Artist Marie Roth poses with Aaron and I on Flag Day, 2014.

In honor of Flag Day this past weekend, and Father’s Day this coming weekend, I thought it would be fitting to post the story behind this picture. It was taken on June 14, 2014, and Father’s Day fell on the following day. Local artist Marie Roth had given a program in downtown Long Grove’s Fountain Square, entitled “Old Glory in Barnwood.” Among her many artistic endeavors, Marie crafts replicas of historical American flags out of wood recycled from old barns, many of them right here in Lake County. After her presentation, members of the Long Grove Historical Society gave tours of our restored 1850’s farmhouse, and walking tours of the historic downtown. That explains my husband Aaron’s unusual costume in the photo above. Marie is a member of our local Art Guild, which is a part of the Long Grove Arts and Music Council. At the time, the Art Guild had a gallery space and many of Marie’s flags were on display. We were so taken with her art that we were motivated to purchase the flag shown above for my Dad, Bill Killian, as his Father’s Day gift last year. He loved it, and it is now hanging in his home office, where he enjoys seeing it every day. So for those of you interested in American history, here are a few facts about this flag:

This 21 star flag of the United States became the official flag on July 4, 1819, recognizing the admission of Illinois to the union on December 3, 1818. It was with the admission of Illinois that Congress declared that a new national flag would be unfurled for the first time on the July 4th following the admission of each new state. This flag is painted on flooring from a barn built on Molidor Road in Grant Township, Lake County, Illinois circa 1867. In the German style of barns, it was built to house dairy herds on the first floor. The second floor of the barn was accessed by a dirt ramp, and was where the family lived and worked and where supplies were kept.