Fluency U5L2

Our flag has many different names. Some people

call it “Old Glory,” but that is really the name reserved

for one special flag. This flag has an unusual story that

most people don’t know about.

In 1824, a mother and some friends created a large

American flag for the woman’s son. The flag was big—

seventeen feet long by ten feet wide. The flag had just

twenty-four stars because that is how many states there

were at the time.

The flag was big for a reason. Her son was a sea

captain named William Driver, and he flew the flag on

his boat. When it flew, he called it by its name “Old

Glory.” Driver was quite an adventurer and sailed

around the world. He was master and commander of

his own ship, the Charles Doggett.

Years later, Driver stopped sailing. He moved to

Nashville, Tennessee, and opened a store with his

brothers. Now his flag flew from his house.

During the Civil War, the South left the Union.

Tennessee was one of the states that left the Union.

People fighting for the South came to Driver’s home

and wanted to take the flag.

But no matter how hard they tried, they could not

find it. The flag stayed hidden until 1862 when the

Union Army took over the city. Driver went home, pulled

back his bed cover, and there was his flag! He had kept

it safe during the war.

After he hung the flag in town, newspapers heard

about it. They wrote about this special flag, and soon

it became famous all over the country.