Star Spangled Women: Mary Pickersgill

Just imagine: you live in a time before electricity. No sewing machines, no lights, certainly no America’s Funniest Home Videos to keep you entertained. You spend six weeks working 12-hour days inside your small home with four teenage girls and your elderly mother. Such was the life of Mary Pickersgill, the woman who created the Star-Spangled Banner.

This image is the only known likeness of Mary Pickersgill, though it doesn’t paint an accurate picture of Mary in 1813. Visitors who see this image in the Star-Spangled Banner exhibition often envision Mary as a stern grandmother, sewing quietly in her rocking chair. No offense to the stern grandmothers of the world, but Mary was actually forty years younger when she made the Star-Spangled Banner, and was already a successful entrepreneur. Widowed at a young age, Mary took up flagmaking to support her young family. She made ships’ colors and signal flags for the military and private vessels that docked in the busy port of Baltimore. The $574 she was paid for making the Star-Spangled Banner (and a smaller storm flag) was more than most Baltimoreans of the time earned in a year.

Mary Pickersgill learned the art of flagmaking from her mother, Rebecca Young, who made a living during the Revolution sewing flags, blankets, and uniforms for George Washington’s Continental army. Rebecca lived with Mary during the time the Star-Spangled Banner was created, but since she was 73 years old at the time, we have no idea how much she was able to contribute. We do know that Mary’s daughter Caroline, her two teenage nieces Eliza and Jane, and an indentured servant named Grace Wisher did help with the onerous task of sewing the 30 × 42 foot flag. Grace was an African-American teen who had entered into a six-year indentured apprenticeship with Mary in order to learn “the art and mystery of Housework and plain sewing.”

Mary supported this household of women—young and old—through her flagmaking business and by renting rooms of her house out to boarders. In her later life, she became a prominent humanitarian in Baltimore. Mary served for twenty years as president of the Impartial Female Humane Society, which helped find education and job opportunities for poor families, and established a home for aging women that is now known as the Pickersgill Retirement Community.

I often wonder what Mary would think if she knew that the flag she so lovingly created now lays as the centerpiece of this museum. I imagine she’d be tickled that millions of people have traveled here to see it, and incredulous that her handiwork—designed to withstand a few years at the top of a flagpole—lives on to inspire people almost 200 years later.

Megan Smith is an education specialist who can’t sew in a straight line to save her life.

Comments

[James Polk]

What a remarkable feat to sew a 30x42 foot Flag by hand. Imagine the time and energy it took to cut the pieces and sew them so the finished Flag was not distorted. I am sure she never imagined the Flag would end up in a museum and be revered by such a nation as the USA became. It goes to prove each of us as citizens should do our part to make our nation a better place to live. Sadly the art of hand sewing is practiced by a very small percentage of the population today. Getting clothes hemmed is not an easy feat anymore.

[Donny]

I think it is amazing how big an impact one person in the world can make simply for doing something honorable and that they believe in. Unfortunately one evil person can also do the same thing. Thank God for people like Mary Pickersgill.

[Joey]

I totally forgot about this woman's name - even though most of us probably learned about Mary in 3rd grade history class. It is fantastic to hear,even in 2010, about this remarkable story. Mary had none of the conveniences we have today, which is why I believe she had the inspiration to create such a monumental piece of American history. This made me feel very proud. Thanks.

[David Jones]

Dear Megan,

Thank you for such an interesting post! I knew a little about Mary Pickersgill but I had no idea that the flag she sewn was 30x42 feet. I work with many people who sew, especially reenactment costumes of this period, and I can't wait to share this article with them. As so many of the people before me noted, it's a very impressive task to sew something of that size completely by hand. Very insipirational. Thank you and I will definitely share this article with my friends!

[Maurice Savariego]

Thank you for bringing up this story. I had read about Mary Pickersgill years ago, and I am pleased of being reminded now of this remarkable woman who was able to combine so perfectly creativity, nationalism and a means to make a living.

[muratasi35]

Thank you for bringing up this story. I had read about Mary Pickersgill years ago, and I am pleased of being reminded now of this remarkable woman who was able to combine so perfectly creativity, nationalism and a means to make a living.

[Johnson Peacock]

I think it is amazing how big an impact one person in the world can make simply for doing something honorable and that they believe in. Unfortunately one evil person can also do the same thing. Thank God for people like Mary Pickersgill.

[James Morgan]

I imagine she’d be tickled that millions of people have traveled here to see it, and incredulous that her handiwork—designed to withstand a few years at the top of a flagpole—lives on to inspire people almost 200 years later.

[Alma]

This is a most inspiring story. My mother was a dressmaker and passed her sewing gene on to me. During the second world war, she shortened the tails of soldiers shirts and saved the cut-off bits. They came in handy for VE day when, in England, flags and bunting were made out of khaki scraps to celebrate.

[shelly]

Very cool story! I can't imagine support my whole family with flag making.