Washington Artillery Arsenal Building, ca 1910
Girod Street in New Orleans, Louisiana
Construction Completed in 1859
Funded Entirely By
The Washington Artillery
At the building dedication, The Washington Artillery provided its own musical entertainment. A song that was sung in honor of the completion of the new Arsenal building was a song whose title has been lost to us for the present, but has been appropriately named by the commander of the 1st Company - Washington Artillery in western New York as "Try Us". Only two verses of the song have been found thus far, and the 5th Company - Washington Artillery sings "Try Us" to a song popular with the first four companies of the Washington Artillery, "Sally In Our Alley".
Our maiden banner courts the wind,
Its stars are beamin' over us;
Each radiant fold now unconfined
Is floating here before us.
It bears a motto proud and high
To those who dare defy us,
And loud shall peal our slogan cry
Whene'er they come to "TRY US"!
The hallowed ray that freedom gave us
To cheer the gloom that bound us,
And shone in beauty over the brave
Still brightly beams around us.
The day our fathers bravely won
Shall long be greeted by us,
And loudly through our ranks shall peal
The gallant war cry "TRY US"!
From The Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division,
Washington, D.C. 20540 USA