One thing of the many things we love about Baltimore is the way neighbors take care of each other. We want to do our part with a special offer for people who have lost their job recently. This includes federal workers, contractors and those laid off due to loss of funding. We would love to treat you to one of our Sunday morning tours! Please contact ricks@baltimoreheritage.org to register.
We are thrilled to offer up another batch of unique walking tours, behind-the-scenes tours, and ways to help neighbors across Baltimore over the next few months. I hope to see you on some soon. Check out our calendar to see new additions!
–Johns Hopkins, Executive Director
Herring Run Park Trash Clean-Up
Join us and our partner, Friends of HerringRun Parks, for a trash clean-up. We provide all the supplies, including gloves!Thank you to NPS Chesapeake Gateways for supporting this project. March 15, 10:00am – 12:00pm. FREE.
Laurel Cemetery Voluntour: Trash Clean-up and History
Tour Laurel Cemetery was incorporated in 1852as Baltimore’s first nondenominational cemetery for African Americans. In 1958, it was leveled. Join members of the LaurelCemetery Memorial Project to see the site firsthand…and have a hand in improving it.This will be an hour-long trash clean-up followed by a history tour of the site. March 22, 10:00 am – 12:00 pm. FREE
LGBTQ Heritage in Charles Village
You may know this neighborhood for its colorful “painted ladies,” but it was also home to many activists and institutions at the heart of the city’s LGBTQ community in the 1970s and 1980s. Discover local landmarks like the original home of theGay Community Center of Baltimore and the radical feminist writers and publishers that gave a voice to lesbian authors. March 30, 10:00 am – 11:30 am. $10-$15
Opened in 1839, Green Mount Cemetery is the final resting place of some ofMaryland’s most famous, and infamous, figures including Johns Hopkins, EnochPratt, William and Henry Walters, Mary Elizabeth Garrett, Betsy Patterson, A.S. Abell, John H. B. Latrobe, John Wilkes Booth, and Elijah Bond, who patented theOuija Board! April 5 & April 19, 9:30 am – 11:30 am, $20.
Join us to walk through Patterson Park and through time! During the War of 1812, the park saw action defending Baltimore. And during the Civil War, troops here made sure Maryland didn’t secede from theUnion. Discover the history of PattersonPark and see how it really is “the best backyard in Baltimore.” April 6, 9:30 am – 10:30 am. $10-$15.
Join Dr. Ralph Brown and Phil Briscoe on a bike tour of Druid Ridge Cemetery! Did you ever wonder where the Cone sisters ended up, or John Goucher, or Virginia Hall, or Art Modell? Maybe you were afraid to visit Druid Ridge Cemetery because of the curse of Black Aggie. There will be a few slight ups and downs on the route but nothing too strenuous. April 12, 10:30am – 12:30pm. $15.
Join us to see how Fell’s Point developed in the 1730s to become one of Baltimore’s premier waterfront communities. As we walk, we’ll point out historic homes and industrial heritage, like the country’s first Black-owned shipyard, and share some of the rich stories that this 300-year-old waterfront neighborhood has to offer. April 13 , 9:30 am – 10:30 am. $10-$15
Join us for a tour inside Clifton Mansion, the Italianate country house that has overlooked Baltimore City for over 200 years. At one time the summer home ofWar of 1812 captain Henry Thompson and then philanthropist Johns Hopkins, the story of Clifton is one of two prominent businessmen, enslaved & free Black people, and more. April 12, 10:00 am – 11:00 am, $10-$15.
Steel, Glass, Plants andHistory: Behind the Scenes at the Howard P. Rawlings Conservatory
Join us to visit the Howard P. Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens! Established in 1888 as the Druid Hill Conservatory and modeled after London’s famous Kew Gardens, it is the second oldest steel-framed glass building in the country. April 13, 2:30 pm – 4:00 pm. $15.
Before 1977 Gwynns Falls was known asCarroll Station and until 2020 was home to the Maryland Brush Company. We will start at Mighty Park, a former illegal dump that the community purchased and transformed into a vibrant green space. Come be inspired by the work that has been done and encouraged to support continued revitalization efforts. April 13 , 3:00 pm -4:00 pm. $10-$15.
Baltimoreans celebrated atop Federal Hill when we ratified the U.S. Constitution. We used it to defend the city from the British in the War of 1812 and to make sure we stayed in the Union in the Civil War. We have even tunneled under it to quarry minerals. Join us on a tour of Federal Hill and the neighborhood around it to learn about this waterfront community’s rich history. April 20, 9:30 am – 10:30 am. $10-$15.
There are only a few days left in 2024, which means you have only a few days left to donate or become a member this year! We are a small organization so a gift of any size – from $5 to $500 – will help immensely. Here are a few highlights for how your gift will help in the year ahead:
Heritage Tours:
This past year we began hosting three new bus tours and even a new Inner Harbor history boat tour! This spring we will be able to return with more robust tours and events, including more boat tours. Please stay tuned!
Five Minute Histories Videos:
Our Five Minute Histories series offers a way to connect that in-person programs just can’t. So, don’t worry, these are here to stay, and we’re ramping up for a full year of them in 2025.
Critical Preservation Work:
This past year we helped restore the Perkins Square Gazebo in the Heritage Crossing neighborhood. In the coming year, we are planning to work with our partners in Herring Run and Leakin Parks on projects that will celebrate the parks’ histories and help improve the health of the Chesapeake Bay watershed.
We need your help today.
We at Baltimore Heritage are a little bit unusual. We rely heavily on kind volunteers to make our work possible, and nearly three quarters of our annual operating income comes from gifts from individuals. Most of these gifts are at our basic membership levels of $35 for an individual and $50 for a family. By donating at any level, be assured that your support goes a long way.
So once more for 2024, please accept an enormous thank you to everyone who volunteers with us, comes out for tours and programs (in-person and virtually!), and supports our work by generously donating. We look forward to working with you and connecting with you in the year ahead.
— Johns Hopkins, Baltimore Heritage
Join us for our brand new Baltimore by Boat tours! America defeated the British here. Frederick Douglass escaped from here. Today we are pioneering watershed restoration here. Join us for 300 years of history on a live-narrated tour of Baltimore’s world famous Inner Harbor. Come see how Baltimore’s wonderful waterfront connects the past with the present and Baltimore to the rest of the world.
Please stay tuned for more boat tours coming Spring 2025!
Sign up for our mailing list to be notified of new tours.
Boat tours are 75 minutes long. We have partnered with the Baltimore Water Taxi to use their vessels.
For Private Boat Tours: Starting at $250 plus the price of the boat rental (prices vary). Please contact Molly Ricks at ricks@baltimoreheritage.org or 240-305-3984 for scheduling.
Check out all of our upcoming events!
Thank you to PNC Bank and NPS Chesapeake Gateways for supporting this project.
Happy Holidays! If you haven’t yet done so, please consider joining or renewing your membership today.
Your membership makes preservation possible in Baltimore. Thank you for doing so much for our city.
— Johns Hopkins, Executive Director
