Francis Scott Key was an American lawyer, author, and poet from Frederick, Maryland, best known as the author of the text of the American national anthem "The Star-Spangled Banner". Key observed the British bombardment of Fort McHenry in 1814 during the War of 1812. He was inspired upon seeing the American flag still flying over the fort at dawn and wrote the poem "Defence of Fort M'Henry"; it was published within a week with the suggested tune of the popular song "To Anacreon in Heaven". The song with Key's lyrics became known as "The Star-Spangled Banner" and slowly gained in popularity as an unofficial anthem, finally achieving official status as the national anthem more than a century later under President Herbert Hoover.
Key c. 1825
Mary Tayloe Lloyd, early 1800s
Maryland Historical Society plaque marking Key's birthplace
Fort McHenry looking towards the position of the British ships, with the Francis Scott Key Bridge in the distance on the upper left
Frederick is a city in, and the county seat of, Frederick County, Maryland, United States. Frederick's population was 78,171 people as of the 2020 census, making it the second-largest incorporated city in Maryland behind Baltimore. It is a part of the Washington metropolitan area and the greater Washington–Baltimore combined statistical area.
Downtown Frederick's City Hall in 2022
Catoctin Mountain, located north of Frederick
Evangelical Lutheran church in Frederick, built in 1752
Confederate troops marching south on North Market Street in Frederick during the American Civil War