American flags have been waving for about 237 years or so now – with a full-blown cottage industry producing them. This July 4, flags will be hand-held, raised on flagpoles, hung from porches and windows, and even displayed on cars and trucks from San Diego to New York City.
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Here are some standout statistics about our flag industry and other red-white-and-blue-related facts:
$150 million
Total estimated sales of U.S. flags made in the U.S. each year.
$50 - $60 million
Estimated value of the American flags produced in the United States, according to James Giraudo, past president of the National Independent Flag Dealers Association.
95
Percentage of U.S. flags that are manufactured entirely in the United States.
$3.8 million
Value of U.S. imports of American flags in 2012.
$3.6 million
Value of U.S. imports of American flags made in China in 2012.
$614,115
Value of U.S. flags exported in 2012 before a financial transaction.
$188,824
Value of flags exported to Mexico in 2011.
500
Number of employees of Annin Flagmakers, the oldest and largest flag manufacturer in the U.S., headquartered in Roseland, N.J. The company has been around since 1847.
35,000
Number of flags produced each week by Annin Flagmakers.
$32.2 million
Estimated total annual sales of Annin Flagmakers.
4
Number of flag manufacturers who are members of the Flag Manufacturers Association of America (FMAA). The group requires its members to ensure that their flags are 100-percent made in the U.S.A.
50
Number of flags displayed at the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C.
260,000
Number of service-member gravestones at Arlington National Cemetery that receive flags placed in front of them during the annual “flags in” ceremony each May conducted by the 3rd U.S. Infantry (the Old Guard). The process takes about three hours.
13,500
Additional number of flags placed at the Solder’s and Airmen’s Cemetery during “flags in.” American flags are also placed at the graves of each of the four unknown servicemen at the Tomb of the Unknowns.
3
Number of official flag colors in the American flag, according to the Color Association of the U.S.: white, “Old Glory Red,” and “Old Glory Blue.”
6
Number of flags currently on the moon – put there by Apollo 11, 12, 14, 15, 16 and 17.
30
Number of stars on the American flag in the year 1848, the year Wisconsin joined the union. That number grew to 50, in 1959, of course, when Hawaii became the 50th state.
8
Number of places required by law to fly the American flag 24 hours a day. The list includes the White House; the U.S. Marine Corp Memorial (Iwo Jima) in Arlington, Virginia; the Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine in Baltimore, Maryland; and the grounds of the National Memorial Arch at Valley Forge National Historic Park in Pennsylvania.
Sources: FMAA, Census Bureau, Hoovers, WKYC.com, usflag.org, National Flag Day Foundation.
