🇺🇸 WEEKLY AMERICAN HERITAGE: Fort McHenry National Monument

(Explore the history and landscape of the United States with us as we approach the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution and American Independence. Get out your homeschool atlas and almanac and follow along!)

Maryland is our homeschool state-of-the-week, so why not spend a few minutes today with your students learning about one of Maryland’s most important historic places: Fort McHenry National Monument.

“The valiant defense of [Fort McHenry] during the Battle of Baltimore on September 13–14, 1814, inspired Francis Scott Key to write the words that became the U.S. national anthem. The fort’s history holds many other stories too, from the Civil War to WWII.”

After its completion in 1803 Fort McHenry had a brief period of peace which allowed the fort to be an outpost for the small standing army of the United States, and the country’s first light artillery unit was organized there. On June 18, 1812 the United States declared war on England following several disputes around “Free Trade & Sailor’s Rights.” Fort McHenry’s role became even more vital in 1813 when British forces entered the Chesapeake Bay and began a campaign of terror in the region. In August of 1814 disaster struck the American forces when they were humiliated at Bladensburg and British forces captured and burned Washington, D.C.

With the nation’s capital fallen, eyes then turned to Baltimore as the English forces’ next target became clear. In September of 1814, 5,000 British soldiers landed North-East of the city and halted outside of hastily constructed earthworks. The British Navy was needed to come into Baltimore harbor to support the attack; standing in its way was Fort McHenry and its 1,000 defenders. On September 13, 1814, the most powerful navy in the world sent a force of bomb- and rocket-ships to dislodge the defenders from their fortifications. For twenty-five hours bombs and rockets rained on Fort McHenry but on the morning of September 14th, when the smoke and fog cleared, the defenders were still there, forcing the British land and sea forces to withdraw, unable to take the city. A lawyer by the name of Francis Scott Key witnessed the bombardment and was so inspired that he wrote a poem called “The Defense of Fort McHenry” which was later put to music and renamed “The Star-Spangled Banner.” (nps.gov)

You can find a wealth of additional information about the park’s history, landscape, location(s), and visitor facilities on the Fort McHenry National Monument website from the National Park Service, and also on the Fort McHenry page on Wikipedia.

Explore America’s National Parks, National Historical Parks, National Historic Sites, National Monuments, and more via Wikipedia and via the U.S. National Park Service’s website today.

What historical American treasures are you and your students exploring in your homeschool this Cygnus Term? 🇺🇸

❡ The great globe itself: This is one of our regular Homeschool Geography posts featuring important natural and historical sites in the United States. Print your own copy of our River Houses American Heritage Calendar and follow along with us, and add your name to our weekly mailing list to get great homeschool teaching ideas delivered right to your mailbox all through the year. 🌎

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❡ Books in the running brooks: You can always turn to your River Houses atlas and almanac for more information about any of our homeschool states-of-the-week. The almanac has detailed profiles of all the U.S. states and territories, and the endpapers of the atlas are indexes that will show you where all of the individual national and regional maps may be found. 📚

❡ Homeschool calendars: We have a whole collection of free, printable, educational homeschool calendars and planners available on our main River Houses calendar page. They will help you create a light and easy structure for your homeschool year. Give them a try today! 🗓

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