The United States flag has 13 stripes. The seven red and six white stripes represent the 13 British colonies that declared independence in 1776.
The original flag resolution of June 14, 1777, specified 13 alternating red and white stripes and 13 stars. As new states entered the Union, the flag gained both stars and stripes for a time. Congress later decided that the number of stripes should remain at 13, preserving the connection with the founding colonies.
The Flag Act of 1818 established the lasting arrangement: 13 stripes for the original colonies and one star for each state. A new star would be added on the July 4 following a state’s admission.
The 13 colonies were New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. Their political transformation is central to the history remembered by America250.