The privateers were armed, and their work was legally sanctioned. President Abraham Lincoln maintained that those states never really left the nation but were merely in rebellion. Duke closely covered domestic terrorism cases for CNN, including the Oklahoma City federal building bombing, the UNABOMBER and search for Southeast bomber Eric Robert Rudolph. At 4:30 a.m., the American batteries fell silent, followed at 7:30 a.m. by the last British bomb to arc over the Patapsco River toward Fort McHenry. Stay up-to-date on the American Battlefield Trust's battlefield preservation efforts, travel tips, upcoming events, history content and more. [28], In 1877, the flag was exhibited at the Old South Church in Boston for the nation's first Flag Day celebration. "We're aware of at least a dozen more that exist in other museums and private collections," says Kendrick. He says 'It's predominantly not a military fort.' In Baltimore's preparation for an expected attack on the city, Fort McHenry was made ready to defend the city's harbor. Bombardment of Fort McHenry Part 1 We have Francis Scott Key to thank for the mix-up. They carried with them. The flag originally measured 30 by 42 feet (9.1 by 12.8m) and weighed about 50 pounds (23kg). He sent sent amessage, via Admiral Cockburn, to Cochrane regarding how the two could act in concert together, one by land, one by sea. Bodies of the dead were not used to hold up the flag pole a 42 by 30 foot flag has to be on a well-anchored pole, not held up by a few dead bodies stacked around it. [19][20] Some years, it was flown at Baltimore's celebration of Defenders Day, the anniversary of the battle. It was eventually retitled The Star-Spangled Banner. The composition was sung at patriotic gatherings and political events for more than a century before President Herbert Hoover proclaimed it the national anthem of the United States in 1931. The First American President: Setting the Precedent, African Americans During the Revolutionary War, Help Save 820 Acres at Five Virginia Battlefields, Save 343 Acres at FIVE Battlefields in FOUR Western Theater States, Save 42 Historic Acres at the Battle of Chancellorsville, Phase Three of Gaines Mill-Cold Harbor Saved Forever Campaign, An Unparalleled Preservation Opportunity at Gettysburg Battlefield. "We, sir, are ready at Fort McHenry to defend Baltimore against invading by the enemyexcept that we have no suitable ensign to display over the Star Fort, and it is my desire to have a flag so large that the British will have no difficulty in seeing it from a distance.". The American Battlefield Trust and our members have saved more than 56,000 acres in 25 states! As internationally intriguing as her story is, there is no evidence to support Margaret's recollections and historians agree the flag probably remained in Baltimore. It is on exhibit at the National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution. But a missing 15th star has never been found. PDF Official Account of the Bombardment of Fort McHenry Messages Author Time Story of National Anthem TADOW 7/3/16 1:10pm Thanks for sharing this. On the morning of September 14, the American defenders lowered their battered storm flag and raised the large, thirty by forty-two foot, garrison flag. How the flag that flew proudly over Fort McHenry inspired an anthem and made its way to the Smithsonian. He said 'All of the gun power, all of the armament is being called upon to demolish that fort. He said 'How are you going to do that?' Using a storm flag in those conditions would have been standard practice. In 1907, Eben Appleton lent the flag to the Smithsonian, and it was put on display at the National Museum (now the Arts and Industries Building). The bombardment turned to Fort McHenry on the morning of September 13, and continuous shelling occurred for 25 hours under heavy rain. And what he found had happened was that flag pole and that flag had suffered repetitious direct hits, and when hit had fallen, but men, fathers, who knew what it meant for that flag to be on the ground, although knowing that all of the British guns were trained on it, walked over and held it up humanly until they died. The American Battlefield Trust is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. For the next 50 years, with the exception of a brief move during World War II, the Star-Spangled Banner was displayed in what is now the Arts and Industries Building. They were holding the American prisoners in boats about a thousand yards offshore. He said 'We have told them that if they will lower that flag, the shelling will stop immediately and we'll know that they've surrendered and you'll now be under British rule.'. Lead Stories is a U.S. based fact checking website that is always looking for the latest false, misleading, deceptive or Armistead ordered the large wool flag taken down and Pickersgill's smaller 17' x 25' foot storm flag hoisted. The British naval arc stretched across the Patapsco two miles below Fort McHenry, keeping distance from the forts powerful 36-pounder French naval shore batteries. Joining them is the rocket ship HMSErebus, which launches the newly invented Congreve rockets. Around midday, while the British halt for a meal, Stricker orders 250 riflemen and cannon to draw the British toward his forces. But by 9:30 a.m., Admiral Cochrane knew his fleet would be mired for the foreseeable future those shore batteries, coupled with a chain-mast boom, sunken vessels, U.S. gun boats and the Lazaretto Battery, presented a formidable harbor defensive line and any infantry assault would lack naval support. Mary Young Pickersgill At 30 by 42. Stay up-to-date on our FREE educational resources & professional development opportunities, all designed to support your work teaching American history. Keeping their stars on the national flag signified that continued solidarity. Federal Identification Number (EIN): 54-1426643. May God bless America on our Independence Day!" No, Mary Pickersgill did not make a mathematical error. another account of the battle of Fort McHenry. The United States declared war on Britain in June 1812 to protect free trade and sailors rights. Heading into a conflict against a country with such superior naval power was a daunting prospect for the young nation. This British defeat was a turning point in the War of 1812, leading both sides to reach a peace agreement later that year. Major General Robert Ross was sent to command all British forces on the East Coast of the United States, with Vice Admiral Alexander Cochrane leading a fleet of warships. Get the latest History stories in your inbox? He said 'Tonight, I have negotiated successfully your return to the colonies.' The bodies holding up the flag pole story is about as ridiculous as it is insulting to the four killed, and twenty four wounded (of which several would later die) as a result of the battle. The First American President: Setting the Precedent, African Americans During the Revolutionary War, Help Save 820 Acres at Five Virginia Battlefields, Save 343 Acres at FIVE Battlefields in FOUR Western Theater States, Save 42 Historic Acres at the Battle of Chancellorsville, Phase Three of Gaines Mill-Cold Harbor Saved Forever Campaign, An Unparalleled Preservation Opportunity at Gettysburg Battlefield. In 1814, the United States flag had 15 stars and 15 stripes. [42][43] It was hung in Flag Hall, a three-story central atrium designed for this purpose. However, the citizens and militia of Baltimore had been preparing for such an assault for more than a year. It is for Colonel Brooke to consider under such circumstances whether he has Force sufficient to defeat so large a number as it [is] saidthe Enemy has collected; say 20,000 strong. This is a longer version of the same story posted in 2008. During the War of 1812, the people of Baltimore believed that the British would attack the city. Says Glass, "The survival of this flag for nearly 200 years is a visible testimony to the strength and perseverance of this nation, and we hope that it will inspire many more generations to come.". In the summer of 1813, Armistead ordered a large garrison flag (30 feet by 42 feet) as well as with a smaller storm flag (17 feet by 25 feet) for the Fort. In 1813,Mary Pickersgill, a Baltimore flagmaker, was commissioned to make two flags for Fort McHenry. The ships got closer, Francis Scott Key went back up top and he said 'Men, I will shout down to you what's going on as we watch.'. The narrator is apparently minister David C. Gibbs Jr. The attack on Fort McHenry in Baltimore's harbor was a pivotal moment in the War of 1812 as it successfully thwarted the Chesapeake Bay campaign the Royal Navy had been waging against the United States. Francis Scott Key said what held that flag at that unusual angle were patriots' bodies. While the home where he lived in 1814 is no longer standing, there is a monument at its former site of 34th and M Street. O Say Can You See: The Bombardment of Fort McHenry. During the Battle of Baltimore on September 13 and 14, 1814, heavy thunderstorms over Fort McHenry prevented the flying of the flag we know today as the Star Spangled Banner. March 1, 2007 A conservator works on the Star-Spangled Banner in 1914. The British were more concerned with defeating Napoleon in Europe than fighting a minor war with the United States. Cochrane dispatched the assessmentto his colleagues ashore: It is impossible for the Ships to render you any assistance the Town [of Baltimore] is so far retired within the Forts. A replica 17'x25' storm flag flying over Fort McHenry . Are the words national anthem capitalized in a sentence? But the Star-Spangled Banner is more than an artifactit's also a national symbol. By noon it started to rain. [29][30], Georgiana Appleton died in 1878 and left the flag to her son, Eben Appleton. Gen.John Stricker to delay the advance by provoking an engagement. [44] Years of accumulated dust were carefully vacuumed from the front and back of the flag. Which US states still fly the Confederate flag? - Diario AS Today it is permanently housed in the National Museum of American History, one of the Smithsonian Institution museums on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. September 14. [49][50][51], The National Museum of American History produced an online exhibition in conjunction with the reopening of Flag Hall in 2008. Museums often lend objects and artifacts to each other in order to tell more complete stories. The ship carried Colonel John S. Skinner, U.S. State Department prisoner exchange agent, and 35-year-old Georgetown attorney Francis Scott Key. Did bodies hold up the flag at Fort McHenry? "Georgiana was the only child born at the fort, and she was named for her father," says Thomassen-Krauss. When he saw the garrison flag flying in the morning, he composed a poem he originally titled "Defence of Fort McHenry". Major George Armistead, the Forts commanding officer, desired "to have a flag so large that the British will have no difficulty in seeing it from a distance. After the Battle of Baltimore. Over the years, more than 12 million people peered into the museum's glass conservation lab, watching the progress. He will come out and negotiate to see if we can make a mutual exchange.'. At dawn on June 14, 1846, a ragtag group of about 30 gun-toting Americans entered Sonoma, a small town in the Mexican territory of Alta California. Did dead bodies hold up the flag at Fort McHenry? He said 'We're going to remove it from the face of the earth.' He said 'It's full of women and children.' The colonies were engaged in vicious conflict with the mother country, Britain. Initially the British fleet exchanges fire with the forts cannon, but soon withdraw out of range. You can also view this Smithsonian Channel video on YouTube. Fort McHenry was a military post, not a shelter for women and children. Star-Spangled Banner (flag) - Wikipedia United States victory. [34][36][37] The flag was restored by Amelia Fowler in 1914. Entrance Fees The entrance fee to the historic area of the park is $15.00 for adults 16 years of age and older; children 15 and younger are free. Key took quarters for the night at the Indian Queen Hotel, bringing with him the rough draft of a poem he had composed during his ordeal. [32][33], The Armistead family occasionally gave away pieces of the flag as souvenirs and gifts.[6]. It's in most hymnals throughout our churches. Battle of Fort McHenry | American Battlefield Trust Over the next six weeks, Mary, her daughter, three of Mary's nieces, a 13-year-old indentured servant and possibly Mary's mother Rebecca Young worked 10-hour days sewing the flag, using 300 yards of English wool bunting. He said 'That's, that's a large fort.' That same year, Preble had the first known photograph of it taken at the Boston Navy Yard and exhibited it at the New England Historic Genealogical Society, where he stored it until 1876. Did dead bodies hold up the flag at Fort Mchenry? Francis Scott Key went aboard and immediately went into Fort Henry to see what had happened. We're launching interpretation of African American history at 7 key battlefields, located in 5 states, spanning 3 wars. 7 things you didn't know about the Star-Spangled Banner Key was not sent by the American government to negotiate a prisoner exchange. Two eyewitnessesa British midshipman out in the harbor and an American private inside the fortrecounted seeing a flag being raised above the fort in the morning, so the logical conclusion is that the garrison flag seen that morning was not flying during the battle itself. Click here to see it. In the first phase, the team removed the linen support backing that was attached to the flag during the 1914 restoration. The British attack on Baltimore had began in earnest. Cookie Settings, Courtesy of the National Museum of American History, Photo by Thomas Arledge, courtesy of the National Museum of American History, Courtesy of the Flag House and Star-Spangled Banner Museum, Courtesy of the Maryland Historical Society, Baltimore, MD, Courtesy of the American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Massachusetts, Five Places Where You Can Still Find Gold in the United States, Scientists Taught Pet Parrots to Video Call Each Otherand the Birds Loved It, The True Story of the Koh-i-Noor Diamondand Why the British Won't Give It Back. But when darkness arrived, Key saw only red erupting in the night sky. By early morning of September 14, it was over. As its guardian and devoted champion, she encouraged its display at patriotic celebrations. The failed bombardment of Fort McHenryforces Brooke to abandon the land assault on Baltimore. [23], The Armisteads' daughter, Georgiana Armistead Appleton, inherited the flag upon her mother's death in 1861. Perhaps most important is this: The massive relic on display in the Smithsonian National Museum of American History is NOT the flag that . Why the Confederate Flag Made a 20th Century Comeback - National Geographic Scott S. Sheads is a retired ranger-historian and Historic Weapons Officer at Fort McHenry National Historic Site and Shrine in Baltimore, Md., a position he took up in 1979. The Star-Spangled Banner, or the Great Garrison Flag, was the garrison flag that flew over Fort McHenry in Baltimore Harbor during the naval portion of the Battle of Baltimore during the War of 1812. Despite a stalwart initial defense, the Americans begin to give way to the British regulars. He said 'Well, Mr. Key,' he said, 'tonight we have laid an ultimatum upon the colonies.