Parts of Original US Flag on Display

BALTIMORE – The original Star-Spangled Banner survived the British shelling of Baltimore in 1814, and the image of the flag flying over Fort McHenry inspired the poem later used as the national anthem.

But less than a century after the fort's commander took the flag home, it was about 10 feet shorter and missing one of its 15 stars.

For decades, the family of Maj. George Armistead bestowed flag snippings upon officials and esteemed acquaintances, in a practice once considered an honored tradition.