By Navy Seaman Kameren Guy Hodnett
Navy Public Affairs Support Element East
BALTIMORE, Sept. 14, 2014 – Visitors and special guests
watched today as members of the U.S. Army’s 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old
Guard), with the help of War of 1812 re-enactors, hoisted a 15-star, 15-stripe,
full-size replica Star-Spangled Banner flag over Fort McHenry here at the “By
Dawn’s Early Light” flag-raising ceremony.
Star-Spangled Banner replica
At precisely 9 a.m., guns blasted and the crowd of onlookers
fell silent as service members raised a 30-foot by 42-foot replica of the flag
that 200 years ago inspired Francis Scott Key to write “The Defence of Fort
McHenry,” which would later become America’s national anthem.
“It is a great pleasure for me to be here at this historic
site and historic city of Baltimore as we celebrate the 200th anniversary of
our Star-Spangle Banner,” said former Secretary of State and retired Army Gen.
Colin L. Powell, the event’s guest speaker.
The American flag is “a piece of cloth I have loved all my
life and have served under for over 40 years," Powell added.
Celebrating history
The special ceremony capped a weeklong series of events at
the fort for Baltimore’s Star-Spangled Spectacular, a celebration commemorating
the bicentennial of the Battle of Baltimore and the national anthem.
The fort played host to a number of special events and
activities including commemorative ceremonies, living history demonstrations
and interpretive programs during the Star-Spangled Spectacular.
The city’s celebration, which concludes Sept. 16, also
includes visits by more than 30 ships from the U.S. and foreign nations, as
well as an airshow performance by U.S. Navy's Blue Angels.
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