Summertime in the Belgrades
July 2
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O'er The Rampants They Waved
 During the Civil War, the flag went from 31 to 34 stars.  Vietnam!  Desert Storm commemorative flag. |
When Anthony Trafton of Kenduskeag, 10 miles northwest of Bangor, displays the colors from his flag collection, the history of conflicts and wars the United States has fought in takes on a new meaning.
- Thirteen stars (of various configurations) and stripes were flown during the Revolutionary War (1775) when there were thirteen colonies in the soon to be independent United States of America.
- Fifteen stars and stripes were flown during the War of 1812 when there were fifteen states in the United States, but it became apparent that there wasn't room to keep adding stripes to the flag so the official number reverted to thirteen.
- Twenty-seven stars were on the flag that was carried into the Mexican War in the mid-1800s.
- Thirty-one stars decorated the flag at the beginning of the Civil War, 1860; three more were added by the war's end, 1865.
- Forty-five stars were on the flag at San Juan Hill where Teddy Roosevelt and the Rough Riders fought during the Spanish-American War in the late 1800s.
- Forty-eight stars flew over World War I, World War II, Korea and Vietnam.
- Fifty stars flew during Desert Storm (1991) and are in Afghanistan and Iraq today.
In addition to the national stars and stripes that went into every conflict, each service has had its own flags. The conflicts themselves have also inspired commemorative flags.
In 1971 the Prisoner of War Flag originated to recognize prisoners and those missing in action in Vietnam. It soon became a symbol for and continues to represent all POWs and MIAs from any war.
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