continued… After the film, we pursued the small exhibit area in the visitor’s center. They had a timeline of events that occurred between 1777 and 2014. Many of the events they chose to highlight were tied to the American flag in some way, such as a few times there were changes to the number of stars, and when laws banning defamation of the flag were passed and then repealed by the Supreme Court. But many of the events highlighted were odd choices, such as the US winning the 1980 winter olympics.

There was an exhibit on The War of 1812 that probably took up half of the display area. We found out that near the start of the war, the Americans had executed a three-pronged attack on Canada, where they won some battles, but lost battles in the most strategic locations. The British attacked the US east coast to draw the US forces out of Canada. In 1814, the British won the war they’d been fighting against France, freeing up more troops to focus on the war in America. They created a naval blockade along the entire coast, damaging America’s commerce and keeping American warships contained. While reading the signs, we remembered that Moses Myers had gone bankrupt as a result of the economic hardship from this blockade.

In 1814, the British were especially aggressive in the Chesapeake, destroying ships filled with valuable cargo, destroying supplies, looting and destroying properties, and waging bloody battles. The British were also offering freedom to slaves who ran away and joined the British troops. The sign in the visitor’s center said about 2,600 slaves took the offer. A different sign at another part of the museum said that 200 slaves joined the British military and 4,000 slaves had run to the British to be resettled, so we’re not sure which set of signs was correct.

Much to the Americans shock, the British burned Washington DC. American leaders hadn’t thought the British would bother with DC, so it was poorly protected. The president and other government officials barely escaped, but they did manage to take some valuable documents with them, such as the Declaration of Independence.