Years flown: 1795-1818

Presidents: George Washington (1789-1797), John Adams (1797-1801), Thomas Jefferson (1801-1809), James Madison (1809-1817), and James Monroe (1817-1825)

States added: Vermont and Kentucky

Two stripes and two stars were added to the flag when Vermont and Kentucky joined the United States. This was a reluctant compromise between new states joining the United States and merchant ships who were the predominant users of the flag. The new states did not want to feel without representation on the flag and the merchant ships felt that the flags identification would be diminished as more and more states joined the union. In 1818, Samuel Ried’s proposed bill was enacted into law stating that the US flag retains just 13 stripes to represent the original colonies and adding new stars for each state that joins the United States. Interestingly, the 15-star flag is the only US flag with 15 stripes. It flew over Fort McHenry during the War of 1812 and inspired Francis Scott Key to write the National Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner”

References:

USA Today, The Stars and Stripes: Here are the 27 different US flags and their histories

www.crwflags.com