June 14, 1777: During the American Revolution, the
Continental Congress adopted a resolution stating
that “the flag of the United States be thirteen alternate
stripes red and white” and  that “the Union be thirteen
stars, white in a blue field, representing a new Constellation.”       

       
The national flag, which became known as the “Stars and Stripes,
” was based on the “Grand Union” flag, a banner carried by the Continental Army in 1776 that also consisted of 13 red and white
stripes. According to legend, Philadelphia seamstress Betsy
Ross designed the new canton for the Stars and Stripes, which
consisted of a circle of 13 stars and a blue background, at the
request of General George Washington. Historians have been
unable to conclusively prove or disprove this legend.

With the entrance of new states into the United States after independence, new stripes and stars were added to represent
new additions to the Union. In 1818, however, Congress enacted
a law stipulating that the 13 original stripes be restored and that
only stars be added to represent new states.

Elizabeth Griscom Ross
(January 1, 1752 – January 30, 1836)

On September 7, 1813, according to the most cited—and
Congressionally approved—account, the United States
got its nickname, Uncle Sam. The name is linked to Samuel
Wilson, a meat packer from Troy, New York, who supplied
barrels of beef to the United States Army during the War of
1812. Wilson (1766-1854) stamped the barrels with “U.S.”
for United States. But because Wilson was known locally
as "Uncle Sam," soldiers began referring to the grub as
“Uncle Sam’s.”

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Judy Garland (Frances Ethel Gumm)
(June 10, 1922 – June 22, 1969)

Judy Garland was an award winning actress,
singer, dancer and vaudevillian. While critically
acclaimed for many different roles throughout
her career, she is widely known for playing the
part of Dorothy Gale in The Wizard of Oz (1939).

The modern United States receives its crowning star when President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed a proclamation admitting Hawaii into the
Union as the 50th state (above). The president also issued an order
for an American flag featuring 50 stars arranged in staggered rows:
five six-star rows and four five-star rows. The new U.S. flag became
official July 4, 1960.

            ROSS SIMPSON

Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill
(November 30, 1874 – January 24, 1965)

Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill, the British leader who guided
Great Britain and the Allies through the crisis of World War II, died in
London at the age of 90.

Thurgood Marshall (July 2, 1908 – January 24, 1993)

Marshall served as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court
of the United States from October 1967 until October 1991
and was the Court’s first African-American justice.