Betsy Ross House

Betsy Ross House
239 Arch Street
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19106
215.686.1252

The story of Betsy Ross was known only to family members until her grandson, William Canby, made a speech to the Historical Society of Pennsylvania in 1870 about his remarkable grandmother and her accomplishments. According to her children and grandchildren, Betsy often talked about the day when George Washington and two other members of the Continental Congress entered her upholstery shop. She recognized her distinguished guests and invited them into her parlor. Upon hearing that they wanted her to make a flag for the new nation, she explained that she had never made a flag before, but would be willing to try. One year later, on June 14, 1777, Congress made the Stars and Stripes the official flag of the United States.

While certainly noteworthy, the sewing of a nation’s first flag is not an event of historical proportion. Lives are not changed by this event alone, boundaries are not altered and no transfer of power occurs. The life of Elizabeth Griscom, or “Betsy” as she was familiarly called, epitomized the hardships endured by patriotic colonists of her day. Placed on the stage of history, she became a fitting American icon.

Born on January 1, 1752, Betsy Griscom was working as an apprentice for John Webster, a popular Philadelphia upholsterer, when she met John Ross, a fellow apprentice. They got married in 1773 and opened their own upholstery business in today’s Betsy Ross House. They had been married for only two years when her husband, a member of the local militia, was killed by a gunpowder explosion while guarding munitions near the Delaware River. Left a childless widow at the age of 24, Betsy had to run the upholstery business on her own, earning extra income by making and repairing supplies and ammunition for the Continental Army.

Betsy married her second husband, Joseph Ashburn, in June 1777. Joseph was a mariner and often at sea. In 1780 a British frigate captured Joseph’s ship and charged the crew with treason. They were taken to Old Mill Prison in Plymouth, England, where he died of an unknown illness before the war ended. Two daughters were born from this marriage but one died at the age of nine months.

John Claypoole was an old acquaintance of Betsy Ross, and was a fellow prisoner and close friend of her late second husband. It was he who delivered to Betsy the news of Joseph Ashburn’s death. On May 8, 1783, less than a year after delivering that news, John Claypoole became Betsy Ross’s third husband. This marriage was to last for 34 years, but brought its own set of trials. The couple had five daughters together, but only four lived to maturity. In 1793, Betsy’s father, mother, and sister died within days of each other from the yellow fever, leaving Betsy to raise her niece. For nearly 20 years, her husband was disabled as a result of injuries sustained during the war, leaving Betsy to run the upholstery and flag-making business.

After over fifty years in her trade, Betsy Ross retired at the age of 76. She lived to the age of 84, when she died peacefully in her sleep.

The front portion of the Betsy Ross House was built around 1740, with a stair hall and rear section added ten to twenty years later. It is believed that Betsy Ross lived here from 1773, after her first wedding, to 1785, a couple of years after her third wedding. The house was to serve as both a business and a residence for shopkeepers and artisans for more than 150 years, as its proximity to the Delaware River made it an ideal location for a business.

The parlor in which Betsy is said to have met with George Washington, George Ross, and Robert Morris to discuss the sewing of the first U.S. flag. The Betsy Ross House is furnished with period antiques, 18th-century reproductions and objects that belonged to Betsy Ross and her family. Artifacts on display include Betsy Ross’s walnut chest-on-chest, her Chippendale and Sheraton side chairs, her eyeglasses, her quilted petticoat and her Bible.

If the British had discovered that Betsy was making flags for the new nation she could have been charged with treason and sent to prison. She had to do this work in a private place. In a house filled with many people, her bedchamber was probably the safest room.