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National
Park Service Trail Study by the Northeast
Region
Sandy Walter, Acting Regional
Director
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Proposed Star Spangled Banner Trail
Through Maryland and Washington, D.C. Studied by the National Park
Service
The National Park Service, with the assistance of LDR
International, Inc., an HNTB Company, of Columbia, Maryland, is
studying the 1814 British Invasion of Maryland and Washington DC,
and the American defense during the War of 1812.
Along with the other national historic trails that have been
designated throughout the United States, the Star Spangled Banner
Trail is being considered because it reflects significant events in
American History, including the first time the nation’s capital was
attacked by a foreign power. The trail designation provides
opportunities for resource protection, active and passive
interpretation, and public enjoyment.
Final Study Report and EIS are Now
Available
Star
Spangled Banner National Historic Trail Feasibility Study and
Environmental Impact Statement (4.6 in PDF Format)
The Study Process
This historic route is being considered for designation as a
national historic trail and must meet certain legislative
requirements to become an official trail in the National Trails
System. Over the next year, the project team will assess trail
alternatives and submit a Determination of Significance Statement to
NPS. When trail route alternatives are developed, purpose and
significance statements will be used to evaluate each alternative.
Under the Historic Sites Act of 1935 and Public Law 106-135, the
National Park Service Advisory Board will determine if the Star
Spangled Banner Trail is nationally significant. If significance is
determined, feasibility and management options, including federal
management, will be considered. If the trail is determined not to be
nationally significant, state and local management options will be
considered.
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What is a National Historic
Trail?
A national historic trail is an extended trail that follows
routes of travel that are historically and nationally significant.
The trail must be significant with respect to any of several broad
facets of American History, such as trade and commerce, exploration,
migration and settlement, or military campaigns, and must have
significant potential for public recreational use or historical
interest based on historical interpretation and appreciation. The
trail need not be continuous and might include land and water
segments, marked highways paralleling the route, and sites that
together form a chain or network along the route.
The purpose and significance of each trail is determined to
examine the unique characteristics of the trail. Purpose and
significance statements help ensure that management, resource
protection, visitor use, and trail development is in accordance with
the NPS mandates: to protect and preserve resources and to provide
for the enjoyment of those resources by people.
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Purpose
The designation of this route as a national historic trail will
serve as a means to encourage preservation of the trail's history
and physical remains. The trail will:
- Allow all of its visitors to envision and experience, in a
coherent and interpretable way, the heritage and struggles that
ensued during the War of 1812.
- Serve as a reminder of the importance of the concept of
liberty to all who experience the Star Spangled Banner National
Historic Trail.
- Give recognition to the patriots whose determination to stand
firm against enemy invasion and bombardment preserved this liberty
for future generations of Americans.
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Route of Major Events
The proposed trail traces the following major events:
- The arrival of the British fleet on the Patuxent River
- The landing of the British forces in Benedict
- The sinking of the Chesapeake Flotilla at Pig Point in Prince
George's County and Anne Arundel County, Maryland
- The American defeat at the Battle of Bladensburg
- The siege of the Nation's Capital and the burning of the US
Capitol and the White House in Washington D.C.
- The route of the American troops from Washington through
Georgetown, the Maryland Counties of Montgomery, Howard, and
Baltimore, and the City of Baltimore to the Battle of North Point
- The ultimate victory of the Americans at Fort McHenry on
September 14, 1814
Map of Project Area
Download
map of study area (348 Kb in PDF format)

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Contact Information
For more information about the Star Spangled Banner Trail project,
please contact Gay Vietzke at
gay_vietzke@nps.gov
or call 410-962-4290
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