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Fort McHenry I chose July 5th to visit the fort. The 100-degree temperature in the parking lot attempted to convince me it wasn’t a good plan. The structure is about a third the size of Fort Niagara. The walk from the airconditioned visitors center is also about one third Niagara’s entrance trail. I was surprised to see reenactors present even before you enter the fort. They were manning four canons in a battery outside the main fort. One 36-pounder, one 32-pounder, and two 24-pounders. Only one of the canons were real, the others were Quaker guns, non-functioning facsimiles. The gun inside the fort are now all Civil War era Dahlgrens.
There were tents outside, but it was clear no one was using them, the reenactors were using the barracks inside. And a find looking barracks they were. Brand new bunks equipped with musket racks. The reenactors themselves gave the musket drill but were not marching. Interestingly they did all their drills for the public in their whites (no blue coats.) The reenactors were also well informed, they were well acquainted with General William Winder … who commanded the local Military District, which included the fort. None of the National Park Rangers, also present on the site, had ever heard of the General. They were, however, aware of the story of the flag. The weather flag was up at the time, even though the sun was out.
Most of the interior of the buildings were off-limits, sad to say. But the galleries in the walls were both open and far cooler that outside. There were only a handful of people walking around, although there was a crowd in the airconditioned visitor’s center. The store was uniquely tiny but held a large amount of 1812 material. Including actual sewn 15-star, 15-strip flags. Although most of the books on the shelves concentrated on the war in the Chesapeake Bay.
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