Francis Hopkinson was born in Philadelphia in 1737. He studied at what's now the University of Pennsylvania, and took up law. He undertook business and public service in Pennsylvania, Delaware and New Jersey. He worked on treaties with the Delaware and Iroquois Indians. He was a federal judge when he died in 1791.
By then, he'd not only watched the world turn upside down, he'd helped to turn it. He served in the Continental Congress and was a signer of the Declaration of Independence. But his legacy is as much cultural as political. He made strong contributions to what we might call America's personality.
As a teenager, he took up the harpsichord and was soon playing with professionals. He also composed -- both poetry and music. He wrote psalm settings and hymns. He invented a new method for quilling harpsichords, and he improved on Benjamin Franklin's invention of the glass armonica by adding a keyboard to it.
Hopkinson's amazing array of talents included graphic design. As best we can reconstruct the history of the U.S. flag, he created its basic design early in 1777. His flag included the 13 red and white bars, with 13 six-pointed stars in either staggered rows of 3-2-3-2-3 or a circle.
Francis Hopkinson also designed the Seal of the United States of America.
For these reasons, and as a Educational Outreach Opportunity, the TNSSAR is going to be entertaining a shift in policy to fly the Hopkinson Flag at events and meetings instead of the Betsy Ross. This will be presented at the BoG on Oct. 19 in Chattanooga. The Board of Governors for the Tennessee Society of the Sons of the American Revolution convenes quarterly to conduct business of the state society. Officers from across the state will attend the meeting, which is being hosted by the John Sevier Chapter, which is based in Chattanooga, and held at the Chattanooga Masonic Center.