Thats right. 200 years ago this year Francis Scott key wrote the words to a poem, the defense of ft. Mchenry, and set it to a british tune, and together they form our National Anthem, the starspangled banner. Here at the National Museum of American History, we explore americas history through collections, research and public outreach. We help people understand the past to better make sense of the present and to shape a more humane future. Were hoping that our program will be able to do much of that by bringing the nation together around our National Anthem. By the way, were not just bringing people together here in washington, d. C. , on the National Mall, but also all over our country and indeed world. Id like to send a special welcome to our streaming audience who is watching us via youtube stream and cspan3. Speaking of bringing people together, its very appropriate our opening conductor is well known bringing together singers with his infamous and well done virtual choir projects. Id like you all to join me in thanking grammy winning composer mr. Eric whitaker. Also, let me introduce you all to todays choir. Ive got to tell you, these guys are great, and i had a lot of fun with them earlier today at rehearsal. Theyre organized by the john f. Kennedy center of performing arts chorus america and Classical Movements. 400 voices from 45 states aged 9 to 81. Lets give them a hand. We would also like to thank our men and women in the United States air force. As you guys can see, we have the United States air force band and Singing Sergeants with us today, but theyre not only performing, if you look at all the things you see up here, much being run behind the scenes is also being done by men and women of our United States air force, so please recognize them with a hand. Also, wed like to thank the National Park service. Without them we wouldnt have this Beautiful National mall towards which to orient our performance. Also at park Service Sites all over the country, folks are watching us online. So please recognize them. And you guys are in for some really good performances today. Many of them were made possible by our friends at wolf and tusk management. Please give them a big hand. All right. Now, to help us kick off this event, id like to welcome our esteemed first speaker. Please welcome the 12th secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, dr. Wayne clough. Good afternoon. Great day. Enjoying it . Welcome to the smithsonian National Museum of American History, your museum. Thank you for all coming to help us celebrate the grand 200th anniversary of one of our nations most iconic objects, the starspangled banner. Today, on flag day, we celebrate in word, song and performance. Today we lift every voice and sing. I want to thank the many talented performers who are here with us today, especially this gifted choir behind me composed of singers from sea to shining sea. Lets give them a hand. Thanks also the u. S. Air force concert band who represent our brave men and women serving around the world. Give them applause. Many thanks to our undersecretary for history arts and culture richard juran, Deputy Director of this museum and all my colleagues participating to help us organize this wonderful event. Thanks go to our friends and supporters, friends at the National Park service, john f. Kennedy center for the performing arts, wool and tusk, Classical Movements who worked so hard with us to make this day special for all of us. The starspangled banner was born in baltimore. We are honored to welcome the former mayor of baltimore and Current Governor of the great state of maryland, the honorable martin omalley. Hell be speaking shortly. As well as the director of the Maryland Historical society. We thank both of them for the loan of the Francis Scott keys original manuscript displayed today here with the flag for the first time in our history. Opera singer Renee Flemings gown worn when she sang the National Anthem during the 2014 super bowl is also on display. We thank renee. Every day, millions of flags fly in big cities and small towns like the one where i came from all across our nation. They hang on front porches and store fronts, schools, military bases, museums, cities, state and federal buildings. Small children carry them in big parades. I even have a flag that was carried in outer space by a friend of mine who was an astronaut. Our military men and women carry them into battle. They mark the graves of the fallen at Arlington National cemetery, gettysburg and the American Cemetery in normandy, france. We salute our flag and what it means. We salute those who defend it and those who live up to it. Everything those flags stand for everywhere is symbolized by one flag here, and that is the starspangled banner. It is here, but we at the smithsonian dont own it. You own it, the american people. We take care of it and we have for more than a century. We preserve it and display it for the american people, and visitors from around the world who seek to understand our country, our culture and its great history. As one of our curators here once said, there is an accurate perception that we are forever, that we will care for an object eternally. This is a sacred trust we at the smithsonian take seriously because we owe it to the american people. We tell americas stories, stories of courage, of struggle, sacrifice and triumph. Our scholars and experts will use the latest technology and techniques to keep this flag alive for generations to come. So your children and your childrens children can learn from the lessons it teaches all of us. You can see it here today. You can visit any time online. Please do. Its your flag. Its part of the history and fabric of our country. For even more information on this important time in our history, please explore our online exhibition from our National Portrait gallery, 1812 the nation emerges. Tonight at 9 00 p. M. On the smithsonian channel, dont miss out on the starspangled story, battle for america, with insights from curators from this museum. Historian David Mccullough once wrote history teaches us what we stand for, what we ought to be willing to stand up for. History is or should be the bedrock of patriotism, not the chest pounding kind of patriotism but the real thing, love of country. His words stand the test of time. Thank you for being with us today and enjoy. Thank you very much, mr. Secretary. Thanks to the work of secretary clough and many others, the smithsonian is using this opportunity, this wonderful flag day celebration, to bring the nation together. There are a lot of people helping us out with this celebration including 115 national partners, such as aarp, capital girl scout council, veterans of foreign wars, there really are too many others to name. In 30 states and two countries hosting 86 watch parties. Many of these watch parties are hosted also by some of our 200 Smithsonian Institution affiliates. Added to that at 600 macies store macys stores around the country, people will be joining us to sing along. That means from many sumner, washington, the home of the rhubarb pie, to iraq, there could be folks all around the globe singing with us today at 4 00 p. M. We want to thank all of them for joining us. I hope you guys are ready. Are you . Are you tired of hearing me talk . I think thats what you are really saying to me. I think its time for another performance. Id like to do that by welcoming again our choir and also welcoming the United States air force band and Singing Sergeants to perform the battle hymn of the republic, commanded and conducted by colonel henry h. Lang. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the lord he is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored he hath loosed the fateful lightning of his terrible swift sword his truth is marching on i have seen him in the watch fires of 100 circling camps they have builded him an altar in the evening dews and damps in the beauty of the lilies christ was born across the sea glory glory hallelujah glory glory hallelujah glory glory hallelujah marching on our god is marching on glory glory hallelujah glory glory hallelujah glory glory hallelujah in the beauty of the lilies christ was born across the sea with the glory in his bosom that transfigured you and me as he died to make men holy let us live to make men free my god is marching on glory glory hallelujah glory glory hallelujah glory glory hallelujah my god is marching on glory glory hallelujah glory glory hallelujah glory glory hallelujah my god is marching on that was great, everyone. Thanks a lot. Much like julio wardhouse words in the battle hymn, the starspangled banner inspires us all. We want to join in that inspiration having the starspangled banner to inspire us in something and you take a turn joining in that inspiration, as well. There are people watching us all over the country, all over the world. There are a lot of you here watching under the sound of my voice. Many of you are going to be taking lots of pictures and taking lots of video of this event and of your various watch parties. What wed like you to do is share those photos and videos with us online. While there, you can check out our interactive banner yet waves timeline. It features artists like aloe black, train, Angie Johnson and all of these artists have worked with us at the smithsonian to craft their own special version of the starspangled banner in celebration of this great occasion. Its really nice. Ive seen lots of those videos. All the instructions and information you need is on our website, anthem for america. Smithsonian. Com. Speaking of the wonderful artists in our timeline, many come from longstanding traditions in american music. Our next performer fits with that position. She is part of the historic legacy of the carter family. She has the bloodline of legends such as mother Maybelle Carter and june carter cash. After nearly a century of their first recordings, she makes sure that that circle remains unbroken. So please welcome recording artist carline carter. Thank you. Hi. This is a little song about what it was like for me growing up as a little girl and traveling around with mother maybelle and the singing carter sisters. My little story. In my grandmas house her children would sing guitars atwanging and laughter ringing i was little but i was the biggest kid i wanted to do what the grownups did in a big shiny car wed head down the road sing for the miners who brought out the coal at times slept on the floor boards cold on a quilt my little sister the wildwood rose and if i could change a thing in this world id go back to the days with grandma in her curls singing sweet and low and the wildwood rose wed be way down the road by the break of dawn biscuits and gravy and a truck stop song in a world all fine i saw what i saw in the rear view mirror id get a wink from my grandma if i could change a thing in this world id go back to the days of grandma in her curls singing sweet and low for me and the wildwood rose a lay a o a lee a o o lay dee who a lee o lay dee oh ill always remember the day that she died my daddy he called me and he started to cry i rode on an airplane with all of my pain my tears would not stop we stood in a circle and sang will the circle be unbroken by and by, by and by theres a a better on the way in the sky, lord, in the sky will the circle be broken by and by, by and by theres a a better on the way in the sky, lord, in the sky in the sky lord in the sky thank you, all. It was an honor to be here. Lets have a great flag day. Whoohoo tis a gift to be simple tis a gift to be sweet tis a gift to come down where we ought to be when we find ourselves in the place just right it will be in the valley of love and delight where true simplicity is gained to bow and to bend we shant be ashamed to turn, turn will be our divide, turning, turning we come round round tis a gift to be simple, tis a gift to come down where we ought to be where we fund ourselves in a place just right well be in the valley in love and delight when simplicity is gained ittial be achieved it shall be a delight we come round round tis the gift to be simple and the gift to be free tis the gift to come down where we ought to be and when we find ourselves in the place just right twill be in the valley of love and delight we shant be ashamed to turn, turn will be our delight till by turning, turning we come round right [ applause ] we want to thank the United States air force band and Singing Sergeants for that special arrangement of the shaker tune simple gifts featuring Master Sergeant emily wellington. Lets give them and her a hand. [ applause ] now, for those of you here in washington, if youre out on the mall, you might see, and probably have already seen, some of our many volunteers who are working together to help give people information, get them where they need to go, direct them to the opening of the museum where you can go in. And i really want to recognize them for coming forward and helping us with this the wonderful event. Can you please give them a big hand. [ applause ] the easy way to find them is they have the words raised in stylized version of the 15 star and stripes flag on their shirts. That was done for us by the martin agency. I would like to recognize them as well and their president john adams, who is also a member of the board here at the National Museum of American History. So lets give them a hand as well. [ applause ] here at the National Museum of American History, we are the stewards of americas history. And also of the star spangled banner flag, which is sometimes known as the great garrison flag. Now some of you are looking at me strange. You did hear my words correctly. These flags that are sung about in the starspangled banner is right inside of this building behind me. There are people as we speak looking at it right now in an exhibition. When were done, you all can go and to our open entrance, go inside the museum, see all the wonderful collections we have on display. But also see that star spangled banner flag, the flag talked about in our National Anthem. When Francis Scott key saw that same flag flying 200 years ago, hi he was inspired to hand write a poem in a manuscript. Believe it or not, that m manuscript is also on display inside the National Museum of American History. The original 1814 manuscript of our National Anthem. The stewards of that manuscript are the Maryland Historical society. I would like to introduce you to the president and ceo of the society. I hes a singular historian and interpreter and its large lly e to his efforts that the manuscript and the flag have been brought together for the first time in 200 years. As a matter of fact, probably closer to each other than they have ever been before. So please join me in welcoming mr. Burt kummerow. How exciting it is to be here among this Great American music, particularly the carter family. Very exciting. Good afternoon, everyone. And this wonderful, glorious day, this flag day. We at the Maryland Historical society are honored to be sharing our star spangled banner manuscript written by Francis Scott key on september 16th, 1814. Today, as these two american icons, the giant flag and tiny document are joined for the very first time, i have a short story to tell you. No one in baltimore knew what to expect when dawn broke september 14th, 1814. The night had been stormy, violent, enemy bridge ships, socalled bomb vessels named meteor, volcano, aetna, and devastation, have been lobbying 200pound exploding bombs at ft. Mchenry for 20 hours straight. Screaming rockets were lighting up the gloomy darkness. The americans were returning fire from gun batteries lying in the shore. It had been quite a show for baltimore, noisy, terrifying, and hypnotic. Every american within range, soldier, or private citizen was watching anxiously from roof and hilltop alike. The future of baltimore and perhaps the young United States republic itself were hanging in the balance. Ever since 1812 when the u. S. Declared war against the strongest nation, the fast growing port of baltimore and the Chesapeake Bay community had been prime targets. In the hot, stormy summer of 1814, nightmares come true. The u. S. Capitol and the white house went up in flames. The u. S. President fled for his life from the invading red coats, and now it was baltimores turn. City residents knew that the british would show no quarter if they entered the city. Fast baltimore clippers, privateers had been preying on enemy merchant ships throughout the entire war. The city would have been left in ruins if the invaders succeeded. Two days earlier, desperate fighting at north point killed a british general, and faced with 15,000 entrenched and determined defenders with 100 cannons, the enemy land attack had already failed. But with ft. Mchenry guarding the harbor fall under the fi