Over time, history begins to take on a life of its own, which leads to the formation in the public mind of widespread misconceptions about important people and events. This also applies to the history of the United States. Nowadays, it is not uncommon for reporters to use the statements of politicians, exaggerating the meaning of what was said and embellishing the text for the sensation-hungry public. However, earlier information was twisted in a different way. This was due to a lack of documentation of important events. As a result, many people still believe in delusions that are not real historical facts. What in American history turned out to be untrue?
Betsy Ross created the first American flag
In elementary school, American children learn that it was the Philadelphia seamstress who sewed the first ever United States flag on the orders of J. Washington. She allegedly made her own suggestions for the design, such as the stars and their location. However, there is no official confirmation of this. This story is based on the stories of her grandson, who circulated it 100 years after the creation of the flag. Most likely, it was just a family legend that got into the official books due to wide publicity.
The eventual creator of the flag could in fact be Francis Hopkinson, who among others signed the Declaration of Independence.
Civil war ended in Appomattox
It is widely believed that the American Civil War ended at Appomattox when General Lee surrendered to General Grant on 4/9/1865.
Promotional video:
But this surrender was not the end of the war, because there were still several battles after. Among them was the Battle of Brownsville, Texas. Although both warring sides were aware of the surrender, they entered the battle a month after it.
Union forces wanted to take over Brownsville. Despite a major victory for the Alliances, they lost this battle to the Confederacy.
American troops never invaded Russia
The Cold War lasted from 1947 to 1991, although there was no direct military conflict between the two countries. Many Americans believe that their people never fought the Russians. They don't know that American President Woodrow Wilson sent thousands of his soldiers to Russia in 1918. That is, they were part of other allied forces during the First World War. On their side were the Japanese, British and French. They supported the White movement in their battles against the Bolsheviks.
The allies had to help defeat the communists so that the Russian army could enter the First World War against Germany again. However, they did not succeed; by 1920, all the troops were returned to their native territory.
Proclamation of the Proclamation freed the slaves
Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation in early 1863. But this did not free all the slaves or end slavery. The edict only freed slaves in the Confederate States. The unions did not obey the laws of the enemies, therefore they continued to use slave power. They promised to free the slaves only after their victory. A few years after her, they really kept their promise.
The flag considered to be the national flag of the Confederation was not
In fact, this flag was never the official symbol of the Confederation.
It was just one of the battle banners used by the Army of Northern Virginia. The Confederation changed its official flag three times within 4 years (during the Civil War).
Pilgrims fleeing religious persecution
Many know that Dutch pilgrims immigrated to the New World, where they established a colony in Massachusetts. They were believed to have fled religious persecution. They really left Holland for North America. However, there was no religious persecution, their faith was then already recognized in their home country. They decided to conquer other lands because of new material opportunities.
Declaration of independence written on hemp paper
In those days, hemp was used to make paper, so many assumed that this material was used to create an important document.
Although hemp paper was popular back then, the declaration is written on parchment made from animal hide. The Constitution, by the way, is also not written in hemp.
Ben Franklin wanted turkey to be the US national bird
According to legend, Franklin wanted to celebrate the turkey in this way, not the bald eagle. He really was against the real symbol of the United States. According to him, the eagle steals food from others, therefore it is immoral. And in a letter to his daughter, he mentioned that this bird on the seal looks like a turkey. He wrote other things in support of the symbol of Thanksgiving.
Because of his sense of humor, many decided that he wanted to give preference to turkey.
World War II never made it to the mainland
Americans still believe that the war has not reached their land. Although everyone knows about Pearl Harbor, and some have heard about the Aleutian operation, when the Japanese captured the Aleutian Islands to distract from the main attack.
The Japanese managed to get to the mainland. They bombed an oil field near California from a submarine and then opened fire on a fort in Oregon. They also tried to start forest fires using seaplanes, but this did not work for them.
The Liberty Bell cracked in July 1776
There are several misconceptions about the Liberty Bell:
- In fact, no one called him that during the American Revolution. He was the Bell of the State House and was in Pennsylvania. It got its current name from the abolitionists in 1837.
- Then they began to claim that the bell cracked when the patriots rang it with enthusiasm on a holiday. However, it began to crack 24 years earlier and required constant maintenance, like an old car. According to assumptions, a significant crack appeared already in 1840.
Reagan became hostage liberator
According to some, the story of the American hostage-taking in Iran ended only because of the Reagan election. As if the captors of American citizens did not respect Jimmy Carter, and did not argue with a stronger adversary.
However, in reality, Reagan did not even participate in the negotiations on the release of the hostages. In fact, the Carter administration had been running them for over a month, but due to their dislike of the president, the Iranians did not agree to the deal. They released the people immediately after the change of the American government, although there was no direct merit of the new head of state in this.
Washington has always been the capital of the United States
Many believe that the current capital of America has always been, but this is not at all the case. More than 200 years ago, the first capital was Philadelphia. Later, Baltimore, Pennsylvania and even Lancaster were awarded this honor.
In total, the capital has changed nine times. Then Washington became president. However, before the current capital was proclaimed, Philadelphia became it again until the DC was completed.
Salem witch trials on fire and tactics in the struggle for independence
Salem's witch hunt was one of the most famous. Despite the misconceptions of many, as a result of mass hysteria, people were not destroyed in fire.
In four months, hundreds of people from one village were accused of witchcraft, and about 20 were executed. Burning at the stake, however, is just another myth. This method of execution existed in Medieval Europe, in Salem, people were hanged, and one man was crushed with stones.
The stories that the States became independent thanks to their tactics are also greatly exaggerated.
As well as the fact that Washington was a brilliant tactician. In reality, he made several significant mistakes and himself lamented his professional inefficiency. The Americans owed the victory to others. The British themselves considered the war too costly to continue.
Author: Kristina Rudakova