Folk Figure. He is credited with designing the current 50-star American flag, which was chosen by Congress as the official national flag of the United States on July 4, 1960. Heft's design was part of a class project at Lancaster High School in Lancaster, Ohio, beginning in 1958, to replace the 48-star flag in anticipation of statehood for the territories of Alaska and Hawaii. He initially received a B minus grade from his teacher for his efforts, but it was changed to an A after his flag design was selected by President Dwight D. Eisenhower and approved by Congress. His design of America's new symbol of freedom and democracy became a reality, following Hawaii's admittance to the Union as the 50th state on August 21, 1959. A student at Ohio University and Ohio State University, Heft was a seven-term mayor of Napoleon, Ohio, and spent 30 years working as a high school and college history teacher. His original flag has been flown over the White House, the US Capitol Building, all 50 state capitol buildings, and nearly 90 United States embassies around the world. In 1967 the flag suffered minor damage during an attack on the US Embassy in Saigon, South Vietnam, by pro-Communist Vietnamese forces.
Folk Figure. He is credited with designing the current 50-star American flag, which was chosen by Congress as the official national flag of the United States on July 4, 1960. Heft's design was part of a class project at Lancaster High School in Lancaster, Ohio, beginning in 1958, to replace the 48-star flag in anticipation of statehood for the territories of Alaska and Hawaii. He initially received a B minus grade from his teacher for his efforts, but it was changed to an A after his flag design was selected by President Dwight D. Eisenhower and approved by Congress. His design of America's new symbol of freedom and democracy became a reality, following Hawaii's admittance to the Union as the 50th state on August 21, 1959. A student at Ohio University and Ohio State University, Heft was a seven-term mayor of Napoleon, Ohio, and spent 30 years working as a high school and college history teacher. His original flag has been flown over the White House, the US Capitol Building, all 50 state capitol buildings, and nearly 90 United States embassies around the world. In 1967 the flag suffered minor damage during an attack on the US Embassy in Saigon, South Vietnam, by pro-Communist Vietnamese forces.
Bio by: Nils M. Solsvik Jr.
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DESIGNER OF AMERICA'S 50-STAR FLAG
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