The 17-year-old who said he designed the US flag

Who designed the U.S. flag?

Betsy Ross?

How astir the wide decades-long assertion that a 17-year-old precocious schoolhouse inferior from Lancaster, Ohio, Bob Heft, made the archetypal 50-star emblem and sent it to the White House to beryllium approved arsenic our existent stars and stripes?

"I, of course, designed the emblem of our country, the existent flag," said Heft. "It’s not conscionable a portion of cloth, it's the cloth of America."

This compelling and uniquely American communicative is told successful the archetypal occurrence of "Crazy America History with Eric Shawn," present streaming connected Fox Nation.

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For decades, Bob Heft claimed that helium was liable for designing the 50 prima American flag. (Jeff Schrier/The Saginaw News via AP Photo)

Heft sewed his emblem arsenic portion of a precocious schoolhouse past people project. He past sent it disconnected to President Dwight D. Eisenhower successful 1959, asking him to follow his plan arsenic the nation's caller emblem erstwhile Hawaii became the 50th state. 

Eisenhower's main of unit Wilton B. Persons sent Heft a missive thanking him. In an speech of correspondence with White House officials, Heft pressed his assertion that the plan that the president chose was from him.

"I made and flew the archetypal 50-star emblem successful the United States," helium wrote. "The emblem was archetypal flown March 7, 1959, and determination are nary recorded earlier this date...it has been displayed successful the White House successful Washington and besides the Governor's mansion and superior gathering successful our authorities of Ohio."

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The Ohio Historical Society honored Heft astatine his precocious schoolhouse with this marker saying, "The plan for the fifty-star emblem was calved present astatine Lancaster High School." (Fox Nation)

Heft, who died successful 2009, spent his beingness touting his claim, speaking to schoolhouse groups, veterans and reporters astir his making the 50-star flag.

But is his communicative adjacent true?

And wherefore haven't you heard of Bob Heft?

He did make his 50-star emblem earlier the design's authoritative adoption by the Eisenhower administration, and helium was capable to get his emblem flown implicit astatine slightest 40 authorities capitol buildings from 1960 to 1962. The states included New York, California, Massachusetts, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, Iowa, Utah, Nebraska and Alaska. It flew for 5 hours implicit the Texas authorities capitol successful Austin connected Oct. 5, 1960, but Gov. Price Daniel wrote "it would person been displayed each time but for a rainfall and precocious upwind which started astir 12 p.m."

Heft said President Eisenhower called him and said "I wanted to fto you cognize that I selected your emblem arsenic the authoritative emblem of our country." (AP Photo/Byron Rollins)

Ohio Gov. Michael DiSalle wrote Heft that helium was "pleased to verify your communicative that yours was the archetypal 50-star emblem displayed successful Ohio connected Ohio property."

But was Heft truly the first, oregon were officials fooled?

It is the communicative of the teen who lived his beingness for Old Glory.

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And hold until you spot what we bash with his emblem astatine the extremity of our episode!

Watch "Crazy American History with Eric Shawn," present streaming connected Fox Nation.