Washington, D.C., District of Columbia story
A Legacy in Limestone
At the Francis Scott Key Memorial, the architecture is designed to feel like a sanctuary. The centerpiece is a brownstone brick plaza featuring a limestone pergola, which is often…
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At the Francis Scott Key Memorial, the architecture is designed to feel like a sanctuary. The centerpiece is a brownstone brick plaza featuring a limestone pergola, which is often draped in wisteria. This spot marks where Key and his family lived from 1805 to 1830.
It's a quiet, stony corner of Georgetown that contrasts with the bustle of the nearby Whitehurst Freeway. The memorial also displays a replica of the fifteen-star, fifteen-stripe flag that flew over Fort McHenry in 1814. It's a place where the permanence of stone meets the fleeting emotion of a poem that became a national anthem.
Updated June 2026