Editing The Star-Spangled Banner (section)

==History==
===Francis Scott Key's lyrics===
[[File:KeysSSB.jpg|thumb|[[Francis Scott Key]]'s original manuscript copy of his "{{Notatypo|Defence}} of Fort M'Henry" poem, now on display at the [[Maryland Historical Society]]]]
[[File:Ft. Henry bombardement 1814.jpg|thumb|An artist's rendering of the battle at [[Fort McHenry]]]]
[[File:Star Spangled Banner Flag on display at the Smithsonian's National Museum of History and Technology, around 1964.jpg|thumb|The 15-star, 15-stripe "[[Star-Spangled Banner (flag)|Star-Spangled Banner]]" that inspired the poem]]
On August 28, 1814, William Beanes, a physician who resided in [[Upper Marlboro, Maryland]], was arrested by [[British Empire|British]] forces in his home after the [[Burning of Washington]] and the [[Raid on Alexandria (Virginia)|Raid on Alexandria]]. A friend of Key's, Beanes was accused of aiding the detention of several [[British Army]] stragglers who were ransacking local homesteads in search of food.<ref name="Vaise (video)">Vaise, Vince (Chief Park Ranger, Fort McHenry). [https://www.c-span.org/video/?321206-1/discussion-fort-mchenry-birth-star-spangled-banner&fbclid=IwAR21Hel99h2QxGIXDupCHEFudhxa19uQew-NhLc0xSURoUS7DKxXpNTsbk4 "Birth of the Star Spangled Banner"], video tour from Fort McHenry. American History TV: American Artifacts, C-SPAN, August 2014</ref>

On September 2, 1814, Key wrote a letter from his home in [[Georgetown (Washington, D.C.)|Georgetown]] to his mother, ending with:

<blockquote>I am going in the morning to [[Baltimore]] to proceed in a flag-vessel to Genl Ross. Old Dr Beanes of Marlbro' is taken prisoner by the Enemy, who threaten to carry him off – Some of his friends have urged me to apply for a flag & go & try to procure his release. I hope to return in about 8 or 10 days, though [it] is uncertain, as I do not know where to find the fleet. – As soon as I get back I hope I shall be able to set out for Fred[ericksburg] – ...<ref name=":0">Delaplaine, Edward S. ''Francis Scott Key: Life and Times'' (1937) Reprinted by American Foundation Publications, Stuarts Draft, Virginia. 1998 (p. 154)</ref></blockquote>

Under sanction from President [[James Madison|Madison]], on September 3, Key traveled {{Convert|40|mi}} by land from [[Washington, D.C.]] to [[Baltimore]], where he arrived on the morning of September 4. He located Col. John Stuart Skinner, an American agent for prisoners of war, who leased a {{Convert|60|ft|4=1|adj=on}} sloop-rigged packet ship belonging to John and Benjamin Ferguson, brothers who owned a cargo and passenger service between Baltimore and Norfolk. The ship had a nine-man crew and was captained by a co-owner, John Ferguson. They sailed from Baltimore the next day (September 5) out through the [[Patapsco River]] and then south, down the [[Chesapeake Bay]]. As recorded in the British ships' logs, on September 6, they had rendezvoused with [[HMS Royal Oak (1809)|HMS ''Royal Oak'']] and several British [[troopship]]s near the mouth of the [[Patuxent River|Patuxant]]. There they learned Beanes was aboard [[HMS Tonnant|HMS ''Tonnant'']] further down in the Bay. Rear Admiral [[Pulteney Malcolm]] assigned the frigate ''Hebrus'' to escort the American sloop to Tangier Island, where he thought ''Tonnant'' was located.

On September 7, around noon, they spotted ''Tonnant'' near the mouth of the [[Potomac River|Potomac]]. The flagship then anchored and brought Key and Skinner aboard.<ref name="Skinner">Skinner, John Stuart. "Incidents of the War of 1812", ''The Baltimore Patriot'', May 23, 1849. Reprinted: ''Maryland Historical Magazine'', Baltimore. Vol. 32, 1937. (pp. [https://archive.org/details/marylandhistoric3219mary/page/340/mode/2up 340–347])</ref><ref name="Vogel TTPF">Vogel, Steve. ''Through the Perilous Fight: Six Weeks That Saved the Nation'', Random House, New York. 2013.</ref>

It was aboard ''Tonnant'', after dinner, that Skinner and Key secured the release of Beanes after conversing with Major-General [[Robert Ross (British Army officer)|Robert Ross]] and Vice-Admiral [[Alexander Cochrane]]. Ross initially refused to release Beanes, but relented after reading letters, brought by Key, written by wounded British prisoners of war praising American doctors for their kind treatment. Because Key and Skinner had overheard details of the plans for the attack on Baltimore, they were prevented from going ashore until after the battle, several days later.

From ''Tonnant'', Key, Skinner, and Beanes were transferred to the frigate HMS ''Surprise'' on the morning of September 8. The fleet then slowly moved up the Chesapeake toward Baltimore. The truce vessel was in tow with ''Surprise''. On September 11, off the North Point peninsula, Colonel Skinner insisted that they be transferred back to their own truce vessel, which they were allowed to do, under guard. It was still tethered to ''Surprise''. Admiral Cochrane then transferred his flag to the shallow-draft ''Surprise'' so he could move in with the bombardment squadron. Having advanced into the Patapsco River, the 16-ship attack force began to fire on Fort McHenry at sunrise on September 13; the bombardment would last 25 hours.<ref name="Skinner" /><ref name="Taney letter">Hickey, Donald (ed.) ''The War of 1812: Writings from America's Second War of Independence'' (The Library of America, 2013), pp. [https://loa-shared.s3.amazonaws.com/static/pdf/Key_Taney.pdf 547–555] (Letter from Roger B. Taney to Charles Howard – 1856)</ref><ref name="Armistead report">Armistead, Lieutenant Colonel George (Commander of Fort McHenry). [https://amhistory.si.edu/starspangledbanner/pdf/TRANSCRIPT%20Official%20Account%20of%20the%20Bombardment%20of%20Fort%20McHenry.pdf "Official Report to Secretary of War James Monroe"], 24 September 2014</ref>

During the rainy day and through the night, Key had witnessed the bombardment and observed that the fort's smaller "storm flag" ({{Convert|17 by 25|ft}}) continued to fly, but once the bomb and [[Congreve rocket]]<ref>[http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/hh/5/hh5l.htm British Rockets] at the US National Park Service, Fort McHenry National Monument, and Historic Shrine. Retrieved February 2008. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140403151259/http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/hh/5/hh5l.htm |date=April 3, 2014 }}</ref> barrage had stopped, he would not know how the battle had turned out until dawn. On the morning of September 14, the storm flag had been lowered and the large garrison flag ({{Convert|30 by 42|ft}}) had been raised.<ref name="Vogel TTPF" /><ref name="Vaise (video)" />

During the bombardment, [[HMS Erebus (1807)|HMS ''Erebus'']] provided the "rockets' red glare", while the heavy-mortar bomb ships [[HMS Terror (1813)|HMS ''Terror'']], [[HMS Volcano (1804)|''Volcano'']], [[HMS Devastation (1804)|''Devastation'']], [[HMS Starr (1805)|''Meteor'']] and [[HMS Aetna (1803)|''Aetna'']] provided the "bombs bursting in air".<ref>Sheads, Scott S. ''The Rockets' Red Glare: The Maritime Defense of Baltimore in 1814'', Tidewater Publishers, Centerville, Maryland. 1986 (p. 127)</ref> Around 1,500 to 1,800 bomb shells and over 700 rockets were fired at the fort but with minimal casualties and damage being done. Four men died and 24 were wounded in the fort. The ships were forced to fire from their maximum range (with minimal accuracy) to stay out of range of the fort's formidable cannon fire.<ref name="Armistead report" /><ref name="Vogel TTPF" />

Key was inspired by the U.S. victory and the sight of the large [[Flag of the United States|U.S. flag]] flying triumphantly above the fort. This flag (as well as the storm flag), with 15 stars and 15 stripes, had been made by [[Mary Young Pickersgill]] together with other workers in her home on Baltimore's Pratt Street.<ref>Johnston, Sally and Pilling, Pat. ''Mary Young Pickersgill: Flag Maker of the Star-Spangled Banner'', AuthorHouse, Bloomington, Indiana. 2014 (pp. 22–35)</ref> The flag later came to be known as the [[Star-Spangled Banner (flag)|Star-Spangled Banner]], and is today on display in the [[National Museum of American History]], a treasure of the [[Smithsonian Institution]]. It was restored in 1914 by [[Amelia Fowler]], and again in 1998 as part of an ongoing conservation program.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-story-behind-the-star-spangled-banner-149220970/ | title=The Story Behind the Star Spangled Banner }}</ref>

Aboard the ship that morning, Key began writing his lyrics on the back of a letter he had kept in his pocket. Late afternoon on September 16, Key, Skinner and Beanes were released from the fleet and they arrived in Baltimore that evening. He completed the poem at the [[John Gadsby (tavern keeper)|Indian Queen Hotel]], where he was staying. His finished manuscript was untitled and unsigned. When printed as a broadside, the next day, it was given the title "{{Notatypo|Defence}} of Fort M'Henry". It was first published nationally in ''[[Analectic Magazine|The Analectic Magazine]]''.<ref>{{Cite web| title = John Wiley & Sons: 200 Years of Publishing – Birth of the New American Literature: 1807–1826| access-date = April 27, 2018| url = https://www.wiley.com/legacy/about/grolierexhibit/theme02.html}}</ref><ref name="Defence of Fort M'Henry">{{Cite journal| volume = 4| pages = 433–434| title = {{Notatypo|Defence}} of Fort M'Henry| journal = The Analectic Magazine | date = November 1814| hdl = 2027/umn.31951000925404p}}</ref>

Much of the idea of the poem, including the flag imagery and some of the wording, is derived from an earlier song by Key, also set to the tune of "[[The Anacreontic Song]]". The song, known as "When the Warrior Returns",<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.potw.org/archive/potw340.html |title=When the Warrior Returns – Key |website=Potw.org |access-date=April 18, 2017}}</ref> was written in honor of [[Stephen Decatur]] and [[Charles Stewart (1778–1869)|Charles Stewart]] on their return from the [[First Barbary War]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Vile |first1=John R. |title=America's National Anthem: "The Star-Spangled Banner" in U.S. History, Culture, and Law |date=2021 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=978-1-4408-7319-5 |page=277 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vQsVEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA277 |language=en |quote=Key composed a poem for an event honoring Stephen Decatur and Charles Stewart, two heroes of the war in Tripoli}}</ref>

{{Anchor|slave}}
Since the 1990s, the anthem has become controversial due to perceived [[Racism in the United States|racism]] in the anthem's lyrics and Key's active support of [[Slavery in the United States|slavery]]. The anthem's third stanza uses the phrase "the hireling and slave", which had been interpreted by several commentators to refer to American slaves who escaped to the [[British Armed Forces|British military]] during the war, as Britain offered them freedom and the opportunity to join the [[Corps of Colonial Marines]] to fight against U.S. forces. Key was also a slaveholder throughout much of his life. According to ''[[The Nation]]'', Key's "message to the blacks fighting for freedom was unmistakable—we will hunt you down and the search will leave you in terror because, when we find you, your next stop is the gloom of the grave".<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/video-do-you-know-the-star-spangled-banners-third-verse/|title=Video: Do You Know the Star-Spangled Banner's 3rd Verse?|first=Jeffery|last=Robinson|date=July 4, 2018|via=www.thenation.com}}</ref> The reference to slaves, which was perceived as being [[Racism against African Americans|racist towards Black Americans]], purportedly prevented the song being adopted as the U.S. national anthem for almost a century.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Brockell |first1=Gillian |title=The ugly reason 'The Star-Spangled Banner' didn't become our national anthem for a century |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2020/10/18/star-spangled-banner-racist-national-anthem/ |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |access-date=4 May 2024 |date=18 October 2020}}</ref>

Conversely, [[University of Michigan]] professor Mark Clague and Key's biographer has claimed that the poem celebrates the courage of the American soldiers, both black and white, who helped defend the fortress and the city. The controversial phrase, "the hireling and the slave", according to Clague, actually refers to [[British armed forces]] personnel and their American collaborators regardless of race, who are promised either death on the battlefield or, [[Expulsion of the Loyalists|similarly]] to [[United Empire Loyalists]] after the [[American Revolution]], permanent exile once the [[British Empire]] is defeated.<ref name="Clague">{{cite news|author=Mark Clague |url=http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/31/opinions/star-spangled-banner-criticisms-opinion-clague/index.html |title='Star-Spangled Banner' critics miss the point |website=CNN.com |date=August 31, 2016 |access-date=April 18, 2017}}</ref> This interpretation is consistent with what [[Celticist]] Michael Newton has written about how, during the [[American Revolution]], "slavery" and "oppression" were routinely used as [[Patriot (American Revolution)|Patriot]] code words for continued "British rule" over the [[United States]].<ref>Michael Newton (2001), ''We're Indians Sure Enough: The Legacy of the Scottish Highlanders in the United States'', Saorsa Media. Page 118.</ref>

Also according to Clague, Francis Scott Key freed four of the seven slaves he inherited and was involved in his later years with the [[American Colonization Society]]'s practice of buying slaves and setting them free in what is now [[Liberia]]. Key's poem, according to Clague, "in no way glorifies or celebrates [[Slavery in the United States|slavery]]."<ref name="Clague"/> However, Clague's interpretation of the song has been criticised for going against mainstream academic historical consensus, as the majority of recent scholars who have written about slavery during the War of 1812, such as [[Gene A. Smith]], [[Marc Leepson]] and [[David Roediger]] have alleged that Key was referencing only American runaway slaves rather than late stage American Loyalists in the passage.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://theintercept.com/2016/08/28/colin-kaepernick-is-righter-than-you-know-the-national-anthem-is-a-celebration-of-slavery |title=Colin Kaepernick Is Righter Than You Know: The National Anthem Is a Celebration of Slavery |website=Theintercept.com |date=August 28, 2016 |access-date=April 18, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/03/arts/music/colin-kaepernick-national-anthem.html?_r=0|title=Is the National Anthem Racist? Beyond the Debate Over Colin Kaepernick|date=September 3, 2016|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|access-date=April 18, 2017|url-status=bot: unknown|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170710220702/https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/03/arts/music/colin-kaepernick-national-anthem.html?_r=0|archive-date=July 10, 2017}}</ref> In 2016, ''[[The New Yorker]]'' argued that "[is] The Star-Spangled Banner" racist? The short answer is yes, insofar as almost every older piece of American iconography cannot be rid of the stain of slavery."<ref>{{cite magazine | url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/colin-kaepernick-and-the-radical-uses-of-the-star-spangled-banner#:~:text=On%20Friday%20night%2C%20the%20San,an%20interview%20with%20NFL%20Media | title=Colin Kaepernick and the Radical Uses of "The Star-Spangled Banner" | magazine=The New Yorker | date=August 29, 2016 | last1=Robin | first1=William }}</ref>

===John Stafford Smith's music===
[[File:JohnStaffordSmith01.jpg|thumb|A memorial to [[John Stafford Smith]] in [[Gloucester Cathedral]] in [[Gloucester]], England]]
Key gave the poem to his brother-in-law Joseph H. Nicholson who saw<!-- disputed https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k24n5JVaFFY --> that the words fit the popular melody "[[The Anacreontic Song]]", by English composer [[John Stafford Smith]]. This was the official song of the [[Anacreontic Society]], an 18th-century gentlemen's club of amateur musicians in London. Nicholson took the poem to a printer in Baltimore, who anonymously made the first known [[broadside (music)|broadside]] printing on September 17; of these, two known copies survive.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Star_Spangled_Banner_(Carr)_(1814).png|title=File:Star Spangled Banner (Carr) (1814).png|date=November 1814 }}</ref>

On September 20, both the ''Baltimore Patriot'' and ''The American'' printed the song, with the note "Tune: Anacreon in Heaven". The song quickly became popular; it was ultimately printed in 17 newspapers from Georgia to New Hampshire. Soon after, Thomas Carr of the Carr Music Store in Baltimore published the words and music together under the title "The Star Spangled Banner", although it was originally called "Defence of Fort M'Henry". Thomas Carr's arrangement introduced the raised fourth which became the standard deviation from "The Anacreontic Song".<ref>Clague, Mark, and Jamie Vander Broek. "[https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/handle/2027.42/120293/star_spangled_banner_14.pdf Banner moments: the national anthem in American life]". University of Michigan, 2014. 4.</ref> The song's popularity increased and its first public performance took place in October when Baltimore actor [[Ferdinand Durang]] sang it at Captain McCauley's [[tavern]]. [[Washington Irving]], then editor of the ''[[Analectic Magazine]]'' in Philadelphia, reprinted the song in November 1814.{{citation needed|date=March 2021}}

By the early 20th century, there were various versions of the song in popular use. Seeking a singular, standard version, President [[Woodrow Wilson]] tasked the [[U.S. Bureau of Education]] with providing that official version. In response, the Bureau enlisted the help of five musicians to agree upon an arrangement. Those musicians were [[Walter Damrosch]], [[Will Earhart]], Arnold J. Gantvoort, [[Oscar Sonneck]] and [[John Philip Sousa]]. The standardized version that was voted upon by these five musicians premiered at [[Carnegie Hall]] on December 5, 1917, in a program that included [[Edward Elgar]]'s ''Carillon'' and [[Gabriel Pierné]]'s ''The Children's Crusade''. The concert was put on by the [[Oratorio Society of New York]] and conducted by [[Walter Damrosch]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oratoriosocietyofny.org/FeaturesArchive/StarSpangledBanner.html |title=Oratorio Society of New York – Star Spangled Banner |website=Oratoriosocietyofny.org |access-date=April 18, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160821104152/http://www.oratoriosocietyofny.org/FeaturesArchive/StarSpangledBanner.html |archive-date=August 21, 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref> An official handwritten version of the final votes of these five men has been found and shows all five men's votes tallied, measure by measure.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/roadshow/archive/201101T20.html |title=Standardization Manuscript for "The Star Spangled Banner" &#124; Antiques Roadshow |publisher=[[PBS]] |access-date=April 18, 2017 |archive-date=March 5, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305152919/http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/roadshow/archive/201101T20.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===National anthem===
[[File:Star-Spangled Banner plaque.JPG|thumb|A [[commemorative plaque]] in [[Washington, D.C.]], marking the site at 601 [[Pennsylvania Avenue (Washington, D.C.)|Pennsylvania Avenue]] where "The Star-Spangled Banner" was first publicly sung]]
[[File:Defence of Fort M'Henry broadside.jpg|thumb|One of two surviving copies of the 1814 broadside printing of the "Defence of Fort M'Henry", a poem that later became the lyrics of "The Star-Spangled Banner", the national anthem of the United States]]
The song gained popularity throughout the 19th century, and bands played it during public events such as [[Independence Day (United States)|Independence Day]] celebrations.

A plaque displayed at [[Fort Meade (South Dakota)|Fort Meade]], [[South Dakota]], claims that the idea of making "The Star Spangled Banner" the national anthem began on their parade ground in 1892. Colonel Caleb Carlton, post commander, established the tradition that the song be played "at retreat and at the close of parades and concerts." Carlton explained the custom to Governor Sheldon of South Dakota who "promised me that he would try to have the custom established among the state militia." Carlton wrote that after a similar discussion, [[United States Secretary of War|Secretary of War]] [[Daniel S. Lamont]] issued an order that it "be played at every Army post every evening at retreat."<ref>Plaque, Fort Meade, erected 1976 by the Fort Meade V.A. Hospital and the South Dakota State Historical Society</ref>

In 1889, the [[United States Navy|U.S. Navy]] officially adopted "The Star-Spangled Banner".<ref name="gdn">{{cite news|last1=Cavanaugh|first1=Ray|title=The Star-Spangled Banner: an American anthem with a very British beginning|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/jul/04/star-spangled-banner-national-anthem-british-origins|access-date=September 27, 2017|work=The Guardian|date=July 4, 2016}}</ref> In 1916, President [[Woodrow Wilson]] ordered that "The Star-Spangled Banner" be played at military<ref name="gdn"/> and other appropriate occasions. The playing of the song two years later during the [[seventh-inning stretch]] of Game One of the [[1918 World Series]], and thereafter during each game of the series is often cited as the first instance that the anthem was played at a [[Professional baseball|baseball]] game,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://baseballisms.com/cubs-vs-red-sox-1918-world-series-a-tradition-is-born.html |title=Cubs vs Red Sox 1918 World Series: A Tradition is Born |website=Baseballisms.com |date=May 21, 2011 |access-date=April 18, 2017}}</ref> though evidence shows that the "Star-Spangled Banner" was performed as early as 1897 at [[Opening Day]] ceremonies in [[Philadelphia]] and then more regularly at the [[Polo Grounds]] in [[New York City]] beginning in 1898. The tradition of performing the national anthem before every baseball game began in [[World War II]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/multimedia/photo_gallery/0711/music.traditions.sports/content.3.html |title=Musical Traditions in Sports: National Anthems |access-date=February 3, 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222060554/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/multimedia/photo_gallery/0711/music.traditions.sports/content.3.html |archive-date=February 22, 2014 }}</ref>

Between 1918 and 1929, [[John Charles Linthicum]], the [[Member of Congress|U.S. congressman]] from [[Maryland]] at the time, introduced a series of six unsuccessful bills to officially recognize "The Star-Spangled Banner" as the national anthem.<ref name= linthicum>"[https://www.proquest.com/docview/539402147/ National Anthem Hearing Is Set For January 31]". ''The Baltimore Sun''. January 23, 1930. p. 4.</ref>

In 1927, with the thought that "The Star-Spangled Banner" was unsuited for a national anthem, the [[National Federation of Music Clubs]] sponsored a composition contest to nominate a national anthem. They selected the text of ''[[America the Beautiful|America The Beautiful]]''; 901 compositions were submitted for the $1,500 prize ({{Inflation|US|1500|1927|fmt=eq}}). [[Frank Damrosch]], [[Frederick Converse]], [[Felix Borowski]], and [[Peter C. Lutkin|Peter Lutkin]] judged the compositions but nominated no winner.<ref>{{Cite magazine |date=1927-05-02 |title=Music: Russian Rebuke |language=en-US |magazine=Time |url=https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,751675,00.html |access-date=2023-04-15 |issn=0040-781X}}</ref>

On November 3, 1929, [[Robert Ripley]] drew a panel in his syndicated cartoon, ''[[Ripley's Believe it or Not!]]'', saying "Believe It or Not, America has no national anthem".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ripleysnewsroom.com/anthem/ |title=Company News – Ripley Entertainment Inc |website=Ripleysnewsroom.com |access-date=April 18, 2017}}</ref>

In 1930, [[Veterans of Foreign Wars]] started a petition for the United States to officially recognize "The Star-Spangled Banner" as the national anthem.<ref name= vfw>"[https://www.proquest.com/docview/99050173/ 5,000,000 Sign for Anthem: Fifty-Mile Petition Supports "The Star-Spangled Banner" Bill]". ''[[The New York Times]]''. January 19, 1930. p. 31.</ref> Five million people signed the petition.<ref name= vfw/> The petition was presented to the [[United States House Committee on the Judiciary]] on January 31, 1930.<ref>"[https://www.proquest.com/docview/150159183/ 5,000,000 Plea For U.S. Anthem: Giant Petition to Be Given Judiciary Committee of Senate Today]". ''[[The Washington Post]]''. January 31, 1930. p. 2.</ref> On the same day, Elsie Jorss-Reilley and Grace Evelyn Boudlin sang the song to the committee to refute the perception that it was too high pitched for a typical person to sing.<ref>"[https://www.proquest.com/docview/99097518/ Committee Hears Star-Spangled Banner Sung: Studies Bill to Make It the National Anthem]". ''The New York Times''. February 1, 1930. p. 1.</ref> The committee voted in favor of sending the bill to the House floor for a vote.<ref>"[https://www.proquest.com/docview/99004508/ 'Star-Spangled Banner' Favored As Anthem in Report to House]". ''[[The New York Times]]''. February 5, 1930. p. 3.</ref> The [[United States House of Representatives|House of Representatives]] passed the bill later that year.<ref name= voted/> The [[United States Senate|Senate]] passed the bill on March 3, 1931.<ref name= voted>"[https://www.proquest.com/docview/99446706/ 'Star Spangled Banner' Is Voted National Anthem by Congress]". ''[[The New York Times]]''. March 4, 1931. p. 1.</ref> [[President of the United States of America|President]] [[Herbert Hoover]] signed the bill on March 4, 1931, officially adopting "The Star-Spangled Banner" as the national anthem of the United States of America.<ref name= adopted>"[https://www.proquest.com/docview/150173140/ "Star-Spangled Banner" Is Now Official Anthem]". ''[[The Washington Post]]''. March 5, 1931. p. 3.</ref> As currently codified, the [[United States Code]] states that "[t]he composition consisting of the words and music known as the Star-Spangled Banner is the national anthem."<ref>{{UnitedStatesCode|36|301}}.</ref> Although all four stanzas of the poem officially compose the National Anthem, only the first stanza is generally sung, the other three being much less well known.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Akins |first=Ravyn |date=2018-01-28 |title=Why we sing one verse of the national anthem |url=https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/local/article/Why-we-sing-one-verse-of-the-national-anthem-12527008.php |access-date=2023-03-30 |website=StamfordAdvocate |language=en-US |archive-date=March 30, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230330230142/https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/local/article/Why-we-sing-one-verse-of-the-national-anthem-12527008.php |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Before 1931, other songs served as the hymns of U.S. officialdom. "[[Hail, Columbia]]" served this purpose at official functions for most of the 19th century. "[[My Country, 'Tis of Thee]]", whose melody is identical to "[[God Save the King]]", the United Kingdom's national anthem,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/ihas/loc.natlib.ihas.200000012/default.html
   |title=My country 'tis of thee [Song Collection]
   |publisher=The Library of Congress
   |access-date=January 20, 2009
}}</ref> also served as a ''[[de facto]]'' national anthem.<ref>{{cite book |last=Snyder |first=Lois Leo |author-link=Louis Leo Snyder |title=Encyclopedia of Nationalism |publisher=Paragon House |year=1990 |page=[https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofna00snyd/page/13 13] |isbn=1-55778-167-2 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofna00snyd/page/13 }}</ref> Following the War of 1812 and subsequent U.S. wars, other songs emerged to compete for popularity at public events, among them "[[America the Beautiful]]", which itself was being considered before 1931 as a candidate to become the national anthem of the United States.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.thoughtco.com/america-the-beautiful-p2-2456277 |title=Who Wrote "America the Beautiful"? The History of America's Unofficial National Anthem |last=Estrella |first=Espie |date=September 2, 2018 |website=thoughtco.com |publisher=ThoughtCo |access-date=November 14, 2018 |quote=Many consider "America the Beautiful" to be the unofficial national anthem of the United States. In fact, it was one of the songs being considered as a U.S. national anthem before "Star Spangled Banner" was officially chosen. |archive-date=November 14, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181114224212/https://www.thoughtco.com/america-the-beautiful-p2-2456277 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In the fourth verse, Key's 1814 published version of the poem is written as, "And this be our motto-"In God is our trust!""<ref name="Defence of Fort M'Henry"/> In 1956 when '[[In God We Trust]]' was under consideration to be adopted as the national motto of the United States by the US Congress, the words of the fourth verse of ''The Star Spangled Banner'' were brought up in arguments supporting adoption of the motto.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Adopting In God We Trust as the U.S. National Motto|vauthors=Fisher, Louis, (([[Nada Mourtada-Sabbah|Mourtada-Sabbah, Nada]]))|journal=[[Journal of Church and State]]|volume=44|date=2002|issue=4|pages=682–83|doi=10.1093/jcs/44.4.671|url=https://heinonline.org/HOL/Page?handle=hein.journals/jchs44&id=685&collection=journals&index=|via=[[HeinOnline]]|url-access=subscription | issn=0021-969X }} (Referencing H. Rept. No. 1959, 84th Cong., 2d Sess. (1956) and S. Rept. No. 2703, 84th Cong., 2d Sess. (1956), 2.)</ref>