Our Flag Was Still There

The Star Spangled Banner That Survived the British and 200 Years―and the Armistead Family Who Saved It

By: Tom McMillan

Narrated by: Robert Fass

Our Flag Was Still There details the improbable two-hundred-year journey of the original Star-Spangled Banner—from Fort McHenry in 1814, when Francis Scott Key first saw it, to the Smithsonian—and the enduring family who defended, kept, hid, and ultimately donated the most famous flag in American history.

Francis Scott Key saw the original Star-Spangled Banner flying over Baltimore’s Fort McHenry on September 14, 1814, following a twenty-five-hour bombardment by the British Navy, inspiring him to write the words to our national anthem. Torn and tattered over the years, reduced in size to appease souvenir-hunters, stuffed away in a New York City vault for the last two decades of the nineteenth century, the flag’s mere existence after two hundred years is an improbable story of dedication, perseverance, patriotism, angst, inner-family squabbles, and, yes, more than a little luck.

For this unlikely feat, we have the Armistead family to thank—led by Lieutenant Colonel George Armistead, commander of Fort McHenry, who took it home after the battle in clear defiance of US Army regulations. It is only because of that quiet indiscretion that the flag survives to this day.

Armistead’s descendants kept and protected their family heirloom for ninety years. The flag’s first photo was not taken until 1873, almost sixty years after Key saw it waving, and most Americans did not even know of its existence until Armistead’s grandson loaned it to the Smithsonian in 1907.

Tom McMillan tells a story as no one has before. Digging deep into the archives of Fort McHenry and the Smithsonian, accessing never-before-published letters and documents, and presenting rare photos from the private collections of Armistead descendants and other sources, McMillan follows the flag on an often-perilous journey through two centuries.

Our Flag Was Still There provides new insight into an intriguing period of US history, offering a “story behind the story” account of one of the country’s most treasured relics.

©2023 Tom McMillan (P)2023 Blackstone Publishing

The Star Spangled Banner, Flag, and its History

Wow! Get ready for a history of the American Flag and the Star Spangled Banner like never before!

Tom McMillan dove into the history of the Star Spangled Banner, from its inception on a piece of paper, to where it now stands as the national anthem for the United States. Through its long history, the flag that flew over Fort McHenry during the War of 1812, has finally found its forever home in the Smithsonian Museum of American History. However, before that, it was cared for by the Armistead family, and lovingly cherished throughout its time, until it was donated so that millions of visitors could view the beloved flag.

The history of the Armistead family is also interestingly laid out, and there is much to learn! I enjoyed every aspect of it, from the War of 1812, through the Civil War and beyond.

There has been some controversy around the wording of the Star Spangled Banner, but we have to remember that we are looking at it through modern eyes. When it comes to history, we need to step back and take into perspective the happenings and the world that was there. The meanings of the different verses, specifically verse three are laid out, and talked through. McMillan draws on multiple sources, and brings to light the true meaning of these words, and the fervor that was behind them.

This book was brilliantly put together and I enjoyed each moment with this book. It is one that I am definitely going to be recommending to my students to read.