The Continental Congress specified 13 stars for the first official United States flag in 1777.
On June 14, 1777, Congress passed the Flag Resolution describing a flag with 13 alternating red and white stripes and 13 white stars on a blue field. The stars represented the thirteen states that had declared independence from Great Britain. The resolution called the stars “a new constellation.”
The original resolution did not prescribe the stars’ exact arrangement, their number of points, or whether the stripes had to begin with red or white. Flag makers therefore produced several early patterns, including circles, rows, and other arrangements. The familiar Betsy Ross circle is one later traditional design, not a uniquely required layout in the 1777 wording.
The current flag has 50 stars because stars were added as new states joined the Union. The thirteen stripes remained as a historical reference to the original states, making the early 13-star design especially relevant to the 250th anniversary of independence.