FRANCIS SCOTT KEY
Born in 1779 - Died in 1843
In 1813 the commander of Ft. McHenry asked for a flag so big that "the British have
no trouble seeing it from a distance." He asked Mary Young Pickersgill
to make the flag for him. Her thirteen year old daughter helped her.
She used 400 yards of fine wool. They cut 15 stars that were two feet
across. There were 8 red and 7 white stripes. The stripes
were each two feet wide. When it was finished it measured 30 by 42 feet
and cost $405.90.
During this time Francis Scott Key was a lawyer in Georgetown, just a few miles from
Washington D.C. He and his wife Mary had 6 sons and 5 daughters.
In 1814, the British captured Washington and set the Capitol on fire.
President James Madison and his wife Dolley had to leave the White House and run
to a safer place.
After this attack, the Americans knew that Baltimore would be attacked next.
The British had captured Mr. Key's friend. His name was William Beanes
and he was a doctor. Key and another man set out to try to save Dr. Beanes'
life. They told the British that the doctor had helped to save British
soldiers that had been wounded. They agreed to free him, but they wouldn't
let them leave because the three men had overheard the British making plans to attack.
So they were placed under guard on a British ship.
It was from this ship that Francis Scott Key watched the bombing of Ft. McHenry.
There was a lot of smoke and haze, but when daylight came, he could see that the
flag was still waving.
He was so inspired that he began to write a poem on the back of a letter he had
in his pocket. He later finished the poem and showed it to his brother-in-law
who took it to a printer and had copies made of it. Two of these copies
survive today.
Newspapers started printing it and people began singing it to a familiar tune.
The Star Spangled Banner was adopted as our national anthem on March 3, 1931.
The flag that flew over Ft. McHenry is now at the Smithsonian in the Museum of American
History. The flag is very fragile and they keep a curtain in front of
it to protect it from the light and dust. They show the flag for a few
moments once every hour when the museum is open to the public.
Words to the Star Spangled Banner
Music to the Star Spangled Banner
Administered by the National Society's Americanism Committee
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U.S. Flag History
Flag Day
Star Spangled Banner
 Words and Music
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Forever March
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