>Baltimore’s Key Bridge is one of two in the D.C. metro area named after Francis Scott Key, the author of “The Star-Spangled Banner.”
What is the historical significance of the bridge?
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According to the MDTA, Key is believed to have witnessed British ships bombarding Fort McHenry near what became the site of the bridge in September 1814, during the Battle of Baltimore.
That event inspired him to write the lyrics of the poem “Defense of Fort McHenry,” which was later renamed “The Star-Spangled Banner,” according to the Maryland Center for History and Culture.
The poem officially became the national anthem in 1931.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/2024/03/26/francis-scott-key-bridge-history-baltimore/