Texas entered the United States on December 29th, 1845, becoming the 28th state. This 28-star flag is in the Great Luminary pattern, particularly relevant for the entrance of the Lone Star state.
Created by Captain Samuel Chester Reid of the United States Navy in 1818, this pattern was designed to allow for the introduction of stars as states joined the Union, while maintaining a uniform pattern to the flag. Some of the most famous American flags display this design, and it remained in use until the later part of the 1900s. Until the 20th century, there was no fixed pattern for the stars on the USA flag. The Flag Resolution of 1777 established the alternating red and white stripes and a star for each state in the union (the upper left field of blue).
By 1794 two more states had entered the Union, and another act was passed to establish a 15-star, 15-stripe flag. At this time, there was no official pattern for the stripes. In 1818 Congress wisely passed an act to establish the stripes as 13, arranged horizontally, and to add a new star for every new state. A new flag became official on the 4th of July following the new territory becoming a state. When Texas became part of the United States in 1845, a 28th star was added to the flag. Until the 20th Century there were no rules about the pattern of the star on our flag. The creativity and imagination of Americans brought about many ways in which the stars were displayed, and the Great Luminary is one of the more beautiful. It is worth noting that some 28-star Great Luminary Flags had additional stars added to them as more states joined the Union. President Taft signed an order in 1912 which established that each star would be oriented identically, with one point of each of the five-pointed stars directed straight up. It was in 1959, however, that the pattern so familiar to us today was finally made official. President Eisenhower gave us the rule of nine staggered rows of either five or six stars.
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