Through the Perilous Fight
Before it was a national anthem, it was a question:
Was the flag still there?
In September 1814, Francis Scott Key watched from the waters outside Baltimore as British warships bombarded Fort McHenry through the night. Rockets streaked across the darkness. Bombs burst over the fort. And somewhere beyond the smoke flew an enormous American flag.
When morning finally came, Key looked toward the fort.
The flag was still there.
In this episode of The Common Room, we begin with the vintage old-time radio program Story Behind the Song: The Star-Spangled Banner and use that broadcast as our doorway…
The skinny
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