Grace Wisher, a 13-year-old black girl, is often overlooked in the storytelling of the nation’s most visual emblem.
, and is often overlooked in the storytelling of the nation’s most visual emblem, which has caused much contestation throughout history.some have noted
is not uncommon for those who were indentured during that time. What has been discovered is that she was a free girl in Baltimore, Maryland, when her mother, Jenny Wisher, entered her into an indentured contract with Pickersgill in 1810.
In addition to much of Wisher’s biography being obscured, so is that of an unnamed enslaved woman who has been speculated to have assisted with the Star-Spangled Banner as well. “Part of what complicates Mary [Pickersgill]’s story was that she is a slave owner in Baltimore,” Davis says. According to Sally Johnston, former executive director of the Flag House and a Mary Pickersgill biographer, a title for the house and belongings of Pickersgill only lists the sex and age of one enslaved woman and three enslaved young boys is mentioned . Additionally, Pickersgill’s title notes that ownership was passed to her daughter, Caroline, upon her death in 1857.
“A name like Grace Wisher, unless you’re deep into the story about the Star-Spangled Banner itself, doesn’t often come to the fore,” Wilkinson tells. “That’s why I think it’s important that there’s not a single narrative. There are things we think we know, but there’s more we need to know. And certainly, Grace Wisher’s life and her contributions should not go unknown. It should be acknowledged and presented in our historical displays about this era.
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