The flag that flew during that episode in history became a significant artifact. It remained in the possession of Major Armistead, who was promoted to brevet lieutenant colonel, and his family for many years. Eben Appleton, Colonel Armistead's grandson, inherited the flag in 1878. In 1907, he lent it to the Smithsonian Institution, and in 1912 it was made a formal gift. Today it is permanently housed in the National Museum of American History, one of the Smithsonian Institution museums on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The flag was given to the museum in 1912, and has undergone multiple restoration efforts after being originally restored by Amelia Fowler in 1914.