Flag on Prospect Hill debate

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According to tradition, the first flag of the United States, the Grand Union Flag ("Continental Colours"), was raised by General George Washington at Prospect Hill in Somerville, Massachusetts, on 1 January 1776, in an attempt to raise the morale of the men of the Continental Army. There was a 76-foot liberty pole situated on Prospect Hill on 22 August 1775 that "was visible from most parts of the American lines, as well as from Boston".^{[1][note 1]} The standard account has been questioned by modern researchers most notably Peter Ansoff, who in 2006 published a paper entitled "The Flag on Prospect Hill" where he advances the argument that Washington flew the Union Jack ("British Union Flag") and not the Continental Colours that bears 13 stripes.^[3] Others, such as Byron DeLear, have argued in favour of the traditional version of events.^[4][5][6]

There is a Prospect Hill Monument that was erected in 1903^{[7][note 2]} and annual flag-raising ceremonies involving American Revolutionary War reenactors are held at Prospect Hill on New Year's Day.^[9]

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