Item Description
On January 3rd,1959 Alaska was formally granted statehood placing the 49th star on the American Flag. Executive Order of President Eisenhower dated January 3, 1959 - provided for the arrangement of the stars in seven rows of seven stars each, staggered horizontally and vertically.
The first 49-star flag was made in the Army Quartermaster Depot at Philadelphia, and was used in the White House ceremony when President Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953-1961) signed the proclamation admitting Alaska to the Union. Subsequently, this flag was carried to Philadelphia by Senator Hugh Scott of Pennsylvania, who gave it to the mayor of Philadelphia to raise over Independence Hall on July 4th, 1959. After these ceremonies Scott gave the flag to his colleague, Senator Earnest Gruening of Alaska, who, in turn, delivered it to Governor William A. Eagan to be flown over the state capitol at Juneau. This flag was later given to the Alaska State Museum for preservation.
The 49-Star flag was official for only one year, until July 4, 1960, when Hawaii achieved its Statehood and the 50-Star flag was born. President Eisenhower was the only President to serve under this flag. Being that these flags were only really around for a single year, finding an original still with the box can be considered a rarity!
The flag is in wonderful condition and does not appear to have ever been flown or displayed outside of the box. The box even retains the Certificate of Guarantee from the Dettra Flag Company as well as a pamphlet on how to Display and Respect the flag.
Dettra was a flag company based in Oaks, Pennsylvania. John Dettra founded the company in 1901. The company made flags, pennants, banners, bannerettes, flag accessories, and other items throughout its history. The flag business appears to eb and flow depending on current events. For example, when the United States added a star to the flag when Alaska became a state in 1959, Dettra saw a huge uptick in orders for a new flag. When Hawaii became the 50th state later that same year, Dettra lost roughly $150,000 in canceled orders and unsalable inventory.2 However, the company quickly recovered when they made and sold roughly 2 million new flags, roughly double what Dettra normally made in a year.
This would be a welcomed addition to any collection. Comes more than ready for further research and display.
- This product is available for international shipping.
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