Springfield globe-republic. (Springfield, Ohio) 1884-1887, 1885-11-15
IT STILL WAVES
'sO'sF the Hearts q. the Free and ths
Homes Of the Brave

'sO'sr the Hearts os tn. Free and ths
Homes Of the Brave"
The flag that waved over Fort Nc.
Henry during the bombardment on
the night of the 18th of September,
1914. and whose broad stripes and
bright stars inspired Keys song, still
exists in a tOlerable state of preserva
ton. 1t was preserved by Colonel
George Arm>tcad. the commandant OF
the fort at the time Of the attack on
Fort McHeury, Baltimore. and beara
upon'pne OF its stripes, in his auto
graph his name and the date of the
BON bardment 1t has always been re-
| tanned in his family. and his widow in
| lS6l bcGucathed it to their Youngest
daughter, G"orgiana Appleton. who
some time after the bombardmrnt, was
born in Fort MclleLry under its folds
Mrs Appleton d ed IN New York. July
p. 1873. and bequeathed the flag to hei
son. Mr.. Ebcn Appleton. of Yonkers,
\. Y. who now holds it a precious
relic. 1t has been frequently displayed
| at celehrat ons of the 18th and 18th OF
| September. and was notably used to
| adorn Washington war-tent. which
was raised at Fort McHenry September
II. 1924, for the reception of General
Lafayette. 1t, was again exhibited
| along the streets of Baltimore during
our ..SesQui-Ccntenni Al celebration by
| the late William Carter.
Upon this occasion the late Mrs
~
Colonel Henry :. SanderSon. formerly
| Sheriff and Collector of Bait more
who ALWAYS prided herself on the part
she took in constructing the FLAG
| that inspired Key to write our National
anthem, was induced by some of her
friends to visit her native city. She
arrived in Bait more in time to witness
| the grand display, but did not partici-
| pate in it. Whie here she gave the
| following history of the construction
| of the flag: Mrs. Mary PiCkersgili. who
was well known in Bait more during
| the war of 1872 as an adept at flag and
| banner making. was secured by Com
modOre Barney. General Stricken
| General Mcdonald and other prom nent
| men TO make a new garrison flag for
| Fort McIlcnrv. 4 number of Young
| girls assisted in the work. and Mrs
| SandcrSon. who was then between
| tn rteen and fourteen Years of age. was
| one of the party. The girls made
| quite frOlic of it. and their Young
hearts pulsed wildly for the safety of
| their beloved CITY and the honor Of the
volunteers and regulars who were to
defend the work of their delicate
| fingers. Mrs. Sanderson remembered
| perfectly well that her portion of the
| labor was to bsste the star, on the blue
| field.
The flag. when completed. was
hoisted on 4 high mast not far from
the bast on facing the Patapsco RIVER.
| in the Star Fort The late Mendez
|. Cohen. who was, perhaps, the last
survivor Of Captain \ cholson's Com
| panv of Fenc blcs. VIII ch mustered one
| hundred and ten strong on the morn
| ing of the bumbardmcnt in the fort.
sad he had a distinct recollection that
one whole Brit sh bOmbshell passed
| through the flag. and that it was torn
by several pieces of another shell. The
! flag was or ginallV about forty feet
| LONG. but the shot Of the enemy. time
and marauders have combined to di-
minish its length. until now it is only
thirty-feet long and twenty-nine hoist.
Its great W dth is due to its having tif-
teen instead of thirteen stripes, each
near two feet wide. 1t has. or rather
had. fifteen tve-pointed stars. each two
feet from po,nt to point. and arranged
in five inden:ed parallel lines. three
stars n each horizontal line. The
union rests in the ninth, which is red
stripe. instead of the eighth, white
stripe, as in our present flag. All the
flags worn by the navy and army dur
ing the war of 1872 II, and. in fact,
from 1874 70 1918, were 50 arranged
Baltimore sun.