Talk:William Beanes

Flag of Truce Vessel: Minden?
None of the reference material I own, have borrowed, or even heard about, states the name of Col. Skinner's Flag of Truce Vessel. The best information I have is that it was one of a group of sloops that was leased by the Federal Government for use by Col. Skinner in his role as the Prisoner Exchange Agent for the region.

I had suggested, in these pages that if the sloop had been named Minden, that would explain the confusion that led to the myth that Key was aboard the HMS Minden when he wrote the Star Spangled Banner. But I had no evidence to support it, nor have I ever heard of any.

I'd be pleased if you could provide a reference for the name of the vessel. Otherwise, I'd like to edit the article, removing its name. TCav (talk) 21:14, 3 November 2009 (UTC)


 * Done. TCav (talk) 14:51, 13 November 2009 (UTC)

Typing in "Francis Scott Key Minden" in Google Books produces over an additional hundred references. Typing "Noyes Lincoln 1863" in the Search box of The Library of Congress America Memory images at this address produces a letter to President Lincoln of 1863 from lawyer William Curtis Noyes describing the ship Minden and that Keys and Beanes were on it when the Star Spangled Banner was written in September 1814. Typing "Francis Scott Key" in WorldCat produces a thousand books, many of which mention the ship Minden and Key was on it when he wrote the famous Ode. Typing "Star Spangled Banner" in WorldCat produces a few thousand more books, most talking of both being on the Minden when the famous poem was written. --Doug Coldwell talk 17:09, 31 December 2009 (UTC)

First Report
Baltimore American article of September 21, 1814:

DEFENSE OF FORT McHENRY.

''The annexed song was composed under the following circumstances: A gentleman had left Baltimore, in a flag of truce for the purpose of getting released from the British fleet a friend of his who had been captured at Marlborough. He went as far as the mouth of the Patuxent, and was not permitted to return lest the intended attack on Baltimore should be disclosed. He was therefore brought up the Bay to the mouth of the Patapsco, where the flag vessel was kept under the guns of a frigate, and he was compelled to witness the bombardment of Fort M'Henry, which the Admiral had boasted that he would carry in a few hours, and that the city must fall. He watched the flag at the fort through the whole day with an anxiety that can be better felt than described, until the night prevented him from seeing it. In the night he watched the Bomb Shells, and at early dawn his eye was again greeted by the proudly waving flag of his country.''

History records that the defense of Fort McHenry under Major Armistead began on the morning of Tuesday, September 13, and lasted until the early hours of September 14, 1814. Source from page 7:

Report on "The Star-Spangled Banner," "Hail Columbia," "America," "Yankee ... By Oscar George Theodore Sonneck, Library of Congress. Music Division. Page 8 shows the "flag of truce" was a cartel vessel called the Minden. All further history on this issue is based on this information.--Doug Coldwell talk 12:43, 1 January 2010 (UTC)

Who's personal life?
The section titled "Personal Life" is almost wholly devoted to tangential topics, mainly about John Hanson. I suggest the section be severely cut down to something like the following:

Beanes married Sarah Hawkins Hanson on November 25, 1773. She was the niece of John Hanson, who later became the first president of the Confederation Congress of the United States.

Anyone wishing to know more about Hanson can follow his link. 192.88.94.1 (talk) 14:07, 6 April 2016 (UTC)

Copyright contributor investigation and Good article reassessment
This article is part of Contributor copyright investigations/20210315 and the Good article (GA) drive to reassess and potentially delist over 200 GAs that might contain copyright and other problems. An AN discussion closed with consensus to delist this group of articles en masse, unless a reviewer opens an independent review and can vouch for/verify content of all sources. Please review Good article reassessment/February 2023 for further information about the GA status of this article, the timeline and process for delisting, and suggestions for improvements. Questions or comments can be made at the project talk page. MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 09:37, 9 February 2023 (UTC)