Save Our History: The Star Spangled Banner Project


	In July 1813, before the American's defeat by the British at Washington, Major George Armistead commissioned her to sew two flags. One was a smaller one, called a storm flag, and another huge one which is called a garrison flag.
	It took six weeks to sew both flags. Mary was helped by her daughter Caroline. Decades later, Caroline would recall that her mother "worked many nights until 12 o'clock to complete it in the given time." Mary was paid a total of $575.44 for the job (in 1813, that was a pretty large amount of money -- her entire house cost $1500). According to Caroline, Pickersgill was chosen for the job because of her family's heritage of flag-making. Pickergill's mother, Rebecca Young, made American flags for George Washington's army during the Revolutionary War.
	After 185 years, Pickersgill's work has become more than just a flag -- with its place of honor in the Smithsonian institution, the original Star-Spangled Banner has become an American icon. The flag is housed at the National Museum of American History where you can visit it and learn about its history.