Mary Pickersgill: Maker of the Star-Spangled Banner

Introduction

Mary Pickersgill was born on February 12, 1776 in Philadelphia, PA.  She moved to Baltimore in 1793 with her mother and daughter after John her husband passed away.  Her mother had been a maker of flags and ships colors in Philadelphia, and upon moving to Baltimore, Mary carried on the family business.  They moved into a modest home at 60 Albemarle Street.

In 1813 the United States was embroiled in the midst of the War of 1812 against the British.  Washington had just been burned and the British were turning their attention to Baltimore.  Defenses at Ft McHenry were prepared and the commander, Major George Armistead felt that the only thing still needed for the fort was "a flag so large that the British should have no difficulty seeing it from a distance."  He approached Mary about making the flag, whose dimensions would measure 30 feet hoist by 42 feet fly. 

Mary agreed to make the flag in time period of only six weeks.  With help from her daughter and two nieces, Mary sewed the flag in her small Baltimore home.  When the flag became too large, it was taken to Claggett's Brewery where it was laid out on the floor of the basement so that it could be completed.

On September 14, 1814 the flag was raised over Ft. McHenry after the Americans succeeded in defending the city against British invasion.  Francis Scott Key, who was being held captive by the British aboard ship, saw the flag and penned the famous poem "The Defense of Ft McHenry", now known as the "Star-Spangled Banner."

National History Standards

Materials compiled in this document can be used by educators to fulfill the following National History Standards for Grades K-4:

Topic 3: The History of the United States: Democratic Principles and Values and the People from Many Cultures Who Contributed to Its Cultural, Economic, and Political Heritage 

Standard 4: How Democratic Values Came to Be, and How They Have Been Exemplified by People, Events, and Symbols 

Standard 4E: The student understands national symbols through which American values and principles are expressed. 
3-4: Analyze the Pledge of Allegiance and patriotic songs, poems, and sayings that were written long ago to demonstrate understanding of their significance. [Reconstruct the literal meaning of a historical passage] 

Primary Resources

1. TITLE:  Mary Pickersgill in her Seventies
   DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED:  Ca 1846
   SOURCE:  Maryland State Archives
   REPOSITORY:  Original housed at The Star-Spangled Banner Flag House Museum

2. TITLE:   Receipt for the Making of the Flag
   DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED:  August 19, 1813
   SOURCE:  Smithsonian Institution
   REPOSITORY:  Original housed at the Star-Spangled Banner Flag House Museum

3. TITLE:  Letter from Caroline, Mary's Daughter to Major Armistead's daughter about the making of the Flag.
   DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED:  1876
   SOURCE:  Smithsonian Institution
   REPOSITORY:  Original housed at the American Antiquarian Society

4. TITLE:  Mary's House as it appeared in 1927 at the opening of the Flag House Museum
   DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED:  1927
   SOURCE: Smithsonian Institution 
   REPOSITORY:  Original housed at the Star-Spangled Banner Flag House Museum

5. TITLE:  Images of Mary Pickersgill
   CREATED/PUBLISHED:  Various
   SOURCE:  Maryland State Archives
   REPOSITORY: Originals at various locations 

See also:

• Francis Scott Key and the Star Spangled Banner
• Bringing Down the House: The Burning of the White House in the War of 1812 
• Battle Of North Point, September 12, 1814

Additional Media Resources

Mary Pickersgill

Maryland Women's Hall of Fame

The Star-Spangled Banner

The Star-Spangled Banner History

Additional Instructional Resources

Mary and the Flag House

What Does the Star-Spangled Banner Mean to Me?

Flags and Math

What the Star-Spangled Banner Means

Secondary Resources

Colston, Frederick M.  Battle of North Point:  The Bombardment of Fort McHenry and The Birth of "The Star-Spangled Banner." Baltimore:  J. H. Furst Co., Printers, n.d.

Delaplaine, Edward S.  Francis Scott Key:  Life and Times.  n.pub., n.pl., 1937.

Manakee, Harold R.  Star Spangled Banner: The Story of Its Writing by Francis Scott Key at Baltimore, September 13 - 14, 1814. Baltimore:  The Maryland Historical Society, Baltimore, MD, 1954

Meyer, Sam.  Paradoxes of Fame:  The Francis Scott Key Story.  Annapolis, MD:  Eastwind Publishing, 1995.

O'Connell, Frank A. and Wilbur F. Coyle.  National Star-Spangled Banner Centennial, Baltimore, Maryland, September 6 to 13, 1914. Baltimore:  National Star-Spangled Banner Centennial Commission, and Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, 1914.

Weybright, Victor.  Spangled Banner:  Story of Francis Scott Key.  New York, NY:  Farrar & Reinhart Inc., 1963.

Whitcraft, Melissa.  Francis Scott Key.  New York, NY:  Franklin Watts, 1994

Associated Heritage and Preservation Organizations

The Star-Spangled Banner Flag House and War of 1812 Museum 844 E. Pratt Street Baltimore, MD 21202 410-837-1793

Ft McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine East End of Fort Ave Baltimore, MD 21230 410-962-4290

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Credits

Teaching American History in Maryland is a collaborative partnership of the Maryland State Archives and the Center for History Education (CHE), University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC), and the following sponsoring school systems: Anne Arundel County Public Schools, Baltimore City Public School System, Baltimore County Public Schools, and Howard County Public Schools.

Other program partners include the Martha Ross Center for Oral History, Maryland Historical Society, State Library Resource Center/Enoch Pratt Free Library, with assistance from the National Archives and Records Administration and the Library of Congress. The program is funded through grants from the U.S. Department of Education.

This document packet was researched and developed by Richard Olson.

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