Maryland celebrates Defenders Day

Today, in Maryland, is Defenders Day. It is a legal holiday in which Maryland residents recall the day in which their ancestors defended the City of Baltimore on 12 September 1814 from the Brits in the War of 1812. The events gave birth to our national anthem as well. This weekend commemorates the 200th anniversary of "The Star Spangled Banner."

On 24 August 2014, the Maryland Historical Society and Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine unfurled the Star-Spangled Banner Replica at President's Park on the White House Ellipse, located near 15th and E Streets, in Washington, DC. It was two hundred years to the day that the British burned the White House.

During the War of 1812, British troops captured Washington, DC and burned the White House. This caused President James Madison to flee. Just three weeks later, the British attacked the Baltimore. The British fired more than a thousand rockets and "bombs" on Fort McHenry but Baltimore's defenders stood their ground. The battle was witnessed by Francis Scott Key )at left, from the National Park Service), a lawyer and poet. With some artistic liberty, he described the events in "The Star-Spangled Banner," the song that would become our National Anthem.

"With the British capture of the capital, Americans were looking for a victory. That victory happened three weeks later in Baltimore. The flag represented both a sense of hope during those dark hours as the White House burned and a sense of triumph as the British withdrew from Fort McHenry. The White House and Fort McHenry are linked by this common history," said Vincent Vaise, Chief of Interpretation at Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine.

This weekend, Baltimore invites the nation to a free, city-wide festival celebrating the 200th anniversary of our national anthem. Tall ships, Navy gray hulls and the Blue Angels will come to Baltimore's famed Inner Harbor. There will be living history demonstrations, a family fun-zone, live musical performances, and Chesapeake food and beverage. For more information: www.starspangled200.com.

Was your ancestor a part of history there?

The National Park Service (NPS) includes a database of those who defended Fort McHenry. This database includes known Maryland citizen-soldiers from Maryland as well as federal soldiers who defended Fort McHenry in September 1814. In some cases, individual obituaries, burial sites, and personal notes are included.

I pulled up a random Winters (see right) and found three entries for a Private George Winters. He served under Captain Thomas Quantrill in both the 24th Regiment and the 39th Regiment of the Hagerstown Volunteers.

Sites to explore:
Fort McHenry Guard - http://www.fortmchenryguard.org/
Fort McHenry National Monument - http://www.nps.gov/fomc/index.htm
Research Library at Fort McHenry - http://www.fortmchenrylibrary.org/

Coatesville's First Serial Killer

Young Alexander Meyer was a disturbed and angry young man with some major issues. He had failed sixth and seventh grade, and instead of having to repeat eighth grade again, he finally gave up on school. At age 16 he quit Downingtown Junior High. Meyer is not a relative, nor are his victims (that I am aware). I stumbled upon young Alex while reading Tortured Minds: Pennsylvania's Most Bizarre - But Forgotten - Murders by Tammy Mal. On 11 February 1937 Alexander Thweatt Meyer killed young Helen Moyer as she walked home from school in Coatesville along Modena Road. She was not his first. The jury was out only three minutes after hearing Dr. Michael Margolis' testimony on the death of Helen Moyer. The jury determined Meyer had murdered Moyer and should be held for first degree murder. The jury also condemned the parole system which had released Meyer back into the public, after having served just 14 months in Huntingdon Reformatory, for the murder of two other girls - Anna Blasc...

Thaddeus Stevens at the Lancaster Convention Center

Within the Lancaster Convention Center (Lancaster, PA) is a small section dedicated to Thaddeus Stevens and Lydia Hamilton Smith. The section is known as the Stevens & Smith Historic Site. It is scheduled for development this year. At the moment one can only get a glimpse of it through the Convention Center or by peeking in from the outside. Here at Queen and Vine Streets in Lancaster City, Pennsylvania, Thaddeus Stevens had his law office. Stevens was an abolitionist. An abolitionist is a person who favors the abolition of a practice or institution, especially capital punishment or (formerly) slavery. Stevens was born 4 April 1792 to Joshua Stevens and Sarah (Sally) Morrill in Danville Vermont. One of four children, he attended Vermont University from 1810 to 1812 when the War prompted its closure. He then went to Dartmouth, where he graduated in 1814. He then studied law and found himself set up in Gettysburg, PA in 1816. He practiced law there until 1828 when he...

52 Ancestors: Remembering the King

Today is Elvis’ birthday. He would have been 80 today. I was only eight when he died so obviously I am too young to have seen Elvis perform. However, when I hear his music, I go back in time. I am once again that young girl dancing in the living room to Elvis and other greats with my father. Back then girls learned to dance by dancing with their fathers not some video of scantly dressed people doing all sorts of things young ladies should not be doing in public! What is YOUR favorite memory - either of your father or of Elvis? 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks is a weekly genealogical challenge issued by Amy Johnson Crow, of No Story Too Small . Look for my weekly posts each Thursday! © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

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