Elks National Memorial

The Elks Memorial & National Headquarters Exterior, Chicago Il.

In our fourth and final video exploring the magnificent Elks Memorial & National Headquarters we take a look at it's exterior. Here are links to the other videos;




The buildings architecht was Egerton Swartwout who designed many government buildings. It was constructed out of Limestone and modeled on the Capitol building in Wshington D.C. The Memorial was built in 1926 with money that was raised by each of the three and a half million members contributing $1.

The large sculptures on the wings of the building were created by Adolph A. Weinman who designed two of the most gorgeous coins made by the US the liberty walking half dollar and the Mercury dime. On the south side is “Fraternity” and on the north we have “Patriotism”. Above the door is inscribed “The Triumphs Of Peace Endure- The Triumphs Of War Perish” which is visualized in the frieze that extend on eother side from the door.

The memorial is open to the public for free Mon-Sat April 15 through Nov. 15.

The music was composed by Dvorak the “Serenade for Strings Op22 in E Major larghetto”by Advent Chamber Orchestra. It  is licensed under a Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.

Another ChiTownView produced by Mike Beyer and presented by MindsiMedia.Visit our web portal at

Elks National Memorial & Headquarters Interior 2

We have three other videos exploring this magnificent building:
Rotunda
Rose Bowl Floats
Exterior

This is our second video exploring the magnificent Elks National Memorial & Headquarters located across from Lincoln Park at Diversey on Chicago's north side. In this clip we take a look inside the Grand Reception Hall. The beautifully carved wood paneling is made of English & Scottish oak. The murals were painted by Eugene Savage and are entitled “Paths Of Peace” (first) “Armistice” (second) and “The Feast Of Mt. Olympus” (ceiling panels). The art glass panels are the work of Wm. Franklyn Paris & Fredrick J. Wiley & Assoc. The palatial Oriental rugs came from Persia and made by the Kent-Costikyan Co..

The Benevolent & Protective Order Of Elks is a national non political / religious charitable organization.The Elks National Memorial & Headquarters is located at 2750 N Lakeview Ave, Chicago, right across the street from Lincoln Park. It was originally dedicated in1926 to members who served in WW 1 and later rededicated in 1946, 1976 and 1994 to include member veterans from those wars. The architect of this Beaux Arts-style building was Egerton Swartwout who has  6 of his buildings included in the National Register of Historic Places.

The music is from the FreeMusicArchive. It is “ Concerto for Organ and Orchestra Op7 no1 mvt1” composed by Handel performed  by Advent Chamber Orchestra;


It is licensed under a Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.



Another ChiTownView produced by Mike Beyer and presented by MindsiMedia.Visit our web portal at

Did U Know? Elks National Headquarters

One of the most impressive buildings in Chicago, the Elks National Headquarters is an opulent memorial dedicated to those who lost their lives during World War I.

Elks National Hoop Shoot Contest - Oglesby, Illinois

Nothing but net. Here's the highlights from the Elks National Hoop Shoot Contest 12/13 year olds. This local level of the competition was held in Oglesby, Illinois and the winners will now advance to the district level. The annual competition is for boys and girls between the ages of 8-13. Great job to everyone that participated!

Plot Twist:Almina Swenson, part 2 of 3

Following the astonishing revelations shared in part 1 of this series, the amazing saga of Almina Swenson continues in part 2, as we explore the life and times of our colorful ancestress. Buckle up, and brace yourself for a wild ride!


Feel free to get in touch: deadkeenfamilyhistory@gmail.com

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS, LINKS, AND DOCUMENT LIST:
- Sincere thanks to the Freestate family for sharing their family history research, and for graciously granting permission to use photographs of Charles Petterson Freestate.

- Grateful acknowledgment of the generosity of the photographer “bhd”, in voluntarily giving of their time to donate gravesite photos to findagrave.com, and for allowing us to use their photo of Alma Johnson Freestate’s grave in this presentation. That image can be viewed online at:


- Links to some other family graves connected to Almina Swenson (a.k.a. Alma Swanson):

1. father, Ole Swanson (a.k.a. Ola Svensson) (Graceland Cemetery, Chicago, Illinois):
2. mother, Wilhelmina Christina Bergvall Swanson (Bluff View - Vermillion Cemetery, Vermillion, S.D.):
3. son, Charles Benard Rosberg, Sr. unknown, Illinois
4. 2nd husband, John Bernhard Johnson (Dalesburg Lutheran Cemetery, Vermillion, S.D.):
5. son, Arvid Arthur Johnson (Dalesburg Lutheran Cemetery, Vermillion, S.D.):
6. son, Harold Oliver Johnson (Acacia Park Cemetery, Chicago, Illinois):
7. 3rd husband, Charles Petterson Freestate (Montrose Cemetery, Chicago, Illinois):
8. daughter, Della Leonore Freestate (Acacia Park Cemetery, Chicago, Illinois):

- The following documents belong to their respective copyright holders, and were used in this video for educational purposes:

1. Chicago, Illinois, Voter Registration, 1892, page 418. Available through Illinois State Archives, or ancestry.com

2. Church record books of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Chicago, Illinois. Marriage book, 1895. Available through the archives of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Elk Grove Village, Illinois; Swenson Swedish Immigration Research Center at Augustana College, Rock Island, Illinois; and services such as ancestry.com .

3. 1909 Map of the United States by Geo. A. Ogle & Co. Public domain via Wikimedia.
Link:
This map is also available from the United States Library of Congress's Geography & Map Division under the digital ID g4183dm.gla00056.

Link:

4. Church record books of Dalesburg Lutheran Church of Vermillion, Clay, South Dakota. Available through the archives of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Elk Grove Village, Illinois; Swenson Swedish Immigration Research Center of Augustana College, Rock Island, Illinois; or services such as ancestry.com

5. 1900 U.S. Federal Census records from Vermillion and Prairie Center, Clay, Illinois. Available through National Records and Archives Administration, and online services such as familysearch.org and ancestry.com.

6. Rand McNally & Co.’s new street number guide map of Chicago / Rand McNally & Co. , 1912, at Wikimedia, courtesy of Scewing. This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author’s life plus 70 years or less.
Link:

7. U.S. Army Transport Service passenger list, 1918. Records of the Office of the Quartermaster General, 1774-1985; Record Group Number: 92; Roll or Box Number: 521. Available through the National Archives or ancestry.com.

20180608 215200 1SL6 TRAVEL T201803 US United States (08.06.2018-01.07.2018) (Leo)

Road trip East Coast Express
June 8 - July 1, 2018
(8,319 miles, covering 34 states in 24 days)

Visited Locations (alphabetically):
• US United States
1. Alabama
 Birmingham Bessemer Rd
 Hamilton Interstate 22
2. Arizona
 Flagstaff S Plaza Way
 Holbrook
 Littlefield Veterans Memorial Hwy
3. Arkansas
 Little Rock President Clinton Ave
 Van Buren Interstate 40
4. Connecticut
 New London Ferry St
 Stonington Roosevelt Ave
5. Delaware
 Interstate 95
 Lewes
 Lewes Anglers Rd
 Lewes Cape May - Lewes Ferry
 Rehoboth Beach
6. District of Columbia Washington
 15th St NW
 9th St NW
 Constitution Ave NW
 H St NW
 Madison Dr NW
 Pennsylvania Ave NW
 Water St NW
7. Georgia
 Atlanta Marietta St NW
 Georgia Waco Tom Murphy Fwy
8. Illinois
 Chicago
 Lansing Kingery Expy
 Princeton Interstate 80
9. Indiana
 Michigan City Interstate 94
10. Iowa
 Davenport Sergeant John Baker Junior Memorial Bridge
 Des Moines
 Newton E 8th St N
 Williamsburg
11. Maine
 Cape Elizabeth Captain Strout Circle
 Kittery Maine Turnpike
 Portland
 South Portland
 Westbrook Larrabee Rd
 Wiscasset
12. Maryland
 Annapolis
 Cabin John
 Oxon Hill Monument Ave
 Silver Spring
13. Massachusetts
 Attleboro Interstate 95
14. Michigan
 Battle Creek Greenwood Ave
 Dearborn Michigan Ave
 Detroit
 Erie Detroit-Toledo Expy
15. Mississippi
 Olive Branch
 Tupelo Elvis Presley Dr
16. Nebraska
 Albion S 5th St
 Dodge County Rd W
 Hooper E Birchwood Dr
 Johnstown
 Omaha
17. Nevada
 Las Vegas
 ASRE 2018 R89129
 Mesquite Interstate 15
18. New Hampshire
 Antrim Breezy Point Rd
 Hillsboro Franklin Pierce Hwy
 Seabrook Blue Star Turnpike
19. New Jersey
 Atlantic City
 Berkeley Township Shore Rd
 Hamilton Township Hastings Rd
 Little Egg Harbor Township
 North Cape May Lincoln Blvd
20. New Mexico
 Las Vegas 7th St
 North Acomita Village Pueblo Rd
 Santa Rosa Route 66
21. New York
 Dix Hills
 East Hampton Main St
 East Marion Main Rd
 Latham New Loudon Rd
 Long Island
 Montauk Montauk Hwy
 New York
 Niagara Falls
 Orient
 Sag Harbor
 Shelter Island
 Southampton N Main St
 Staten Island
22. North Carolina
 Calabash Hickman Rd NW
 Carolina Beach
 Kure Beach
23. Ohio
 Cleveland W 25th St
 Conneaut Interstate 90
24. Oklahoma
 Elk City S Main St
 Oklahoma City N Harvey Ave
25. Pennsylvania
 Lancaster E Chestnut St
 New Freedom Veterans of Foreign Wars Memorial Hwy
 New Holland S Tower Rd
 North East Interstate 90
 Philadelphia
26. Pennsylvania
 Ronks Old Philadelphia Pike
27. Rhode Island
 Cranston Park Ave
 Hopkinton Interstate 95
 Warwick Arnolds Neck Dr
28. South Carolina
 Florence E Old Marion Hwy
 Myrtle Beach Myrtle Beach Boardwalk and Promenade
 North Augusta Interstate 20
29. South Dakota
 Keystone
 Midland South Dakota 63
 Murdo
 Rapid City
 Valentine
 Wall Main St
30. Tennessee
 Memphis Elvis Presley Blvd
31. Texas
 Amarillo Interstate 40 Frontage Rd
 Canyon
32. Utah
 Echo Lincoln Hwy
 Evanston Lincoln Hwy
 Orem
 Provo
 Salt Lake City
 Spanish Fork Veterans Memorial Hwy
33. Vermont
 Guilford Franklin Pierce Hwy
 Marlboro South Rd
34. Virginia
 Alexandria
 Arlington Fort Myer Dr
 Fairfax Guinea Rd
 Gainesville Promenade Commons St
 Skippers Interstate 95
 Vienna Nutley St SW
35. Wyoming
 Beulah Interstate 90
 Cody
 Cody Greybull Hwy
 Daniel
 Gillette W 2nd St
 Jackson E Broadway
 Kemmerer
 Moran John D Rockefeller Jr Pkwy
 Sundance Interstate 90
 Yellowstone National Park

ELKS PSA 002 PrescriptionFuneral 071912

PSA on prescriptions drug abuse

Massive Concrete Girders used for I-294, Mile Long Bridge in Chicago, IL

20180608 215200 1SL6 TRAVEL T201803 US United States (08.06.2018-01.07.2018) (Diane)

Road trip East Coast Express
June 8 - July 1, 2018
(8,319 miles, covering 34 states in 24 days)

Visited Locations (alphabetically):
• US United States
1. Alabama
 Birmingham Bessemer Rd
 Hamilton Interstate 22
2. Arizona
 Flagstaff S Plaza Way
 Holbrook
 Littlefield Veterans Memorial Hwy
3. Arkansas
 Little Rock President Clinton Ave
 Van Buren Interstate 40
4. Connecticut
 New London Ferry St
 Stonington Roosevelt Ave
5. Delaware
 Interstate 95
 Lewes
 Lewes Anglers Rd
 Lewes Cape May - Lewes Ferry
 Rehoboth Beach
6. District of Columbia Washington
 15th St NW
 9th St NW
 Constitution Ave NW
 H St NW
 Madison Dr NW
 Pennsylvania Ave NW
 Water St NW
7. Georgia
 Atlanta Marietta St NW
 Georgia Waco Tom Murphy Fwy
8. Illinois
 Chicago
 Lansing Kingery Expy
 Princeton Interstate 80
9. Indiana
 Michigan City Interstate 94
10. Iowa
 Davenport Sergeant John Baker Junior Memorial Bridge
 Des Moines
 Newton E 8th St N
 Williamsburg
11. Maine
 Cape Elizabeth Captain Strout Circle
 Kittery Maine Turnpike
 Portland
 South Portland
 Westbrook Larrabee Rd
 Wiscasset
12. Maryland
 Annapolis
 Cabin John
 Oxon Hill Monument Ave
 Silver Spring
13. Massachusetts
 Attleboro Interstate 95
14. Michigan
 Battle Creek Greenwood Ave
 Dearborn Michigan Ave
 Detroit
 Erie Detroit-Toledo Expy
15. Mississippi
 Olive Branch
 Tupelo Elvis Presley Dr
16. Nebraska
 Albion S 5th St
 Dodge County Rd W
 Hooper E Birchwood Dr
 Johnstown
 Omaha
17. Nevada
 Las Vegas
 ASRE 2018 R89129
 Mesquite Interstate 15
18. New Hampshire
 Antrim Breezy Point Rd
 Hillsboro Franklin Pierce Hwy
 Seabrook Blue Star Turnpike
19. New Jersey
 Atlantic City
 Berkeley Township Shore Rd
 Hamilton Township Hastings Rd
 Little Egg Harbor Township
 North Cape May Lincoln Blvd
20. New Mexico
 Las Vegas 7th St
 North Acomita Village Pueblo Rd
 Santa Rosa Route 66
21. New York
 Dix Hills
 East Hampton Main St
 East Marion Main Rd
 Latham New Loudon Rd
 Long Island
 Montauk Montauk Hwy
 New York
 Niagara Falls
 Orient
 Sag Harbor
 Shelter Island
 Southampton N Main St
 Staten Island
22. North Carolina
 Calabash Hickman Rd NW
 Carolina Beach
 Kure Beach
23. Ohio
 Cleveland W 25th St
 Conneaut Interstate 90
24. Oklahoma
 Elk City S Main St
 Oklahoma City N Harvey Ave
25. Pennsylvania
 Lancaster E Chestnut St
 New Freedom Veterans of Foreign Wars Memorial Hwy
 New Holland S Tower Rd
 North East Interstate 90
 Philadelphia
26. Pennsylvania
 Ronks Old Philadelphia Pike
27. Rhode Island
 Cranston Park Ave
 Hopkinton Interstate 95
 Warwick Arnolds Neck Dr
28. South Carolina
 Florence E Old Marion Hwy
 Myrtle Beach Myrtle Beach Boardwalk and Promenade
 North Augusta Interstate 20
29. South Dakota
 Keystone
 Midland South Dakota 63
 Murdo
 Rapid City
 Valentine
 Wall Main St
30. Tennessee
 Memphis Elvis Presley Blvd
31. Texas
 Amarillo Interstate 40 Frontage Rd
 Canyon
32. Utah
 Echo Lincoln Hwy
 Evanston Lincoln Hwy
 Orem
 Provo
 Salt Lake City
 Spanish Fork Veterans Memorial Hwy
33. Vermont
 Guilford Franklin Pierce Hwy
 Marlboro South Rd
34. Virginia
 Alexandria
 Arlington Fort Myer Dr
 Fairfax Guinea Rd
 Gainesville Promenade Commons St
 Skippers Interstate 95
 Vienna Nutley St SW
35. Wyoming
 Beulah Interstate 90
 Cody
 Cody Greybull Hwy
 Daniel
 Gillette W 2nd St
 Jackson E Broadway
 Kemmerer
 Moran John D Rockefeller Jr Pkwy
 Sundance Interstate 90
 Yellowstone National Park

Elks Memorial Day 2014

By statue Elks are require to honor those we have lost over the past year on the first Sunday of December. By love we fulfill that requirement today.

To find out about becoming an Elk call 615-591-5664
E-mail: bpoe.nashville@gmail.com
Visit us on line:
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on twitter: #bpoe72
See the video “Who are the Elks?”
To contribute to our the Thanks for Giving Program a year round project please click here



None of the music is mine, I claim no rights to it. It is used purely for entertainment purposes.

Parade marks start of Elks National Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana. HD Stock Footage

CriticalPast is an archive of historic footage. The vintage footage in this video has been uploaded for research purposes, and is presented in unedited form. Some viewers may find some scenes or audio in this archival material to be unsettling or distressing. CriticalPast makes this media available for researchers and documentarians, and does not endorse or condone any behavior or message, implied or explicit, that is seen or heard in this video.
Link to order this clip:

Historic Stock Footage Archival and Vintage Video Clips in HD.

Parade marks start of Elks National Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Parade marks start of Elks National Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana. Men and women in uniforms parade. Onlookers watch the parade. Dignitary in traditional clothes watches the parade. Location: Indianapolis Indiana. Date: August 24, 1933.

Visit us at CriticalPast.com:
57,000+ broadcast-quality historic clips for immediate download.
Fully digitized and searchable, the CriticalPast collection is one of the largest archival footage collections in the world. All clips are licensed royalty-free, worldwide, in perpetuity. CriticalPast offers immediate downloads of full-resolution HD and SD masters and full-resolution time-coded screeners, 24 hours a day, to serve the needs of broadcast news, TV, film, and publishing professionals worldwide. Still photo images extracted from the vintage footage are also available for immediate download. CriticalPast is your source for imagery of worldwide events, people, and B-roll spanning the 20th century.

16 Hate Crimes Against Sikh Americans

This video highlights 16 major hate crimes against Sikh Americans since 2001. Sikhs belong to a religion founded in Punjab, India, a region that straddles modern-day India and Pakistan. Founded in the 16th century by Guru Nanak, who said Sikhs are “neither Hindus nor Muslims,” Sikhism is the fifth largest religion in the world with approximately 30 million followers.

Since the terrorist attacks in New York City and elsewhere on September 11, 2001, Sikhs in the United States have frequently been mistaken for Muslims and suffered severe violence as a consequence. Many of the victims portrayed in this video report their attackers shouting phrases such as “go back to your country, terrorist” or calling them “Bin Laden,” or using similar slurs. Of course, no Muslim should suffer such violence, but it’s perhaps an even greater tragedy when hatred is directed against innocent people based on a mistaken identity.

As Guru Gobind Singh, one of Sikhism’s teachers, stated: “Recognize the human race as one.” Or, as St. Paul taught in the first century, God “has made from one blood[c] every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth.” No one can dehumanize any other people group without simultaneously dehumanizing themselves. This video, therefore, intends to show the human faces of the victims of hate.

As the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund reports:

“How many Sikh Americans have fallen victim to hate crimes?

“It is difficult to know the true number of hate crimes against Sikh Americans because many incidents go unreported and because Sikh-specific statistics are currently unavailable. The U.S. Department of Justice has noted that, since 9/11, its Civil Rights Division as well as the Federal Bureau of Investigation and United States Attorneys have investigated over 800 bias incidents against Sikh, Arab, Muslim, and South Asian Americans….

“Why are Sikh Americans subjected to hate crimes?

“Sikh Americans are often mistaken for Muslims because of ignorance, and recent surveys have suggested a huge increase in anti-Muslim bigotry in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks; but this does not fully explain why Sikh Americans are subjected to hate crimes. Even if Sikhs clarify their religious affiliation and create national awareness about the Sikh religion, bigots may still target Sikh Americans because of racism, religious exclusivity, and xenophobia.”

Source:

The 16 hate crimes documented in this video are by no means a comprehensive listing, and many other Sikhs in the U.S. have faced similar attacks. The 16 incidents documented here include:

Balbir Singh Sodhi: Shot to death
Sept. 15, 2001, Mesa, Arizona

Surinder Singh Sidhu: Beaten
Dec. 12, 2001, Los Angeles, California

Sukhpal Singh Sidhu: Shot to death
Aug. 6, 2002, Daly City, California

Avtar Singh Cheira: Shot twice (survived)
May 19, 2003, Phoenix, Arizona

Rajinder Singh Khalsa: Beaten unconscious
July 11, 2004, New York City, New York

Sukhvir Singh: Beaten, threatened with death
Nov. 24, 2007, Seattle, Washington

Jasmine Singh: Beaten, loses an eye
Jan. 18, 2009, New York City, New York

Harbhajan Singh: Beaten
Nov. 28, 2010, West Sacramento, California

Surrender Singh & Gurmej Atwal: Shot to death
Mar. 4, 2011, Elk Grove, California

Six Sikhs: Massacred
Aug. 5, 2012, Oak Creek, Wisconsin

Piara Singh: Beaten unconscious
May 5, 2013, Fresno, California

Sandeep Singh: Run over with a truck
July 30, 2014, New York City, New York

Inderjit Singh Mukker: Beaten unconscious
Sept. 8, 2015, Chicago, Illinois

Balwinderjit Singh: Beaten
Nov. 6, 2015, Los Angeles, California

Amrik Singh Bal: Beaten, hit with a car
Dec. 26, 2015, Fresno, California

Gurcharan Singh Gill: Stabbed to death
Jan. 1, 2016, Fresno, California

Music courtesy of The Chrystal SkyRocket.

The 1 N. LaSalle Building An Art Deco Delight

As part of the Chicago Architecture Foundations annual open house I was able to check out the view from 47 floors up this vintage skyscraper located at 1 N. LaSalle St.. It is one of the best surviving examples of the work of architects Vitzhum and Burns, who were known for their design of banks and churches. Built in 1930 at a cost of seven million dollars it for almost thirty years was one of the tallest buildings in Chicago.

The main lobby off the LaSalle Street entrance is an Art Deco delight. The green-black marble walls and ceilings make a nice contrast to the gleaming polished brass adornments. Elevator doors, featuring low relief semi-nude females in the form of Greek goddesses, silently glide from closed to open and back again. Peacock shaped light bracket lamps provide intimate lighting through the green glass in the peacock's tail. Even the humble mailbox is an eye catching object. This is more than just a lobby it is a work of art.

Circling the building at the fifth floor is a series of relief panels sculpted by Leon Hermant. They depict some of America's most famous explorers like LaSalle, Marquette, Columbus, Clark and Joliet, and Indian Chiefs such as Justice and Atlas.

One North LaSalle was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1999.

The music is entitled “Transversal” by Wayne Kinos and is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License.

Another ChiTownView produced by Mike Beyer and presented by MindsiMedia.Visit our web portal at

Clark / Division - Chicago

The Annual Memorial Service December 1, 2013

It is the tradition of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks to honor those who have passed since the last service. Here are the people we honored this year:
To find out about becoming an Elk call 615-591-5664
E-mail: bpoe.nashville@gmail.com
Visit us on line:
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on twitter: #bpoe72
See the video Who are the Elks?

None of the music is mine, I claim no rights to it. It is used purely for entertainment purposes.

Illinois Elks Pipes and Drums - St. Patrick's Day 2013

Just a wee snippet.

2013 Flag ceremony at the elks lodge Bsa387 pt1

Flag day 2013, BSA troop 387, B.P.O.E 1087. 2013 Flag ceremony at the elks lodge Bsa387 pt1

Rosemont State of the Village

- Mayor Brad Stephens delivers his State of the Village address to supporters and Rosemont Chamber of Commerce members on September 12, 2012. This video captures highlights of the speech as well as additional remarks from the Mayor.

Flag Day at the Elks Club (History of the Flag), Pine Island, FL

The Fourth of July was traditionally celebrated as America's birthday, but the idea of an annual day specifically celebrating the Flag is believed to have first originated in 1885. BJ Cigrand, a schoolteacher, arranged for the pupils in the Fredonia, Wisconsin Public School, District 6, to observe June 14 (the 108th anniversary of the official adoption of The Stars and Stripes) as 'Flag Birthday'. In numerous magazines and newspaper articles and public addresses over the following years, Cigrand continued to enthusiastically advocate the observance of June 14 as 'Flag Birthday', or 'Flag Day'.

On June 14, 1889, George Balch, a kindergarten teacher in New York City, planned appropriate ceremonies for the children of his school, and his idea of observing Flag Day was later adopted by the State Board of Education of New York. On June 14, 1891, the Betsy Ross House in Philadelphia held a Flag Day celebration, and on June 14 of the following year, the New York Society of the Sons of the Revolution, celebrated Flag Day.

Following the suggestion of Colonel J Granville Leach (at the time historian of the Pennsylvania Society of the Sons of the Revolution), the Pennsylvania Society of Colonial Dames of America on April 25, 1893 adopted a resolution requesting the mayor of Philadelphia and all others in authority and all private citizens to display the Flag on June 14th. Leach went on to recommend that thereafter the day be known as 'Flag Day', and on that day, school children be assembled for appropriate exercises, with each child being given a small Flag.

Two weeks later on May 8th, the Board of Managers of the Pennsylvania Society of Sons of the Revolution unanimously endorsed the action of the Pennsylvania Society of Colonial Dames. As a result of the resolution, Dr. Edward Brooks, then Superintendent of Public Schools of Philadelphia, directed that Flag Day exercises be held on June 14, 1893 in Independence Square. School children were assembled, each carrying a small Flag, and patriotic songs were sung and addresses delivered.

In 1894, the governor of New York directed that on June 14 the Flag be displayed on all public buildings. With BJ Cigrand and Leroy Van Horn as the moving spirits, the Illinois organization, known as the American Flag Day Association, was organized for the purpose of promoting the holding of Flag Day exercises. On June 14th, 1894, under the auspices of this association, the first general public school children's celebration of Flag Day in Chicago was held in Douglas, Garfield, Humboldt, Lincoln, and Washington Parks, with more than 300,000 children participating.

Adults, too, participated in patriotic programs. Franklin K. Lane, Secretary of the Interior, delivered a 1914 Flag Day address in which he repeated words he said the flag had spoken to him that morning: I am what you make me; nothing more. I swing before your eyes as a bright gleam of color, a symbol of yourself.

Inspired by these three decades of state and local celebrations, Flag Day - the anniversary of the Flag Resolution of 1777 - was officially established by the Proclamation of President Woodrow Wilson on May 30th, 1916. While Flag Day was celebrated in various communities for years after Wilson's proclamation, it was not until August 3rd, 1949, that President Truman signed an Act of Congress designating June 14th of each year as National Flag Day.

Enter the secret world of the Freemasons

The Freemasons are the world's most well-known secret society, and are the subject of countless parodies and conspiracy theories. But who are they exactly? Mo Rocca ventures inside Masonic Lodges to find out.