How to burn the American flag...legally

Flag day is approaching in the next of couple months. On June 14, 1777, the Continental Congress approved the design of our national flag.

So, after a few years of flying the flag, what can you do with a faded Old Glory? Throwing away an American Flag is considered disrespectful and unacceptable. There is a proper process, however, for disposing of flags in a formal manner.

According to the American Legion, “the approved method of disposing of unserviceable flags that are torn and with ragged edges, has long been that they are destroyed by burning.”

The Brady-Williams American Legion Post 100 in Dayton has constructed a large box which sits outside their building on Railroad Street to deposit worn out American flags. Members of the post will then give the flags to a Boy Scout troop for proper disposal.

An official flag retirement ceremony involves folding the flag, saluting it while reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and placing it in the flames. After the fire goes out, the ashes are then buried. This is the method authorized by the United States Flag code — “should be destroyed in a dignified way, preferably by burning.”

The disposal box was constructed by Post 100 Adjutant Officer John Szurgot and Legion member Billy McCoy. If you have a worn-out flag and want to get rid of it, you are invited to drop it in the flag disposal box at the Post 100 building, located 1459 Railroad Street in Dayton.