America’s 400th Anniversary
National Event
Background
It’s not every day that a nation has its 400th anniversary...and that's almost how long it's been since America’s first permanent settlement was established in Jamestown in 1607. Scecon has partnered with Prosody Creative Services to provide design, content, event management, and more for this highly anticipated celebration.
The Design
Getting the country to understand the significance of this event is a monumental task. These duties were awarded to Prosody Creative Services. They, in turn, hired Scecon to provide creative design for all of the physical view items, i.e. signage, banners, gateways, kiosks, staging, and more.
With the first of four major events planned for May, 2006 and culminating with the 400th Anniversary event in 2007, Scecon has spent the last year hard at work. The first major event is the Godspeed Sail. A full-scale sailing replica of the Godspeed toured the Eastern Seaboard and stopped in the ports of Alexandria, Baltimore, Boston, Philadelphia, Newport, and New York. Each stop had events planned to celebrate and educate the nation on its beginnings and the journey that has built America into the world leader it is today.
To commemorate America’s 400th Anniversary, approximately 4,000 children and families from all walks of life helped create one of the largest hand-made American Flags ever seen.
The individual hand-print panels were created during the 80-day Godspeed Sail which launched the commemoration's Signature Events in May 2006 as a replica of one of the original ships toured 6 cities along the eastern seaboard including Alexandria, Baltimore, Boston, Philadelphia, New York and Newport, RI.
The panels have been digitally joined to create America’s Heritage Flag which served as the backdrop on Festival Stage. This flag represents the many hands that have built America over 400 years and America’s future builders.
America’s Heritage Flag stands approximately 30' tall and 65' feet wide – that's about 5 car lengths and the width of a railroad car.
The Flag, which we at Scecon proudly helped to create, is getting exposure across the country, and we were along for the ride. Below are just a few of the places where our work is popping up!
America’s Heritage Flag
An article titled Plenty of people, plenty of tickets was published May 9, 2007 on the front page of The Virginian-Pilot. The story, written by Michelle E. Shaw of The Virginian-Pilot, was headed by a large full-color image of our own Amber Marcum setting up the 29' x 62' America’s Heritage Flag, assembled from thousands of artwork panels by children and families across the country.
Read the The Virginian-Pilot Article!
America’s 400th Anniversary got it's fair share of coverage on television as well. CNN aired a news segment featuring President Bush first conducting the orchestra, then speaking to the crowd of tens of thousands and the rest of the country while standing in front of America’s Heritage Flag. CBS presented a television program highlighting America’s Anniversary Weekend in Richmond and Hampton Roads. It was broadcast on WTVR in Richmond on Saturday, June 16 at 5 p.m. and in Hampton Roads on WTKR at 2 p.m. on Sunday, June 17.
