From - Tue Oct 30 01:51:38 2001 X-Mozilla-Status: 0001 X-Mozilla-Status2: 00000000 Message-ID: <3BDE69B0.22C0EFC@peakpeak.com> Date: Tue, 30 Oct 2001 01:49:52 -0700 From: Pam North X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.61 [en] (X11; U; Linux 2.2.12-20 i586) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: "Green, Guerin" , "Douglas, Laura" , "North, Pam" Subject: Article Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER -- ANTHEM AND FLAG By Pam North The Star-Spangled Banner has been a little nearer and dearer to our hearts in the wake of recent events. Both flag and anthem have fascinating stories behind them that all Americans should know. The War of 1812 broke out when Britain, at war with France, attempted to regulate American shipping and other activities. The British had entered Chesapeake Bay on August 19th, 1814, and by the evening of August 24th had invaded and captured Washington D.C., setting fire to the Capitol and the White House, the flames of which were visible 40 miles away in Baltimore. In the days following the attack on Washington, American forces prepared for the coming inevitable British land and sea assault on Baltimore. An elderly and much-loved local physician, Dr. William Beanes, had been absconded by the British, and held on their flagship, the Tonnant. The townsfolk, fearing that the doctor would be hanged, appealed to Francis Scott Key, a respected young lawyer and Georgetown resident, for help. Key, after arranging for Colonel John Skinner, an American agent for prisoner exchange, to accompany him, set sail to attempt to negotiate for Dr. Beanes' release. Carrying letters from wounded British war prisoners praising the care they had received from Dr. Beanes, Key finally convinced the British to free him, but the release was not to be an immediate one. Fearing that the three men had learned too much about the impending attack on Baltimore, the British placed them under guard for the duration of the battle. Prior to this, in the summer of 1813, Major George Armistead, commander of star-shaped Fort McHenry, had requested the creation of a flag so large that it could easily be seen at a distance by the advancing British. Mary Young Pickersgill, a Baltimore "maker of colours," was commissioned to accomplish the formidable task. She and her 13-year-old daughter, Caroline, working in an upstairs bedroom, used 400 yards of the best wool bunting, cutting 15 stars measuring 2 feet from point to point, and 8 red and 7 white stripes, each 2 feet wide. After laying out the material on the floor of Claggett's Brewery, they sewed the pieces together. By August the 30-foot by 40-foot flag was completed, at a final cost of $405.90. The British attack on Fort McHenry began at early morning on September 13, 1814, and the flag was there to greet the enemy. For 25 hours it flew through the bombardment of 1500 bombs and the new Congreve rockets that traced arcs of red flame through the sky. The cannonading stopped at evening, then roared to life again about 1:00 the following morning. Francis Scott Key, Colonel Skinner and Dr. Beanes watched the battle with growing apprehension. As long as the shelling continued, they could be sure that Fort McHenry had not surrendered, but long before daylight a sudden silence began, alarming the three Americans. Unknown to them, however, the British had abandoned their land and naval attacks, realizing that capturing Baltimore was too costly a task. As dawn broke, Key saw, to his joyous amazement, that the flag was still there! (The failure of the British seige of Baltimore proved to be the turning point of the War of 1812, and the Treaty of Ghent, signed four months later, ended the war). Inspired by the event, Key, an amateur poet, began to pen some words on the back of an envelope from his pocket. Sailing back to Baltimore, he added more lines, and he completed the poem back in his lodgings at the Indian Queen Hotel. His brother-in-law, Judge J.H. Nicholson, had copies printed and circulated them in Baltimore (two of these are still in existence). Its first printing in a newspaper, the Baltimore Patriot, was on September 20, 1814; it then appeared in newspapers as far away as Georgia and New Hampshire. Key adapted his lyrics to the tune of a popular drinking song, "To Anacreon in Heaven," and the song soon became the commonly adopted anthem of the United States of America, although Congress didn't make that official until 1931. The copy of the poem that Key wrote in his hotel room remained in the Nicholson family for 93 years, and is now in the possession of the Maryland Historical Society. Another copy that Key wrote in his own hand is in the Library of Congress. The famous flag, a national treasure, is presently housed in the Smithsonian Institution's Museum of American History. An opaque curtain shielded the flag for many years from light and dust, and the flag was exposed for viewing only for a few moments each hour during the museum's scheduled hours of operation. To offset the toll that the years have taken on this precious relic, the Smithsonian is currently engaged in a significant conservation effort to preserve and restore it. This project, begun in 1990, is anticipated for completion in 2002, and will ensure that our flag will always be "still there." The "Star-Spangled Banner" is more than just a familiar patriotic anthem; it's the inspiring story of a battle, a flag and, most important of all, the spirit of America. Note: Photo of Francis Scott Key to accompany article is at: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/sep13.html