Flag Day is celebrated on June 14 to commemorate the adoption of the American flag by the Continental Congress on June 14, 1777. The flag was immediately couriered to General Washington’s camp in a field just north of Route 22, now known as Middlebrook, in Bridgewater, New Jersey. TRUE!
Flag Day is celebrated every June 14, commemorating the adoption of the United States flag on June 14, 1777, by resolution of the Second Continental Congress. Many people are unaware that Flag Day has a direct connection to two small New Jersey hamlets: Liberty Corner and Middlebrook. Liberty Corner is an American town with an all-American story.
The Mr. Local History Project looks back at one of Liberty Corner, New Jersey’s founding families, known worldwide for manufacturing “Old Glory” that has been seen worldwide and even on the moon. The American Flag means so much in Bernards Township and Liberty Corner. Any event that involves an American Flag has its center thanks to the Annins of Liberty Corner. So, if you have an event that requires an American Flag, the Annin Flag should be your first choice. Let’s see why.
Nothing has been more profound to Liberty Corner than the Annin family. The Annin Flag Company was founded in Verona, New Jersey, by Alexander Annin (Grandson of William Annin) and three of his siblings, whose Scottish heritage landed them in what was then known as Annin’s Corner in the 1720s.
The Annins are one of the founding families of what was initially known as the Basking Ridge area. In the early 1700s, many Scottish families fled religious persecution and settled in the area, based on information gathered from other Scots who were in a similar situation.
Jonathan Johnston purchased land in the area, soon to be known as Annin’s Corner. Annin’s Corner was situated between the Continental Army encampments in Middlebrook (now Bound Brook) and Morristown at the beginning of the Revolutionary War. When a liberty pole was anchored in the village center, the name was changed to Liberty Corner.
In company history, 1766 is most significant not for William Annin’s stone house being built on Lyons Road, but for the birth of Alexander Annin, the youngest son of William and the father of Alexander Annin, who started the flag-making venture.
The world’s largest and oldest flag company, Annin & Co., and its 500 employees produce miles of stripes and many stars that go into 15 million U.S. flags annually. All are made in the U.S.A.—at manufacturing plants in Verona, N.J. (pop. 13,533), South Boston, Va. (pop, 8,491), and Coshocton, Ohio (pop. 11,682).
The Annin Flag Company story began when Alexander Annin opened a ship chandlery at 99 Fulton Street in lower Manhattan in 1820. He was just 23 years old, the third of 11 children in his family. However, it was his sons Edward and Benjamin Annin who formally founded the Annin Flag Company in 1847, cementing their place in American history and making it the largest American flagmaker in the world.
At the time of his retirement from active business, in January 1847, Alexander’s (John Annan’s great-grandson) two older sons, Edward and Benjamin, founded the House of Annin. Edward and Benjamin were just 15 and 13 when they started the flag business within their father’s existing nautical flag business. Phebe Annin Ames Palmer, Alexander’s only daughter, lived until the age of 103 and was also part of the family business.
Alexander’s first American flag had only 29 stars. Every U.S. Presidential inauguration since Zachary Taylor’s in 1849 has included an Annin flag. Annin Flags went with Commander Robert Peary to the North Pole (1909), with Admiral Richard Byrd to the South Pole (1929), and with Neil Armstrong to the moon (1969). An Annin flag was the first to unfurl over Iwo Jima (1945) and the first to fly over the ruins of the World Trade Center after 9/11. Annin’s first 29-star flag welcomed Iowa to the Union. Then, 21 more followed. However, the longest stretch of any American flag is the 50th, which has been in use since 1960, when Hawaii became a state.
One of Annin’s most treasured legends involves a woman who came into the Fulton Street showroom to buy a Confederate flag—and who drew blood from her finger to illustrate the shade of red she wanted for it. She turned out to be the widow of Jefferson Davis, who had been president of the Southern Confederacy during the Civil War. A true story.
Annin Archives
No other flag company has been more prominently featured than the Annin Flag Company, which is known for its American flags. In fact, in American history, if you see an American flag, chances are it is an Annin flag. And it’s not just Old Glory that makes Annin proud; they’ve commissioned many other flags throughout American history. Take a look.
Celebrating our country, our war heroes, and the flag is all part of life in Liberty Corner.
The US Army’s birthday is also June 14th
One thing is for sure: You can guarantee that each of these businesses in New…
Sneak Preview: If you got the word, you get the head start on the End…
The Jacobus Vanderveer House in Bedminster, New Jersey, is celebrating Colonial Christmas, an annual fundraiser…
The town of Basking Ridge, New Jersey, welcomes its annual Christmas Eve Sing on The…
On November 15, 2025, Peapack and Gladstone opened its doors to the past as visitors…
Jersey is all we do. We make each of these collectibles to promote New Jersey…
This website uses cookies.
View Comments
Just purchased a New Annin flag. When I went to the junior high school named after William Annin we were the first graduating class in 1970.
Great history. Thank you for all your family has done for OUR country