It is the anniversary of the day on which the Continental Congress adopted the Flag of the United States in 1777.

Homes, business establishments, and public buildings display the Flag. Schools and patriotic organizations hold special pro-grams. Such programs usually include patriotic music and discussions of the origin and meaning of the flag.

Flag Day is not an official national holiday, but it is widely observed. It was first officially celebrated in 1877, when the Congress of the United States requested that the flag be flown from all public buildings.

In 1885, Bernard J. Cigrand (1866-1932), a school teacher of Waubeka, Wis., began a lifetime of effort for a yearly national observance of Flag Day. He is sometimes called the "Father of Flag Day."