BALTIMORE (WBFF) — From half-staff to half-mast, many Americans fly the U.S. flag without knowing the guidelines that come with it. At Fort McHenry, where the flag’s story became legend, a park ranger is answering some of the most common questions about how to properly display, fly and retire the American flag.
Fort McHenry’s grounds come alive with the sound of drums and fifes, echoing across the place where history was made. Below the ramparts, a bundle of red, white and blue is carefully unfolded, each fold straightened with deliberate movements before the flag is raised high over those gathered below.
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One of the most frequent questions is the difference between “half-staff” and “half-mast.” Ranger Shannon McLucas said there is no difference in how the flag is positioned.
“In terms of how something is flying, there’s no difference at all,” McLucas said.
The distinction is where it is flown.
“A mast is a little different if you’re on a ship, of course. That’s what you have,” she said. “Have staff. If you, you know, your local school has a flagpole, that’s considered have staff.”
McLucas said the meaning behind lowering the flag is the same in either case and is typically tied to a significant loss or event.
“Sometimes it’s the death of someone who is prominent in public service. Sometimes it’s an event. But it’s almost always something that has impacted the national community,” McLucas said.
Another common question is whether the flag can be flown in the rain. McLucas said it can, as long as it is designed for it.
“You can, there are all weather flags, and they fly in the rain,” McLucas said.
As for leaving the flag up overnight, McLucas said that is allowed, but with conditions.
“Yes, the American flag can fly overnight, that’s not a problem, but there are a few conditions. One is that it’s an all-weather flag,” McLucas said. “The other is that it’s illuminated.”
At Fort McHenry, the flag flies day and night as part of a tradition rooted in a 1948 proclamation by President Harry Truman. The flag is required to be flown “24 hours a day, 365 days a year,” McLucas said, because President Truman “saw the flag over Fort McHenry as a perpetual symbol of patriotism.”
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Questions also come up about what to do with a worn-out flag. McLucas said people can reach out to local organizations for proper retirement options.
“You can contact the local Boy Scouts, the VFV. There are some other nonprofit organizations that may cut stars out and give them framed to veterans,” McLucas said.
Because many flags today are made of nylon or polyester, it is recommended they not be burned due to toxic fumes they can release.
For those unsure how to fold the American flag, McLucas said the traditional method forms a isosceles triangle.
She added that folding the flag should be a shared act.
We don’t make a great deal of progress unless we’re working together,” she said.
McLucas said the goal is to treat the flag as more than just material.
“So instead of fabric, now you have something that’s meaningful and something that has a story,” she said.
Flag guidelines are not law and are not enforceable. They are recommendations for how Americans should display and respect the flag.
For an aerial view of Fort McHenry at sunrise, watch the video above
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