ross, by then completely blind, spent her last three years living with her middle Claypoole daughter Jane (1792–1873) in Philadelphia , which was rapidly growing and industrializing. On Saturday, January 30, 1836, 60 years after the Declaration of Independence, Betsy Ross died at age 84. She was survived by one daughter with John Ashburn, Eliza, and four daughters with John Claypoole: Clarissa, Susanna, Jane, and Rachel, and one sister, Hannah Griscom Levering (1755–1836), who herself died about 11 months later. The so-called Betsy Ross House

1080-545: The early U.S. flag. Hopkinson submitted letters to Congress in 1780 requesting payment for his designs. Hopkinson was the only person to make such a claim in the Revolutionary War era. While Griscom was apprenticed to upholsterer William Webster, she met John Ross, a nephew of George Ross Jr , a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence . John's parents were Sarah Leach and

1125-546: The entire United States, and only 40 qualified to take part in this contest. The course began in Santa Monica, California, and ended in Cleveland, Ohio. Race rules stipulated that the aircraft must have horsepower "appropriate for a woman." Kunz was told her own 300-horsepower Beech Travel Air was too fast for a woman to handle and would not be allowed. Forced to borrow a less-powerful airplane in order to take part in

1170-579: The first woman pilot to race with men in an open competition. She made many public appearances to urge more women to take up flying. Opal Logan Giberson was born in 1894 in Missouri to Edward F. Giberson and his wife. She graduated from Dana Hall School in Wellesley, Massachusetts. In 1923, she married mineralogist George Frederick Kunz (1856–1932). The marriage was annulled in 1929. The couple remained on good terms, with Kunz caring for George for

1215-582: The floor of a nearby brewery, delivered to the commander of the fort the year before the British attack of September 12–14, 1814, on Fort McHenry in Baltimore , during the War of 1812 , (receiving a government-issued receipt for the work of two flags, a large 30 by 42 foot (9.1 by 12.8 m) "garrison flag" and a smaller "storm flag"), then seen by Francis Scott Key (1779–1843) and which inspired him to write

1260-614: The frequent smallpox epidemics in the autumn of 1762. Ross grew up in a household where the plain dress and strict discipline of the Quakers dominated. She learned to sew from a great aunt, Sarah Elizabeth Ann Griscom. Ross's great-grandfather, Andrew Griscom, a member of the Quakers and a carpenter , had emigrated in 1680 from England . After her schooling at a Quaker-run state school , Ross's father apprenticed her to an upholsterer named William Webster. Research conducted by

1305-806: The goal of offering flight instruction to women in order to build a reserve group of women aviators. Membership was available to licensed women pilots who were U.S. citizens. Student Pilots were eligible to join as Cadets. Apart from Kunz, aviators present at the first meeting of the corps (either in person or by proxy) included: Pancho Barnes , Marjorie Stinson , Mary Goodrich Jenson , Ruth Elder , LaBelle Sweeley , Ruth Bridwell McConnell , Eleanor McRae , Jean LaRene , Jane Dodge , Manila Davis , Margery Doig , Gladys O'Donnell , May Haizlip , and E. Ruth Webb ." Later members included Hattie Meyers Junkin , Aline Miller , Thelma Elliott, Althea Murphy, Lola Lo Lutz, Mary Moore, Mildred Morgan, Mary Nicholson, Mary Alexander, Peggy Remey, and Martha Morehouse . The corps

1350-582: The newly organized Continental Army ) and his family from their home Anglican parish of Christ Church in Alexandria, Virginia , near his Mount Vernon estate on the Potomac River , along with many other visiting notaries and delegates in future years to the soon-to-be-convened Continental Congress and the political/military leadership of the colonial rebellion. Betsy and John Ross had no children. The American Revolutionary War broke out when

1395-472: The organization's insignia. An anthem was commissioned for the corps. The corps has occasionally been referred to by the nickname "The Lady Bugs" or "Ladybirds". Kunz grew the corps to about 100 members and kept it going for several years, partially funding it herself. Among its other activities, the corps took part in air shows to raise money for charities. In a letter that Kunz later wrote to President John F. Kennedy , she said that she had intended to form

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1440-484: The poem which later became the national anthem , The Star-Spangled Banner . Pickersgill's small 1793 rowhouse is still preserved in East Baltimore's Old Town neighborhood at East Pratt and Albemarle Streets and is known as the " Flag House & Star-Spangled Banner Museum ". Occasionally over the decades, there has been some controversy and disagreement between the relative merits and historical accuracies of

1485-567: The race, she finished eighth. On September 7, 1930, Kunz loaned her plane to aviator John Donaldson at the American Legion Air Races meet in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Donaldson suffered fatal injuries when the airplane fell from a height of 1,800 feet straight down into the municipal airfield. Kunz was an organizer of the Betsy Ross Air Corps , a paramilitary service formed to support the Army Air Corps (the precursor to

1530-473: The remainder of his life. On his death, he left her a substantial bequest. Kunz earned her pilot's license in 1929. A crash two weeks later in New Jersey drew extensive press coverage; she escaped uninjured. A second crash two years later left her with gasoline burns. She spent a great deal of time and money on her flying pursuits and always named her planes after Betsy Ross . On April 7, 1930, at

1575-631: The sails. The short pennant was solid red, and flew from the top of the ship's mizzenmast—the pole holding the ship's sails nearest the stern (rear of the ship). Betsy Ross was born on January 1, 1752, to Samuel Griscom (1717–1793) and Rebecca James Griscom (1721–1793) on the Griscom family farm in Gloucester City, New Jersey. Ross was the eighth of seventeen children, of whom only nine survived childhood. A sister, Sarah (1745–1747), and brother, William (1748–1749), died before Elizabeth ("Betsy")

1620-475: The shape of the stars in a sketch of a flag he showed her from six-pointed to five-pointed by demonstrating that it was easier and speedier to cut the latter. However, there is no archival evidence or other recorded verbal tradition to substantiate this story of the first U.S. flag. It appears that the story first surfaced in the writings of her grandson in the 1870s (a century after the fact), with no mention or documentation in earlier decades. Ross made flags for

1665-541: The two flag-making traditions and historical sites in Philadelphia and Baltimore. It is thought that Ross's only contribution to the flag design was to change the 6-pointed stars to the easier 5-pointed stars. Scholars, however, accept the claim by Francis Hopkinson —a member of the Continental Congress who designed most of the elements of the Great Seal of the United States —that he created designs for

1710-860: The war effort. After the war, she became an inspector for the Aerojet Corporation in California. In 1961, following after the historic space flight of the Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin , she wrote to President John F. Kennedy to volunteer her services as an American astronaut. In honor of her extensive aviation experience, the president wrote her a courteous reply. Kunz died at home in Auburn, California in 1967. Betsy Ross Elizabeth Griscom Ross (née Griscom ; January 1, 1752 – January 30, 1836), also known by her second and third married names, Ashburn and Claypoole ,

1755-537: Was Benjamin Franklin. Its members included Robert Morris and George Ross. At that time, the committee ordered the construction of gunboats that would eventually need flags as part of their equipment. As late as October 1776, Captain William Richards was still writing to the Committee of Safety to request the design that he could use to order flags for the fleet. Ross was one of those hired to make flags for

1800-525: Was an American upholsterer who was credited by her relatives in 1870 with making the second official U.S. flag , accordingly known as the Betsy Ross flag . Though most historians dismiss the story, Ross family tradition holds that General George Washington , commander-in-chief of the Continental Army and two members of a congressional committee— Robert Morris and George Ross —visited Mrs. Ross in 1776. Mrs. Ross convinced George Washington to change

1845-417: Was born (another sister, Sarah Griscom Donaldson (1749–1785), was named after the earlier deceased Sarah). Ross was just five years old when her sister Martha (1754–1757) died, and another sister, Ann (1757–1759), only lived to the age of two. Brothers Samuel I (1753–1756) and Samuel II (1758–1761) both died at age three. Two others, twins, brother Joseph (1759–1762) and sister Abigail (1759–1762), died in one of

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1890-591: Was captured by a Royal Navy frigate and he was charged with treason (for being of British ancestry— naturalization to American colonial citizenship was not recognized) and imprisoned at Old Mill Prison in Plymouth , England. During this time, their first daughter, Zilla, died at the age of nine months and their second daughter, Eliza, was born. Ashburn died in the British jail. Three years later, in May 1783, she married John Claypoole, who had earlier met Joseph Ashburn in

1935-525: Was divided into nine areas across the country, each led by a Lieutenant Commander: Boston, New York, Germantown, Memphis, Columbus, Oshkosh, Kansas City, Tulsa, and Visalia. On May 9, 1931, 14 of the 76 members met with the Chief of Naval Aeronautics and Chief of the Army Air Corps at the headquarters of the Daughters of the American Revolution to offer auxiliary aid in times of national emergency. The Corps

1980-562: Was first headquartered in Kansas City, MO, at the Kansas City Municipal Airport though after a vote on Oct 7, 1933, it was decided to move the headquarters to Washington. Kunz served as the corps' first commander, and her husband designed its insignia. The corps had its uniforms, described as tan breeches, lighter tan riding shirts, jodhpurs, dark brown English style military coats, and a dark brown beret with

2025-470: Was never formally recognized by the U.S. military. As World War II approached, Kunz began teaching aviation students at Arkansas State College . In 1942, she moved to Rhode Island, and at the start of World War II became an instructor at the Rhode Island state airport for Navy cadets and for the government-sponsored Civilian Pilot Training Program . She taught several hundred young men how to fly for

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