Our Visit to Fort McHenry

In June of 2025, we traveled to Baltimore, Maryland, and one of the locations we stopped at was the historical Fort McHenry. The location that was under bombardment by the British during the battle of 1812 and inspired Francis Scott Key to write the Star-Spangled Banner.

Our plan was to drive from our hotel to the historic fort on our way out of Baltimore, a city rich in maritime history and culture. We had carefully mapped out our route and were excited to explore this significant landmark. Although we had two GPS systems operating in the car, which we thought would provide us with all the necessary guidance, we still missed our exit that would lead us directly to the fort. This small oversight resulted in a bit of an adventure as we had to drive through the tunnel, a notable feature of Baltimore's infrastructure, turn around, and then come back through the tunnel to finally exit at the fort.

The tunnel itself is an intriguing part of the journey, providing us with an unusual view of the city as we navigated through its depths. Driving from Inner Harbor Baltimore to the fort turned out to be a fun experience, especially for those who were first-timers in the area. The route was lined with various sights, including charming waterfront views and glimpses of the city's vibrant neighborhoods.

If you decide to make that drive, please ensure you take the correct exit to avoid the extra detour we encountered. The fort is not only a historical site but also a place that offers beautiful views of the harbor and a chance to discuss the rich narrative of the region's past. Make sure to plan your visit accordingly, as the journey itself can be as enjoyable as the destination. Driving to the fort is a mix of adventure and discovery.

We produced a video about our experience, which includes the history of the fort and the paranormal activity that is claimed to take place at the location. You can view that video below:

The entrance to the fort gives you the feeling that you are entering a military facility. The brick walls and gates were open, allowing you to drive in and up to the visitor's center. Once you enter, the grounds are well-kept for visitors, and it feels like driving through a park.

As you near the visitor center, you observe the white dots covering the windows. When you get closer, there is a sign explaining that this helps save birds who often fly into windows and either die or get hurt that do not have dots. We found this to be interesting, as we have never encountered it before in any of the locations we have visited during our travels. This is an excellent concept, particularly if it prevents the birds from experiencing a severe mishap during their flight.

As soon as you walk into the visitor center and mini-museum, you are confronted with a display about Francis Scott Key and how he was influenced to write the poem that became the Star-Spangled Banner while watching the bombardment of the fort.

The day we visited the fort was very hot, and the long walk from the visitor center to the fort is mostly unshaded. It would have been a better stroll if it was a cloudy day or cooler outside, but we did stop at each placard to read about the history of the fort.

After entering the fort, you can take a self-guided tour to explore each of the buildings within the ramparts. There are many displays available for you to review. As we walked through the fort, Marianne took 322 photos. You can see all of them by clicking on the "More photos" button down in the PANICd.com section at the end of the blog post. Here are just some of those photos.

As we were preparing to leave the fort and return to the visitor center, we entered an area located to the left of the fort entrance where the jail cells are situated. This area is not often talked about; however, Marianne went into one of the open cells and found the placard for the conditions that Henry Hull Brogden experienced while being incarcerated at the fort.

We did enjoy our visit to Fort McHenry. Walking around the historic fort and witnessing what the soldiers experienced during the British bombardment was very surreal. We decided to go to Baltimore because we wanted to visit the gravesite of Francis Scott Key, and it was also important to include Fort McHenry on our list since it inspired him to write the Star-Spangled Banner. It is only an hour drive from Frederick to Baltimore. We only had a couple of regrets that would have made the experience perfect. If they were flying the larger garrison flag, or if there were reenactments taking place, it would have made the experience much greater. Walking around the self-guided tour served our purposes for the stop.

If you have been to Fort McHenry, we would love to hear about your experience. Please leave your comments below. This blog post is mostly about our time there, so if you want to learn more about the fort's history or the paranormal activity, please visit the PANICd.com page for this location or watch our video embedded in this post.