Evolution of Fort McHenry

After the Battle of Baltimore in 1814, Fort McHenry continued as a military post for more than a hundred years. The U.S. Army constructed buildings outside the star fort and modified existing structures to serve the needs of the time. During the Civil War, the lawn in front of the fort was the site of a detention center for Confederate prisoners-of-war. In the next century, as World War I came to an end, the fort property was transformed into a huge hospital complex to care for soldiers returning from duty overseas. Fort McHenry became a National Park in 1925 and in 1939 became a National Monument and Historic Shrine. Today the National Park Service preserves and interprets the historic structures that remain.

Baltimore, Maryland · United States