Category: Tours

Photo walk & tour of Jewish Landmarks on the West Side this Saturday!

Baltimore residents of all backgrounds remember the bustling shops of Howard and Lexington Streets but a handful of Jewish-owned businesses – Hutzler’s, Hecht’s, and Read’s Drug Store just to name a few – stand out in stories and memories from the history of downtown’s west side. Bring your camera and join Baltimore Heritage for a free photo walk and tour exploring the history of Jewish entrepreneurs and workers – making clothes, selling furniture, and more – who made Howard and Lexington a place to remember.

West Side Photo Walk & Tour

October 27, 2012, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
RSVP today or sign up on Facebook! Free thanks to Free Fall Baltimore.
Meet at the east entrance to Lexington Market – Eutaw and Lexington Streets

This tour is presented in partnership with the Jewish Museum of Maryland for the Jewish Landmarks Photo Competition. Special thanks to The Baltimore Sun for featuring our tour on the Darkroom blog.

We deeply appreciate the support of our donors who make Free Fall Baltimore possible.  Special thanks goes to Susquehanna Bank, The Abell Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts, with additional support provided by American Trading and Production Corporation, William G. Baker, Jr. Memorial Fund, and the Henry and Ruth Blaustein Rosenberg Foundation.

Explore Colonial Grandeur at the Perry Hall Mansion

Join us in exploring one of Baltimore County’s most historic places, Perry Hall Mansion, home of the Gaugh Family. We’re pleased to host this event with our partners, the Friends of the Perry Hall Mansion and the Preservation Alliance for Baltimore County.

Behind the Scenes Tour of Perry Hall Mansion

Wednesday September 19, 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm
3930 Perry Hall Rd, Perry Hall, MD 21128
RSVP today! $15 per person.

Erected high on a hill above the Gunpowder River Valley, Perry Hall Mansion dominated life in northeastern Baltimore County in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Built in the 1770s by Harry Dorsey Gaugh, Perry Hall was named after the family castle near Birmingham England. The 16-room home, the seat of a vast plantation, soon became one of the leading houses in colonial Maryland. The mansion, considered a “sister” house to Hampton Mansion not very far away, turned from a house of raucous parties to a place of more reserved pleasure as Gaugh and his wife, Prudence, became ardent supporters of the early Methodist movement that had strong roots in Maryland.

Gaugh became a distinguished planter, a member of Maryland’s House of Delegates, and on the board of one of Maryland’s first orphanages. After Gaugh’s death in 1808, the mansion remained in the family for nearly 50 years. It was sold to a group of investors in 1852 that carved the plantation into lots for houses, many of which went to German immigrants. By 2001, the estate had dwindled to four acres and the house was sold to Baltimore County for use as a museum and community center. The County completed a first stage of restoration in 2004, and exterior restoration won an award from the Preservation Alliance of Baltimore County as an “outstanding public project.” The Friends are continuing with the restoration of this stately home.

Ride along with Baltimore by Bike this fall for War of 1812 and more

Join us this fall for three more fun Baltimore by Bike tours – a War of 1812 ride this Saturday to celebrate Defender’s Day with local scholar Kate Drabinski, a tour of West Baltimore murals with Baltimore Heritage board member Dr. Ralph Brown, and a free tour of Jewish Landmarks in northwest Baltimore (part of our new Baltimore Jewish Landmarks Photo Competition). Most of our rides are comfortable for everyone from teens to retirees and offer a great way to explore Baltimore’s historic neighborhoods.

War of 1812 by Bike

Saturday, September 8, 3:30 pm to 6:00 pm Rescheduled due to predicted thunderstorms! New date: Saturday, September 22, 9:30 am to 12:00 pm
RSVP today! $10 per person.
Meet at Riverside Park, Riverside Avenue and East Randall Street. Note – the starting location has been moved from Fort McHenry to Riverside Park.

This year we are taking our Defender’s Day celebrations beyond Fort McHenry with an afternoon bike tour around the harbor exploring the lives and landmarks that witnessed how the War of 1812 came home to Baltimore 200 years ago.

West Baltimore Murals by Bike

Sunday, September 16, 9:00 am
RSVP today! $10 per person.
Meet at the intersection of Frederick Avenue and the Gwynns Falls Bike Trail on the north side of Frederick Avenue – at 2800 Frederick Avenue.

With over a dozen murals decorating walls and bridges, West Baltimore comes alive in this tour that explores a rich part of our city that many rarely visit. Please join us to learn about some seminal events of the 19th century that occurred in West Baltimore and changed the course of world history.

Baltimore by Bike: Jewish Landmarks in Northwest Baltimore

Sunday, October 14, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Meeting location at Beth Am Synagogue, 2501 Eutaw Place, Baltimore, MD.
RSVP Today! Free thanks to Free Fall Baltimore.

In the decades after the Civil War, Baltimore’s economy boomed, countless immigrants arrived from around the world and many – including the city’s growing Jewish community – moved northwest into the rapidly expanding Baltimore suburbs around what is now Bolton Hill. We’re taking a two-hour bike tour past historic synagogues and other Jewish landmarks from from Eutaw Place to Park Heights – all free thanks to Free Fall Baltimore.

Launching the Baltimore Jewish Landmarks Photo Competition with a Photo Walk & Tour

We’re excited to announce the 2012 Jewish Landmarks Photo Competition – a new partnership between Baltimore Heritage and the Jewish Museum of Maryland to celebrate Baltimore’s rich history of Jewish residents, neighborhoods and buildings from Lloyd Street to Park Heights Avenue. Join us next Thursday evening as we kick off the competition with free admission to the Jewish Museum of Maryland and a free photo walk and tour for Late Night on Lloyd Street. Don’t forget to bring your camera!

Local celebrity judges, prizes, and information on how to submit a photo will be announced next week. Late Night on Lloyd Street takes place on the first Thursday of every month and are casual and drop-in evenings. Stop by on your way home from work, bring a friend or come to meet new people.

Late Night on Lloyd Street

Thursday, September 6, 6:00pm to 9:00 pm
Jewish Museum of Maryland, 15 Lloyd Street  Baltimore, MD 21202
Parking and transit details on the JMM website.
RSVP for a free photo walk & tour of the historic Jonestown neighborhood starting 6:30pm. Light refreshments will be provided.

Riding and walking through Urban Renewal history with a happy hour and bike tour

Baltimore Museum of Industry, BG&E Print and Negative Collection, BGE.47525, 10/19/1971

Urban renewal shaped the landscape of Baltimore in tremendous ways during the 1950s and 1960s – fundamentally transforming historic neighborhoods from Mount Vernon to Bolton Hill. We’ll be riding and walking through this fascinating history with two great programs – a happy hour and a free walking tour around State Center on Friday, August 24 followed by a morning bike tour on Saturday, August 25 across nearly all of central Baltimore. Both our tour and happy hour are organized in partnership with Bikemore – Baltimore’s new bike advocacy organization.

Toasting State Center at Dougherty’s Pub

Friday, August 24, 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm
Dougherty’s Pub, 223 West Chase Street  Baltimore, MD 21201
Free State Center walking tour starts from Dougherty’s at 5:15pm
RSVP today!

Our regular Preservationist Happy Hour is back in Mt. Vernon at Doughterty’s – a great neighborhood pub with fifteen beers on draft, seasonal specials, and happy hour beer specials. If you’re looking for something to eat, they have a classic bar menu with burgers, sandwiches and more. We’re also offering a preview of our Urban Renewal by Bike tour with a free 45-minute walking tour through State Center – a complex of government offices built from the 1950s through the 1970s and one of the city’s largest urban renewal projects.

Baltimore by Bike Takes on Urban Renewal

Saturday, August 25, 9:30 am to 12:00 pm
RSVP today! $10 per person.
Meet at Mount Vernon Place in the west park between Charles and Cathedral Streets.

Ride along for a tour of the city’s best brutalist buildings, modern apartment towers, and more as we explore the history of post-WWII urban renewal efforts from Mount Vernon Place to State Center. Of course, even in the 1960s preservationists fought to preserve historic buildings, so we’ll also get to take a look at once-threatened landmarks from the Garrett-Jacobs Mansion to the Shot Tower.