Painting of Francis Scott Key standing on boat, with
right arm stretched out toward the United States flag
flying over Fort McHenry, Baltimore, Maryland.

Francis Scott Key penned a poem which is later set to music
and in 1931 becomes America’s national anthem, “The Star-
Spangled Banner.” The poem, originally titled “The Defense
of Fort McHenry,” was written after Key witnessed the
Maryland fort being bombarded by the British during the
War of 1812. Key was inspired by the sight of a lone U.S.
flag still flying over Fort McHenry at daybreak, as reflected
in the now-famous words of the “Star-Spangled Banner”:
“And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.”

Francis Scott Key (August 1, 1779 – January 11, 1843)

Francis S. Key was an American lawyer, author, and amateur poet
from Frederick, Maryland. It has been speculated that the U.S. motto
"In God We Trust" was adapted from a line in the fourth stanza of
the "Star-Spangled Banner".

The American flag was flown in battle for the first time, during a Revolutionary
War skirmish at Cooch’s Bridge, Delaware. Patriot General William Maxwell
ordered the stars and strips banner raised as a detachment of his infantry and cavalry met an advance guard of British and Hessian troops. The rebels were defeated and forced to retreat to General George Washington’s main force
near Brandywine Creek in Pennsylvania.

Retired singer Kenneth Ray Rogers is 81 today.

Kenny Rogers and The First Edition, sometimes billed as The First Edition, was an eclectic rock band whose styles ranged from rock
and roll to R&B, folk, and country.

Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers

During the Spanish-American War, U.S. forces launch their invasion of Puerto
Rico, the 108-mile-long, 40-mile-wide island that was one of Spain’s two
principal possessions in the Caribbean. With little resistance and only seven deaths, U.S. troops under General Nelson A. Miles were able to secure the
island by mid-August. After the signing of an armistice with Spain, American
troops raised the U.S. flag over the island, formalizing U.S. authority over its
one million inhabitants. Puerto Rico remains a U.S. commonwealth today.

When the American Revolution broke out in 1775, the colonists weren’t
fighting united under a single flag. Instead, most regiments participating
in the war for independence against the British fought under their own
flags. In June of 1775, the Second Continental Congress met in
Philadelphia to create the Continental Army—a unified colonial fighting
force—with the hopes of more organized battle against its colonial
oppressors. This led to the creation of what was, essentially, the first
“American” flag, the Continental Colors. For some, this flag, which
was comprised of 13 red and white alternating stripes and a Union
Jack in the corner, was too similar to that of the British. George
 Washington soon realized that flying a flag that was even remotely
close to the British flag was not a great confidence-builder for the
revolutionary effort, so he turned his efforts towards creating a new
symbol of freedom for the soon-to-be fledgling nation.

On June 14, 1777, the Second Continental Congress passed a resolution
stating that “the flag of the United States be 13 stripes, alternate red and
white,” and that “the union be 13 stars, white in a blue field, representing
a new constellation.” In 1916, President Woodrow Wilson marked the
anniversary of that decree by officially establishing June 14 as Flag Day.