Category: Behind the Scenes Tours

Join Baltimore Heritage on a Walking Tour this Spring!

Spring is right around the corner and with it comes a host of great heritage tours! We are thrilled to offer tours in historic neighborhoods all over Baltimore.

Historic Rockland Village: A Preserved Hamlet from 1706 – On March 4, Baltimore Heritage and Preservation Alliance of Baltimore County hope you can join us for a tour of Rockland Village, one of the earliest settlements on the Jones Falls River. Thomas Bruggman, a 45-year resident and historic preservationist, will help us travel back in time on a tour of this idyllic hamlet that is still home to an 18th century tavern and blacksmith shop, as well as a livery stable and a grist mill. Situated in Baltimore County right on the city/county line, this tour will showcase the eclectic history of this area from its roots as a buffalo crossing and Susquehannock summer camp to the oldest existing outdoor Art Deco swimming pool in the country.

Sunday Morning Monumental City Tours – The first day of the Sunday Farmers’ Market & Bazaar is Sunday, April 2, and it’s also the first tour in our 2023 Monumental City Sunday morning series! From April through November, we’ll be hosting guided walking tours on Sunday mornings of the 1904 Fire Downtown, Ridgely’s Delight, Federal Hill, and Mount Vernon Place. Come to one or come to all, and bring a friend! Find the list of all of the tours here.

Lexington Market: In October 2022, the new Lexington Market opened in a brand new building. On this tour we’ll first explore the surrounding neighborhood to discover how Baltimore emerged as a leading industrial and economic city in the 19th century. Immigration, slavery, commerce and major changes in transportation were all part of the mix here in Baltimore and the country as a whole. We’ll end with a tour of the new market, including its wonderful public art and, of course, its merchants (new and old). Be sure to bring your canvas bags to do some quintessential Baltimore shopping after the tour! Join us on March 25 & April 22.

Green Mount Cemetery – We are also back again with tours of Green Mount Cemetery. Green Mount is the final resting place of some of Maryland’s most famous, and infamous, figures including Johns Hopkins, Enoch Pratt, William and Henry Walters, Mary Elizabeth Garrett, Betsy Patterson, A.S. Abell, John H. B. Latrobe, John Wilkes Booth, and Elijah Bond, who patented the Ouija Board. We’ve got tours lined up on: March 18, April 15, May 20, & June 17.

Clifton Mansion – Finally, we are introducing a new tour at Clifton Mansion, the unique Italianate country house that has overlooked Baltimore City for over 200 years. At one time the summer home of War of 1812 captain Henry Thompson and then philanthropist Johns Hopkins, the story of Clifton Estate is one about two prominent businessmen, enslaved & free Black people, and more. We’ll also get to see the latest restorations made possible by the Friends of Clifton Mansion and Civic Works, as well as some yet-to-be restored spaces that are brimming with stories to tell! And the tour wouldn’t be complete without climbing the tower and taking in one-of-a-kind views of Clifton Park and our surrounding city. We hope to see you there on March 4, April 15, & May 6.

 

We will be updating our tour schedule to include more Behind the Scenes tours of places all over city, so please continue to check our website. Find all of our tours and more here!

Announcing New Green Mount Cemetery Walking Tours!

All tours are full

Baltimore Heritage is happy to announce that we will be hosting four tours of historic Green Mount Cemetery starting in April. After 30 years without a break, Baltimore historian Wayne Schaumburg is finally taking a spring off and he has kindly shared his tour notes with us. We hope you’ll join us and tour guide Tim Fabiszak on one of these four dates: April 3, April 17, May 1, & May 15.

Opened in 1839, Green Mount is an early example of an urban-rural cemetery, that is, a cemetery with a park-like setting located close to the countryside. Green Mount is the final resting place of some of Maryland’s most famous, and infamous, figures including Johns Hopkins, Enoch Pratt, William and Henry Walters, Mary Elizabeth Garrett, Betsy Patterson, A.S. Abell, John H. B. Latrobe, A. Aubrey Bodine, John Wilkes Booth, and Elijah Bond, who patented the Ouija Board!

Due to Covid precautions, we are limiting space more than usual. All participants will be required to wear face masks and socially distance during the tour. See these events and more on our Events page!

New Tours In Bloom for the Spring: Westminster Hall Burying Ground and the Baltimore by Foot Series

Spring is right around the corner and with it comes a host of new heritage tours. On March 7, we hope you can join us to explore the catacombs underneath Baltimore’s First Presbyterian Church, now called Westminster Hall, and the graves that surround it, including the final resting place of Edgar Allan Poe. March 7 is the first of four tours we’re doing at Westminster: we are offering them again on April 4, May 2, and June 6 and hope you can make it to one of them.

In April, our annual Baltimore by Foot neighborhood walking tour series begins! Please join us and our local guides this year on one or all of the following tours:

April 18 – Woodberry by Foot: Country Living with City Convenience

April 25 – Sharp Leadenhall by Foot: 250 Years of African American Heritage

May 2 – How to Read a Rowhouse: Colonial Architecture in Fell’s Point 

May 9 – Stone and Spirit: The Original Campus of Goucher College

May 16 – Brewers Hill by Foot: The Architecture of Brewing Beer

We hope to see you at Westminster and at one of our neighborhood tours this Spring!

Did You Know? Baltimore Heritage Has Exciting Tours and Talks In the Next Few Weeks!

Did you know that Baltimore was the capital of the United States for three months during the American Revolution? On February 2, join Baltimore historian and educator Wayne R. Schaumburg as we look at Baltimore and its citizens’ role in the American Revolution.

Also, did you know that historic Laurel (today a short hop down Interstate 95) is connected to Baltimore by the B&O Railroad? Originally called Laurel Factory, the settlement started as a 19th century milltown. On February 9, join us and our guide Ann Bennett, Executive Director of the Laurel Historical Society, as we look at restored millworkers houses and the ruins of the mill itself.

Finally, did you know Zeke’s Coffee is a local roaster and a family-owned business? Join us on February 12 in an encore tour to see how Zeke’s roasts its beans and creates its delicious blends. It’s the best smelling tour we’ve been on in a while.

We hope to see you at all or some of these fun events. You may be surprised at what you didn’t know you didn’t know, just like us.

Bmore Intriguing: Uncovering Our City’s Heritage with Talks and Tours in February

Mark your calendars for our winter/spring talks at the Garrett-Jacobs Mansion:

 · February 2 — From Stamp Act to Yorktown: A Talk on Baltimore in the American Revolution with Wayne Schaumburg

 · March 22–Destination Baltimore: A Talk on the Story of Immigration and Opportunity with Jack Burkert

 · April 5– New Light on Hidden Lives: A Talk on Discovering the Histories of Hampton’s Enslaved Workers with Gregory Weidman

 · May 3–The Industrial Valley: A Lecture on 200 Years of Manufacturing on the Jones Falls with Nathan Dennies

Happy New Year! We are kicking off the year exploring some of Baltimore longstanding historical questions. First up on February 2 is Baltimore historian and educator Wayne R. Schaumburg, who will talk on Baltimore’s role in the American Revolution, including the burning question: did George Washington sleep here?

On February 9, we are pleased that Baltimore historian Jamie Hunt will be back with a Valentine’s Day-themed tour of romance in Mount Vernon. For two centuries, the neighborhood has seen spectacular love stories, bitter feuds, and more than a few juicy trysts. Indulge in sweet intrigue and uncover some Gilded Age gossip with us.

Finally, you may ask how historic Laurel is connected to Baltimore? Originally called Laurel Factory, the settlement started as a 19th century milltown with ties to Baltimore along the B&O Railroad. On February 9, join us and our guide Ann Bennett, Executive Director of the Laurel Historical Society, for a walking tour of the town. As we soak in the historic atmosphere alongside the Patuxent River, you’ll be asking yourself why you hadn’t explored Laurel sooner.

We can’t wait to spend the beginning of 2020 with you at these tours and talks.