Talk:Betsy Ross

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Contents 1 Buying Betsy Ross's 2 What did she do in the war? 3 "First official flag" 4 Coat of Arms 5 Vandalism 6 Grand Union Flag 7 Born with a full set of teeth? 8 Who's buried in Ross' tomb? 9 Text removed 19 November 2007 10 Betsy's Second Husband 11 Betsy's First Husband

[edit] Buying Betsy Ross's

This section looks like vandalism to me; it just contains a link to a commercial website and the link wasn't even entered with the correct wiki syntax. Does anyone else agree that this section should be removed? SyntaxPC 16:39, 13 March 2006 (UTC)

[edit] What did she do in the war?

What did Betsy ross do during the war? Nothing tells me this. i need to know that great thing she did, and if i dont figure it out, i could get a bad grade. so, please, find out and put it on this website. I need it for a project by the end of this week. which is a short time. plus i have a math test on thursday. so cant go on the website then. i kind of need it now. Byee and Good luck!!!!!

Wikipedia isn't really meant to accept requests like this, nor will anyone here probably do the research for you. Therefore, you should probably consult other sources (probably primary sources). I wouldn't be surprised if no reputable secondary sources exist with this information, given Ross' dubious historical significance. However, my first instict would be to read one of her numerous biographies. Also, you aren't going to get on anyone's good side by spamming Wikipedia talk pages with random strings of characters. Finally, you probably shouldn't be using Wikipedia as your sole source of information for your project. SyntaxPC 23:30, 14 March 2006 (UTC)

[edit] "First official flag"

No official exact specification of the flag was produced until 1818 (and even then, it was only binding on the Navy), so that there were quite a few variations in the early days. The only "official" specification in 1777 was the laconic resolution passed by the Continental Congress:

"RESOLVED, that the flag of the 13 United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white: That the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new constellation."

And in fact, the arrangement with the stars in a circle has come to be known as the "Ross" arrangment, while the diagonal criss-cross has come to be known as the "Hopkinson" arrangment (see Flags_of_the_United_States etc.). AnonMoos 19:02, 2 October 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Coat of Arms

I ahve removed the following: "Collateral evidence to the claim that Betsy indeed provided significant design input in the flag is provided by reference to Ashburn's family coat of arms. The Ashburn crest provides a stars and bars motif not unlike Old Glory itself.[1]"

For starters, the site cited does not mention Ross, the flag or anything else about the topic. This makes the inclusion Original Research. That's enough, but I like to be thorough ...

So I checked out a couple of other names. Since the poster of that little nugget thought three red and white stripes with six white stars is a "stars and bars motif not unlike Old Glory itself", Washington's coat of arms is "collateral evidence" that he had input. Along for the ride were Bill Clinton, Dave Barry, Gtechen Mol, and, perhaps, Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. Mdbrownmsw 18:22, 2 November 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Vandalism

Why is this article the subject of so much minor vandalism? Mdbrownmsw 14:12, 14 November 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Grand Union Flag

Although I know this article can't be edited at the moment, I thought a mention of the Grand Union Flag would be noteworthy. See Grand Union Flag. Mushed 01:09, 26 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Born with a full set of teeth?

Several websites claim Betsy Ross was born with a full set of teeth. This sounds like an urban legend to me--babies are occasionally born with one or teeth but a full set? Does anyone has any reliable info about this? Miss Tabitha 06:46, 26 February 2007 (UTC)—The preceding unsigned comment was added by Miss Tabitha (talk • contribs) 06:45, 26 February 2007 (UTC).

[edit] Who's buried in Ross' tomb?

"An article in Saturday's Inquirer reported incorrectly that Betsy Ross is buried in Mount Moriah Cemetery in Cobbs Creek Park. Records indicate her body was moved to the cemetery from a Quaker burial ground 20 years after she died in 1836. But no remains were found under her tombstone in 1975, when workers sought to move her body before the Bicentennial. Bones believed to be hers were discovered elsewhere in the family plot and reinterred at the courtyard of the Betsy Ross House, Third and Arch Streets." Philadelphia Inquirer, November 22, 2005 "Corrections" http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/news/local/corrections/13230319.htm Mdbrownmsw 19:07, 14 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Text removed 19 November 2007

I have just removed this addition:

Though her name appears in severall history books, much investigation has yet to show any evidence as such. Latter work done by congressional and American historians has suggested. this to be more myth than fact.^[1] The rumor was actually started by Ross' grandson. Mary Young Pickersgill would later be credited with the original sewing though her name still appears in few text books.

The first section quotes another wiki; wiki's are not reliable sources. The second half picks up a portion of the answer given on that wiki ("The “First Flag” in the Smithsonian is often revires as Betsy’s Flag, however, it is was sewn by Mary Pickersgill, from Balitmore, and was not the first flag by a long shot.") and misunderstands it to say that Pickersgill sewed the first flag. Pickersgill sewed the original "Star Spangled Banner" flag circa 1813. In the tracing of THAT flag's history, Pickersgill's daughter claimed that her grandmother (Rebecca Young) made "the first flag of the Revolution", but no one knows what that flag looked like (i.e., it may not have born any resemblance to the red/white/blue stripes and stars deal).[2] Mdbrownmsw (talk) 19:16, 19 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Betsy's Second Husband

The section where Betsy Ross' second marriage is pointed out is unclear. Since when does the reader know that Capt Ashburn is being looked for? The sentence under the heading "Subsequent" that starts with 'Captain Ashburn was captured...' simply appears with no previous indication that capt ashburn was in hiding or if he was being chased. Please provide more information.Monkeytheboy (talk) 18:51, 10 December 2007 (UTC)

He wasn't specifically in hiding or specifically being chased or looked for. It was a war:"...supported the war effort. In June 1777, she married sea captain Joseph Ashburn....Captain Ashburn was captured by the British on a trip to procure supplies..."

Procuring supplies for one side, captured by the other side.

Mdbrownmsw (talk) 21:37, 10 December 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Betsy's First Husband

This information appears to be totally inaccurate. It says she married William Ross, when in fact she married John Ross. It says she divorced her first husband, but in fact he died and made her a widow. The section on her first husband should be before the information on husband's two and three. Also, there is no mention of John Ross's relationship to his uncle, who was one of the three people who came to her originally for help with the flag. I don't know what else in this article is wrong, but there are clear factual issues that need to be corrected. There are also no references cited for the information on the first husband. I followed all of the links and found no reference to either William Ross or John Ross, and I also found no reference to the word divorce at all. 75.75.94.101 (talk) 01:29, 11 March 2008 (UTC)

I've just removed some old vandalism and added new detail. Should be better now. - Mdsummermsw (talk) 13:17, 11 March 2008 (UTC)