Chrissy ,Jamie , and friends

🚗 GOING DOWN: Albany's speed limit is changing as soon as the signs can be put in place. ➡️ https://wnyt.com/top-stories/albany-decreases-city-speed-limit-from-30-mph-to-25/

Happy birthday Actress Eva Marie Saint turned 100 today! Raised in Delmar, she attended Bethlehem High and was a cheerleader there. Here she is in 1942. Saint was born on July 4, 1924, in Newark, New Jersey, to Quaker parents. Her father was John Merle Saint and her mother was Eva Marie (née Rice) Saint. She attended Bethlehem Central High School in Delmar, New York, near Albany, graduating in 1942. She was inducted into the high school's hall of fame in 2006. She studied acting at Bowling Green State University and joined Delta Gamma Sorority. During this time she played the lead role in a production of Personal Appearance. A theater on Bowling Green's campus is named after her. She was an active member in the theater honorary fraternity, Theta Alpha Phi, and served as record keeper of the student council in 1944.

ANSWER to yesterday’s 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸DAILY QUIZ🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
NAME the 13 colonies that declared their independence from Great Britain in July 1776.

New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia. (It was trickier for me than I thought...😉)

The map pictures the Thirteen Colonies (shown in red) in 1775, with modern borders overlaid.

During this summer in 1776, Betsy Ross works as a seamstress and an upholsterer. At least according to legend, she would make the first American flag at the request of George Washington.

History remembers her as “Betsy Ross,” but would that seem funny to her? She was widowed three times and lived most of her life with other names.

She was born Elizabeth Griscom to an abolitionist Quaker family, where she was the eighth of seventeen children. She attended a Quaker school and was then apprenticed to an upholsterer. It was during this apprenticeship that she met John Ross.

There was just one problem. John was an Anglican. As a Quaker, Betsy was not supposed to marry outside her faith. The two must have been deeply in love, because they ended up eloping when she was only 21 years old. She was promptly expelled from her church.

Tragically, John was killed less than three years into their marriage. As a member of the local militia, he was guarding an ammunition cache when he was mortally injured.

He gave his life for the Patriot cause.

Betsy was left a young widow, trying to run her own upholstery business. She also made extra money through seamstress work. She was alone, as the couple did not have any children before John's death.

Mere months after John was killed, Betsy was apparently asked to make a flag with thirteen stars and stripes. This story has never been conclusively proven or disproven. But if it did occur, then it occurred in May or June of 1776.

George Washington reportedly visited Betsy along with two other men, Robert Morris and George Ross. Betsy would have known George Ross because he was John’s uncle. And she would have known Washington because her pew in Christ Church was right next to his. According to Betsy’s daughter, “[Betsy] was previously well acquainted with Washington, and that he had often been in her house in friendly visits, as well as on business. That she had embroidered ruffles for his shirt bosoms and cuffs, and that it was partly owing to his friendship for her that she was chosen to make the flag.”

As the story goes, Washington had a sketch in his pocket of a flag with thirteen stars and stripes. The stars in Washington’s sketch, however, had 6 points. Betsy suggested making a change. She showed the men that she could cut a 5-point star with just one snip of her scissors. Everyone agreed that a 5-point star would work for the new American flag.

Sadly, Betsy lost her second husband during the Revolution also. She’d married a mariner, Joseph Ashburn, in 1777. In 1780, Joseph’s ship was captured by a British frigate. He was taken to a prison in England, where he died before he could return home. Joseph never knew that his first daughter passed away at only 9 months old. And he never met his second daughter, born while he was in prison. Instead, Betsy went through these two experiences alone.

Late in 1782, Betsy received a visitor by the name of John Claypoole. He’d been a prisoner with Joseph, so he’d come to tell Betsy that she was a widow again. The two became friends and were married in May 1783. Betsy and Claypoole had a long, 34-year marriage, but Betsy ultimately outlived Claypoole, too. She spent the last three years of her life living with one of her daughters. By then, she’d gone completely blind. She died peacefully in her sleep at the age of 84.

All in all, Betsy’s life is a tale of love, heartbreak, sacrifice—and plenty of hard work. You have to wonder what she’d think of modern contrοversies over her flag, don’t you?

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If you enjoy these history posts, please see my note below. :)

Gentle reminder: History posts are copyright © 2013-2024 by Tara Ross. I appreciate it when you use the shar e feature instead of cutting/pasting.

With Jenny Crawford – I just got recognized as one of their top fans! 🎉

With Alexis Wagner – I just got recognized as one of their top fans! 🎉

With Patricia Moore – I just got recognized as one of their top fans! 🎉

In my prayers and my heart goes out to you

Mother describes daughter she lost to Waterford car crash A Waterford family is in mourning, after a teen was killed in a terrible car accident on Saturday, June 29.Kiera Ebert, 14, was in the backseat of the white Dodge Charger that rolled over on Fonda Road around 8:45 p.m., her family said.Her mother, Cherie Moss Ebert sent a statement:“She will be mi...

: 1970s soft rock band Orleans will replace Bruce Hornsby at the Empire State Plaza. Their big hits include "Still The One" and "Dance With Me." More to come.

Crews rescued a 20-year-old Queensbury man from the Clarksville Cave after he got stuck coming out.
He was trapped for five hours.
The Albany County sheriff talks about the rescue: https://wnyt.com/top-stories/crews-rescue-trapped-man-from-clarksville-cave-in-albany-county/
📷 Albany County sheriff

: Bruce Hornsby's Empire State Plaza concert has been cancelled. He was supposed to perform as part of the big Fourth of July fireworks celebration, but is having vocal issues, according to his page. ➡️ https://wnyt.com/top-stories/bruce-hornsby-cancels-empire-state-plaza-concert/

Gotta keep the King of England out of our business.

: The Shepard Park Amphitheater in Lake George went up in flames early this morning just before 4 a.m. Thankfully, there were no injuries. ➡️ https://wnyt.com/top-stories/fire-shephard-park-amphitheater-lake-george/

RED SKELTON'S SECRET TO THE PERFECT MARRIAGE
1. Two times a week we go to a nice restaurant, have a little beverage, good food and companionship. She goes on Tuesdays, I go on Fridays.
2. We also sleep in separate beds. Hers is in California and mine is in Texas.
3. I take my wife everywhere, but she keeps finding her way back.
4. I asked my wife where she wanted to go for our anniversary. "Somewhere I haven't been in a long time!" she said. So I suggested the kitchen.
5. We always hold hands. If I let go, she shops.
6. She has an electric blender, electric toaster and electric bread maker. She said "There are too many gadgets, and no place to sit down!" So I bought her an electric chair.
7. My wife told me the car wasn't running well because there was water in the carburetor. I asked where the car was. She told me, "In the lake."
8. She got a mud pack and looked great for two days. Then the mud fell off.
9. She ran after the garbage truck, yelling, "Am I too late for the garbage?" The driver said, "No, jump in!".
10. Remember: Marriage is the number one cause of divorce.
11. I married Miss Right. I just didn't know her first name was 'Always'.
12. I haven't spoken to my wife in 18 months. I don't like to interrupt her.
13. The last fight was my fault though. My wife asked, "What's on the TV?"
I said, "Dust!".
Can't you just hear him say all of these?
I love it. These were the good old days when humor didn't have to start with a four letter word or political. It was just clean and simple fun. And he always ended his programs with the words, "And May God Bless" with a big smile on his face.