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Defenders Day 2007
Unless you are a Marylander, you are likely not to have heard of Defenders Day. The holiday is celebrated primarily in the City of Baltimore and the nearby unincorporated town of Dundalk. It commemorates two victories in the second war of independence, waged in 1812: one at North Point, the other at Fort McHenry. The latter, you may recall, is the battle that inspired Francis Scott Key to write the poem that, 119 years later, was finally proclaimed as our National Anthem.
The Battle of Baltimore occurred on September 12, but the celebration, at least during my lifetime, has always been rounded off to the nearest weekend. And with good reason, because a lot goes into it. This is one of the few US holidays that does not occasion sale events at the car dealerships and department stores. It is as close to a purely patriotic event as remains possible to observe in the USA.
The North Point commemoration occurred last weekend (over the Labor Day holiday), and I can't say much about it, as I was not there. Shame on me, because Dundalk is my home town, and I grew up with the names of Wells and McComas in my ears as heroes, just as I learned the names Bessemer and McShane as part of the legacy of the town.
I was, however, at Fort McHenry, for the first time in 46 years. My last Defenders Day there was September 14, 1960, and therein is a story that should be told; but at some other time. For the moment, my mind is on last Saturday evening.
Re-enactors from as far away as Texas had arrived at McHenry some time Friday, and were encamped in their tents just inside the gate of the fort. The community band in which I play (trumpet) had been invited to give a concert. So far as I know, the 1960 celebration was the last time a "civilian" band had performed there on the holiday. We'd put together a 90-minute concert of patriotic tunes and other stem-winders, including three Sousa marches, a George M. Cohan medley, and no less than three march tunes dedicated to the Fort itself. The emcee for the event was the redoubtable Alan Walden, a semi-retired radio broadcaster, and one of the last of that breed who would pride themselves in their marvelous voice quality and precise delivery. Alan announces all the events at the Fort, and is both a gentleman and a patriot.
You had to have been there to appreciate it.
We had a "VIP" parking pass, which meant I could drive in and park right behind the stage, which is just next to one of the old cannon emplacements outside the fort itself. About 100 feet behind where we parked was the harbor.
Zambelli had set up its big fireworks barge in the middle of the harbor.