History and Conservation
A View of the Bombardment of Fort McHenry,
detail from a painting by J. Bower
Courtesy Maryland Historical Society
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On a stormy night in 1814, Francis Scott Key witnessed the British attack
on Fort McHenry. Inspired by the sight of a large flag flying over the
fort the morning after the bombardment, Key wrote a poem about the event.
The poem was published to the tune of a well-known English melody, "To
Anacreon in Heaven." The combination soon became a popular patriotic
song. In 1931, Congress declared "The Star-Spangled Banner" our
national anthem.
Millions of Americans have heard
this history of the Star-Spangled Banner. But the battle and the national
anthem are only part of the story. Through the decades, the flag has accumulated
a history of its own.
The earliest known photograph of the Star-Spangled Banner shows the flag
hanging from a building at the Boston Navy Yard in 1874.
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The flag that inspired Francis
Scott Key was the handiwork of Mary Pickersgill, a Baltimore maker of ship's
banners and flags, and her daughter Caroline Purdy. The fifteen red and
white stripes and the blue field are made of wool bunting, and the fifteen
stars of white cotton. Almost a century after the battle, the grandson
of the fort's commander, Maj. George Armistead, first lent and then donated
the Star-Spangled Banner to the Smithsonian. When the flag came to the
Smithsonian, it was badly tattered and loosely attached to a backing of
heavy canvas.
In 1914, the canvas backing was removed
and the fragments stitched to a backing of finest heavyweight Irish linen.
Securely attached to this backing, the flag was displayed in specially
designed and constructed case in the Smithsonian's Arts and Industries
Building.
Since that first study and treatment
of the flag, the Smithsonian Institution has used state-of the-art conservation
and exhibition techniques to ensure the flag's preservation.
Needlewomen sew a backing on the Star-Spangled
Banner in the Smithsonian Castle, about 1914.
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During World War II, the flag was removed from display and stored outside
Washington for safekeeping. In 1963, it was moved to the new National Museum
of History and Technology, now the National Museum of American History.
Over the next two decades, conservators undertook several analyses of the
flag's yarns, fibers, and dyes, and evaluated the effects of dust and pollution.
The flag was gently cleaned in place in 1982 and protected by the construction
of a new flexible screen, or oleo. Once an hour, to the music of the national
anthem, the oleo descended to reveal the flag. Twelve years later, the
cables holding the protective screen failed, and this mishap has presented
the Museum and the Institution with a new opportunity to study, conserve,
protect, and display the flag for visitors and the nation.
The Star-Spangled Banner remained on
display in this glass case in the Arts and Industries Building from 1914
to 1964. |
In the fall of 1996, the Museum sponsored
a conference that drew conservators, curators, textile experts, historians,
and other specialists from across the country to discuss preservation,
curatorial, and exhibition concerns about the flag. Today, a technical
advisory committee formed after the conference is studying the condition
of the flag and the range of possibilities for its preservation and display.
Facts about the Flag
Size 30' x 34' (9.75 x 10.4
m); (originally 30' x 42' (9.75 x 12.8 m).
Design 15 white cotton
5-pointed stars, approx. 24" (61 cm) wide, on blue field of wool bunting.
15 stripes--8 red, 7 white, approx. 23-1/2" (60 cm) wide--of wool
bunting, handsewn.
Backing Irish linen, applied
with open button-hole stitch.
Weight About 125-175 lbs.
(57-79 kg); backing is over half the total weight.
Date Made July-August 1813.
Features The red 'V' is
of unknown date and origin. The irregular 'fly edge' resulted from wind
damage and portions being cut away for souvenirs during the 19th century.
Archival records indicate that damage to the flag was repaired after the
battle.
