Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-02-16
SCOTT KEY MANSION
Plans for the Formal Opening
February %.
OPEN TO PUBLIC ALL DAY
School Children to Be Invited to At
tend the Exercises.
NUMBER OF RELICS ON VIEW
Management Agrees Upon Scheme
for Raising Funds to Com
plete Purchase.
NUMBER OF RELICS ON VIEW

ARRANGEMENTS have been completed FOR
| the formal opening of the old home OF
Francis Scott Key in Georgetown at Ii
| o'clock the morning of February .. The
| day being the anniversary of the birth OF
Washington was considered suspicious by
| the members Of the board of directors
| OF the Francis Scott Key Memorial Asso-
citation, which recently acquired the prop
erty.
The exercises will open with prayer. fol-
lowed by the singing of The Star Span
gled Banner" The association will be rep
resented by its officers and fncorporators
and the house will be open to the public
all day. The teachers of the public schools
will be asked to extend an invitation to
all their pupils to be present. and the MIN
listers Of the city have been asked to invite
their congregations. The association Is
particularly DESTROYS that the school chill
dren of Washington shall attend the ex-
ercises.
The association having possession of the
historic mansion ois about to enter upon
campaign, it is declared, to obtain
funds to effect its purchase. 1t has OBJ
tanned the services of Charles ii. Wels-
gerber, the preserver of the famous Betsy
Ross house in Philadelphia, as its business
of the business affairs of the movement.
The exterior OF the house Will be dec
grated with festoons Of laurel and the ma
tional colors, and with large portraits or
Washington and Key painted by Mr.. Wels-
gerber.
Serves as Repository of Relics.
Owing to the immense space within it's
walls the old house may very properly
be used as repository for historic flags
and objects of interest pertaining to the
history of the flag Many of Keys per-
sonal effects and pieces of household fur
niture have been located and will ulti-
mately be restored to the house. COM
mittee of the association is already at
work, 1t Is said, to secure the restoration
of these treasures.
Visitors to the mansion will find many
objects of interest there. Mr. Weisger-
bers original painting THE Inspiration"
will be conspicuously displayed. 1t alone.
1t is declared. Is well worth trip to
Georgetown to see. There will also be
shown an exact reproduction of the room
in the Betsy Ross house where the stars
and stripes banner was originated. This
room, as to dimensions and furniture, 1t
Is said. is historically correct. being re-
produced by Mr.. Weisgerber after exhaus-
tive research and long residence in the
flag house 1t contains life size wax fig
ures of Betsy Ross. maker of the flag:
Gen. Washington. Robert Morris. the pa
triotic financer Of the revolution. and Col.
George Ross. uncle of the mother of the
flag" Each figure is clothed in costume
historically correct. and the faces are said
to be striking hkenesses.
There will also be shown model OF the
Betsy Ross house. surrounded by a minia-
ture park. This model shows for the
first time an exterior Of the house as 1t
was 1716 when the first star spangled
banner was created.
This is the first time that this wax
ND oil hnryn CHI
side of Philadelphia. They will be kept
here. 1t is said, until all the school chill
dren Of the District have had ample time
to see them.
Open Each Week Day.
From next Saturday the building will
be open to the public every week day, and
Mr.. Weisgerber will be there to receive
| all visitors. and explain to them the plan
| under which the house is to be purchased.
| His painting, Birth Of Our Nations
Flag" is known the country over. He
conceived the plan to preserve the home
of Betsy Ross in Philadelphia. The fund
| for the purchase of this house was raised
by the sale of certificates of membership
I in the Betsy Ross Flag House Associa-
| ton at 10 cents each Citizens Of every
state in the Union and Of every country
in the world contributed to the fund. The
roll OF honor. containing 1.O46.27O names
and the addresses of contributors, it is
said. is preserved in the archives Of the
association.
The same plan will be followed in the
preservation Of the Key mansion. Mr.
| Weisgerber expects that inside of three
years the fund necessary to pay for the
house will be raised. Certificates Of
membership in the Francis Scott Key
Memorial Association will be sold at 10
than one certificate. These certificates
eleven by fourteen inches. are beautiful
| ly Illuminated in four colors. They show
| the Key house and a full-length portrait
| of Francis Scott Key on the deck Of his
| prison ship in the harbor of Baltimore at
| the moment he discovered the flag still
| flying over Fort McHenry, which gave
| him the inspiration for his verses.
Colonial Architecture.
The mansion at 1918 NJ street northwest
| can be reached by means of the green
| cars on Pennsylvania avenue and the
Georgetown cars on F street. The old
house, which is one Of the types OF
colonial architecture extant. Is palatial in
its appointments The usual wide hall
runs through the building from front to
| rear and contains a magnificent example
of the old colonial staircase. The ceilings
| are twelve feet high and the large. square
rooms with their great open fireplaces
| will be revelation to the jewellers In
modern houses
The raVageS OF time. II Is SAID are more
marked on the southern front. overlooking
| the Potomac. than in any other portion OF
| the building. The broad magnificent
porch which originally graced this side OF
| the house. and the old conservatory. are
entirely gone. They have rOtted away
| through neglect, but fortunately the ar
| chitectural lines are still plainly indicated
| and can be restored to accord with the
| original structure.
Association officers.
| The officers of the association are:
President, Henry B. F. Macfarland: first
vice president. Admiral George Dewey;
second vice president. Rear Admiral Win
field Scott Schley: secretary, F. s. Key
Smith. great-grandson Of Francis Scott
! Key; treasurer. William D. Hoover.
The board of trustees of the association
is composed of these officers: Justice Job
| Barnard and Stuart Mcnamara assistant
| United States attorney.
The incorporators Of the association are:
Judge Daniel T. Wright. Supreme Court
| of the District of Columbia; Judge Ashley
| NJ. Gould. Supreme Court OF the District
| of Columbia: Judge Thomas H. Anderson,
| Supreme Court of the District 0f Co1,n,-