Alt Text

Map of the Battle of Baltimore at the Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine in Maryland. The Patapsco River cuts northwest up into Maryland to Baltimore, which is in the top left corner of the map. The river and other bodies of water are represented in pale blue and the land in beige.

Extended Description

The Patapsco River extends off the Chesapeake Bay in the lower right corner of the map, and Back River runs parallel to the Patapsco River in the northeast. Coves and branches extending like fingers off the Patapsco River include Curtis Creek, Ferry Branch, and Ridgely’s Cove to the southwest and Northwest Branch, Bear Creek, and Old Road Creek to the northeast.

In the top left corner of the map, Baltimore’s grid of streets is shown in gray. Five more roads extend like spokes from the city with Washington Road and Frederick Road moving west, Reisterstown Road moving northwest, York Road traveling north, and Belair Road northeast. Just south of the city are Federal Hill to the west, Fells Point on the water at the middle, and Hampstead Hill to the east. Philadelphia Road travels east and slightly north from the city, and Trappe Road branches southward outside the city.

American movements and forces are represented in blue and the British in red. Skirmishes happened on both land and water. This description will begin with the land clashes, which took place between the Patapsco and Back rivers, and then focus on the action in the Patapsco River.

On Land

Located near the bottom right corner of this map, North Point is the southernmost tip of land between the Patapsco and Back rivers. Red text there reads, “British troops land on September 12.” A red line labeled “British line of march” snakes first up along the Old Road Creek and then the underside of the Back River. A starburst between Bear Creek and Back River is labeled “Battle of North Point, September 12, 1814.” The red line continues beyond the battle site along North Point Road almost to the top edge of the map, where another red note reads, “British halt here on September 13.”

The American line of march, represented in blue, begins behind the Rodgers Bastion, which surrounds the east side of the city like a quarter of a bubble. American troops marched east along Philadelphia Road and then turned southeast along North Point Road. The line reaches the Battle of North Point, and then it turns back as a dotted line to represent the American withdrawal to Rodgers Bastion.

On the Water

The Main British Fleet is represented with 13 thin triangles at the mouth of the Patapsco River where it meets the Chesapeake Bay. One blue triangle among these is labeled “U.S. truce ship with Francis Scott Key aboard.”

Farther up the river are 16 more red triangles in two rows labeled British Bombardment Fleet. A red line moves past the mouth of Ferry Branch and then hooks back next to a note reading, “Attempted British landing.”

Several sites are labeled in blue around the shoreline of Ridgely’s Cove and Northwest Branch off the Patapsco River. From west to east, these include Fort Covington, Fort Babcock, Fort Look-Out, and Lazaretto Battery. Fort McHenry is marked with a black star near six blue dots labeled Sunken Hulks. Four American Gunboats line up port by starboard to span the mouth of the Northwest Branch, which leads to Fells Point. Seven small fire bursts are spaced in the water in front of the sunken hulks and gunboats.