‘Cleveland’s got 99 problems, but our flag ain’t one,’ great-granddaughter of OG flag creator defends legacy
By Mike Holden
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Earlier in May, we told you all about the efforts of a grassroots nonprofit group.
The organizers were looking to create and commission a new flag for the city of Cleveland through a city-wide contest.
They say the design for the current, longstanding flag is outdated.
Through research and a survey—they said their results showed a majority of people didn’t even know we had a city flag.
The original flag creator’s great-granddaughter, Kristen Fragassi, is now speaking out.
She’s defending the design and its history.
Fragassi says this new contest admittedly caught her a bit off guard.
She says this is not about her family’s legacy, though.
It’s about Cleveland’s legacy.
She says it’s a beautiful design with a bit of a PR problem, and she’s here to address its importance and give it the attention it has always deserved.
“Paraphrasing the brilliant Jay-Z—I’m sure this city has 99 problems, but our flag ain’t one,” Fragassi said.
Fragassi did not mince words when she defended her beloved late great-grandmother Susan Hepburn Beach’s original Cleveland flag.
“I think it deserves to be promoted and elevated—not replaced,” Fragassi said.
She shared that exact message as she gave Cleveland City Council a history lesson and addressed the public back on June 3.
She explained the color selection.
“It’s a vibrant and timeless red, white and blue,” Fragassi said.
The flag is proudly draped across several chairs in her living room and displayed outside of her Northeast Ohio home.
Her great-grandmother, a longtime Clevelander and then Cleveland School of Art graduate, entered and won a Plain Dealer contest to create the city of Cleveland’s flag back in 1895.
“My great-grandmother who was then 18 years old, and I stress female, beat out over two dozen male finalists,” Fragassi said.
She says the symbolism crafted in her great-grandmother’s version is powerful and remains relevant today in Cleveland’s diverse workforce.
“A wheel, an anvil, and a hammer representing manufacturing. Over here there’s a windlass, oar and an anchor,” Fragassi said.
Her intent is to educate—and highlight that there’s no need for a change.
In fact, the history of her great-grandmother and the flag’s legacy is etched in books.
“My great-grandmother Susan Hepburn Beach designed this flag and was known as Cleveland’s Betsy Ross,” Fragassi said.
Fragassi was thrust into the spotlight following the grassroots group Cle Flag Project launching a city-wide contest to create and commission a new flag that would replace Hepburn’s original version.
They plan to present the winning entry to city council in the near future.
“Our overall feedback is excitement. Excitement for Cleveland to be able to get involved and talk about this and potentially throw their hat in the ring for this. I think it’s just a positive light on the city of Cleveland and a positive way to talk about how we can get a more prominent flag in the city of Cleveland,” Brian Lachman, Co-Organizer of the Cle Flag Project, said.
Fragassi says the bottom line, her great-grandmother’s flag stands the true test of time.
It can be found outside of Progressive Field, City Hall and on every Cleveland Police Officer’s uniform.
Her dining room—is surrounded by memorabilia and mementos.
There’s the 1941 original Plain Dealer, her great-grandmother’s prized paintings and the key to the city honoring her work—which she was given at age 60.
Fragassi says it took most of her life to gain respect and recognition for her work.
“My great-grandmother was one of the first recipients of this key, and she was awarded this and proclaimed Cleveland’s Betsy Ross,” Fragassi said.
But Lachman says before this contest and the attention around it, most people did not even know the city had a flag.
He says it was never prominently displayed.
He invites Fragassi to have a conversation, as he says he shares her great-grandmother’s history on their website.
“I think Kristen may have an opinion on this. I think anybody in Greater Cleveland may have an opinion on this, but I don’t think we shut this down. I think we engage with the community and get to the bottom of this and get an answer instead of just shutting this down,” Lachman said.
Fragassi says her great-grandmother was a true pioneer for change, a feminist way ahead of her time.
She says her work should be forever celebrated—not erased.
“The process to me seems like a solution in search of a problem,” Fragassi said.
Fragassi further questions cost analysis and who would pay for the flag changes in the future.
“This doesn’t seem to make any sense. We have much larger issues that need to be paid for,” Fragassi said.
The Cle Flag Project is actively accepting submissions and fundraising for the project.
The organization is holding a fundraiser at Southern Tier this weekend to offset costs.
For more information on ways to give back and support their mission, click here.
In the meantime, Fragassi says they plan to honor her late great-grandmother at a special Flag Day celebration this Friday.
She’s buried at Lakeview Cemetery, where they will lay a Cleveland Flag on her headstone.
Fragassi further stresses her great-grandmother was a Clevelander through and through and has deep roots here.
She was born in Ashtabula and moved to Cleveland as a little girl.
She married the Cleveland Plain Dealer reporter who delivered the winning prize of 50 silver dollars to her home.
They settled on East 89th Street, where they lived for several decades and raised four children.
She’s cousins with film icon Katharine Hepburn.
Her great-grandfather was one of the first Cleveland City Council members.
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