Baltimore Heritage

Baltimore by Boat: Powered by PNC
2026-04-18 10:00 - 11:30, 2026-04-25 10:00 - 11:30, 2026-05-02 10:00 - 11:30, 2026-05-09 10:00 - 11:30, 2026-05-16 10:00 - 11:30, 2026-05-30 10:00 - 11:30, 2026-06-06 10:00 - 11:30 (America/New_York) | Harborplace Watertaxi Stop, 201 E. Pratt St, Baltimore, 21202, United States
Join us to discover America’s history on Baltimore’s water with our new Inner Harbor boat tours! America defeated the British here. Frederick Douglass escaped from here. Today we are pioneering watershed restoration here. We will start near the Harborplace pavilions and go all the way out to see Fort McHenry from the water and back again. 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.

We partner with the Baltimore Water Taxi to use their vessels. This tour starts and ends at the Baltimore Water Taxi stop at Harborplace (behind 201 E. Pratt St). This is the water taxi stop next to the USS Constellation and the Harborplace pavilions. We do the tours rain or shine.
Tickets are $27.50. Boat tours are 1.5 hours long.

Federal Hill
2026-04-19 09:30 - 10:30 | Federal Hill Park (Southwest Corner), 301 Warren Avenue, Baltimore, MD, 21230, United States
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, including stops at one of the last wooden houses in the city, the oldest house in Federal Hill, and the wonderful alley houses along Churchill Street.

The 1904 Fire: A Light City Tour
2026-04-24 17:30 - 18:30 | Chesapeake Shakespeare Theater, 7 South Calvert Street, Baltimore, MD, 21202, United States
On April 24, join us for the first tour of our new series, Light City Baltimore, to experience our city in the evening and in a brand new light! This tour will take us back to the Great 1904 Fire, which destroyed 1500 buildings, left 35,000 people unemployed, and damaged $150 million of property. Rising out of the ashes, resilient Baltimore used the fire to rethink the city, and the downtown we know today is shaped largely by this incident. Join Baltimore Heritage’s Executive Director Johns Hopkins on this special evening tour, and make it a Baltimore night–grab dinner at Kechy Pizza or The Empanada Lady, then catch a show at the Chesapeake Shakespeare Theater!
This is part of our Light City tour series–join us for a series of evening walking and boat tours to see our city in a new light. Participants are encouraged to take advantage of Baltimore’s evening offerings, including local entertainment and restaurants.
This project has been funded in part by a grant from the Moe Family Fund for Statewide and Local Partners of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

150 Years & Counting: Walking through History at the Maryland Zoo
2026-04-25 09:00 - 10:00, 2026-05-09 09:00 - 10:00, 2026-05-20 17:00 - 18:00 | The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore, 1876 Mansion House Drive, Baltimore, MD, 21217, United States
Join us to celebrate the Maryland Zoo’s 150th birthday with a new walking tour around its historic grounds led by Zoo staff. Discover the history of the zoo and several of its important landmarks, including iron-barred cages and other structures built when the Rogers Mansion was still a private residence. As we walk, we’ll hear about the zoo’s first elephant, Mary Ann, and we might even glimpse some penguins. We hope you’ll join us to experience a walk through the past, which will showcase how far zoological organizations have come from menageries of exotic creatures to expert conservation centers for endangered species!

(This tour does not include zoo admission. If you wish to explore the zoo after our tour, please purchase a ticket through the zoo’s website).

Fell's Point
2026-04-26 09:30 - 10:30 | Broadway Market, 637 S Broadway, Baltimore, MD, 21231, United States
Join us to see how Fell’s Point developed in the 1730s to become one of Baltimore’s premier waterfront communities. Great wealth through trade was created here for the likes of Johns Hopkins, George Peabody, and William Walters. These shores were the first place over a million immigrants started their American dream, yet also where enslaved people either arrived in bondage or were shipped south in chains. 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.

From Bank to Bard: A Tour of the Chesapeake Shakespeare Company
2026-04-30 17:30 - 18:30 | Chesapeake Shakespeare Theater, 7 South Calvert Street, Baltimore, MD, 21202, United States
From a self-proclaimed impenetrable banking fortress to a hub of classical theatre, join us for a Behind the Scenes tour of 7 South Calvert Street, a former 1885 Mercantile Bank building and now the home of the Chesapeake Shakespeare Company. When built, the building had massive stonework, a working moat, and a sniper’s seat inside, all to assure customers their valuables were safe inside the bank. Today, after an enormous renovation, the former bank is a 250-seat theater modeled after Shakespeare’s London theatre, the Globe. Join theatre staff to walk up, down, and behind the scenes and learn about this fantastic building and its dynamic use today.

Historic Green Mount Cemetery
2026-05-02 09:30 - 11:30, 2026-05-16 09:30 - 11:30 | Green Mount Cemetery, 1501 Greenmount Ave, Baltimore, MD, 21202, United States
Inherited from the great Baltimore historian Wayne Schaumburg, join Baltimore Heritage to tour Baltimore’s historic Green Mount Cemetery.
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, John Wilkes Booth, and Elijah Bond, who patented the Ouija Board!
Accessibility: Although there are some paved pathways, we will be walking over mostly uneven grassy terrain and cobblestones.
This tour is scheduled to go rain or shine, please prepare accordingly! If the weather is dangerous, we will send you an email to cancel the morning of.

Inner Harbor
2026-05-03 09:30 - 10:30, 2026-06-07 09:30 - 10:30 | 501 E Pratt Street, 501 E Pratt Street, Baltimore, 21202, United States
From industrial waterfront to the city’s center of tourism and festivities, Baltimore’s Inner Harbor has seen remarkable transformations. Join us to walk the history of our waterfront and discover public art hiding in plain sight, historic ships and their ballasts used as street pavers, and the National Aquarium’s Harbor Wetlands Project for a glimpse into what the harbor looked like more than 300 years ago – and maybe what it can look like again in the future.

Light City on the Water
2026-05-08 19:30 - 21:00 | Baltimore Finger Piers, 555 Light St, Baltimore, Maryland, 21202
On May 8, come see the lights of downtown Baltimore from the water on an evening boat cruise in our new series Light City Baltimore. We hope you will join us to discover America’s history on Baltimore’s water as the sun sets. Enjoy a drink as you listen to a live-narrated 90-min tour by Baltimore Heritage Executive Director Johns Hopkins and marvel at how the Domino Sugars sign glows from the water! This tour is in partnership with Watermark Journeys. The boat has a cash bar and a bathroom. We also have a partnership with Harbor Court / Royal Sonesta Garage (30 E Lee St) for discounted parking for our guests.
This is part of our Light City tour series–join us for a series of evening walking and boat tours to see our city in a new light. Participants are encouraged to take advantage of Baltimore’s evening offerings, including local entertainment and restaurants.
This project has been funded in part by a grant from the Moe Family Fund for Statewide and Local Partners of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

Patterson Park
2026-05-10 09:30 - 10:30 | 28 S Patterson Park Ave, Baltimore, MD 21231, 28 S Patterson Park Ave, Baltimore, 21231, United States
Join us to walk through Patterson Park and through time starting back when it was officially created in 1827. 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 the Union. The park has been used for strolling, fishing, hockey, swimming, festivals and even as a beef market. Over its 198-year history, it has grown from 6 acres to 137 acres, partially thanks to the famous Olmsted Firm. Discover the history of Patterson Park, which is in many ways the story of Baltimore itself, and see how it really is “the best backyard in Baltimore.”

Historic Clifton Mansion
2026-05-13 17:30 - 18:30, 2026-05-21 17:30 - 18:30 | Clifton Mansion, 2701 Saint Lo Drive, Baltimore, MD, 21218, United States
Join us for a tour inside 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. You’ll see the latest restorations made possible by the Friends of Clifton Mansion and Civic Works. You will also be invited into unrestored 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.

The Bromo Arts District: A Light City Tour
2026-05-14 19:30 - 20:30 | Bromo Seltzer Tower, 21 S Eutaw St, Baltimore, MD, 21201, United States
As artists for the Spring Bromo Art Walk are throwing open their studio doors, join us on one of our Light City Baltimore tours to learn how the FBI raided the Everyman Theater building, how we kept the lights on at the Hippodrome, and how Civil Rights protests outside of Baltimore’s Ford’s Theatre helped change segregation policies in the city. In addition to artists, this part of town is packed with quintessentially Baltimore landmarks–we’ll see Lexington Market, the Bromo Seltzer Tower, and some of the few remaining cast iron buildings in the city as they turn the lights on. This tour will occur the same night as the Bromo Art Walk and we encourage you to check out the dozens of open art studios before our tour starts!
This is part of our Light City tour series–join us for a series of evening walking and boat tours to see our city in a new light. Participants are encouraged to take advantage of Baltimore’s evening offerings, including local entertainment and restaurants.
This project has been funded in part by a grant from the Moe Family Fund for Statewide and Local Partners of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

Jonestown: A Walking Tour
2026-05-16 09:30 - 11:00 | Carroll Mansion, 800 Lombard Street, Baltimore, MD, 21202, United States
Jonestown is one of Baltimore’s oldest and most historic neighborhoods. Both groundbreaking industry and vibrant communities have thrived here. On this tour, we will see the vestiges of its Eastern European Jewish residents as we pass Corned Beef Row. We hope you’ll join Baltimore Heritage and tour guide Bev Rosen as we stroll past a series of firsts: the McKim Free School, the city’s oldest education building from 1833, the Lloyd Street Synagogue, the first synagogue in Maryland and the third oldest in the country, and the 1808 home of Charles Carroll, the longest living signer of the Declaration of Independence.

Brewer's Hill: Where Immigrants Brewed a Community
2026-05-17 09:30 - 10:30 | The Knotty Pine, 801 S Conkling St, Baltimore, 21224, United States
Discover how Brewer’s Hill grew from rural farmland into a vibrant immigrant and industrial neighborhood at the heart of Baltimore’s brewing history. This one-mile guided walking tour explores historic rowhouses, neighborhood history, and the legacy of local breweries like National Bohemian and Gunther. Join us as we uncover stories of beer, bricklayers, and the communities who built this corner of the city.

Baltimore County Material Recovery Facility (MRF) Tour
2026-05-26 09:30 - 11:00 | 201 W. Warren Road, Cockeysville, Maryland 21030, 201 W. Warren Road, Cockeysville, Maryland, 21030
The Baltimore County Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) tour offers a behind-the-scenes look at how single-stream recyclables are transformed from household waste into marketable commodities. Come explore the Cockeysville plant to witness the high-tech sorting process, which uses industrial magnets, star screens, and manual sorting to separate paper, plastic, and metal. The experience emphasizes the importance of keeping “tanglers” like plastic bags out of the machinery while showcasing how local recycling efforts support a circular economy. Join us on this dynamic, behind-the-scenes look at recycling!
Please plan to arrive at 9:30am. This allows time to get everyone properly fitted with required safety gear—vests, hard hats, and all the essentials—so you’re fully ready for the experience. The tour will begin at 10:00am.
Please wear sneakers or boots only. No open-toed shoes, slippers, Crocs, sandals, or UGGs.
Accessibility: You’ll be walking on elevated catwalks with a fast-moving world of recycling beneath you. There are quite a few stairs and a good amount of walking, so come ready for a behind-the-scenes adventure rather than a stroll in the park.

Booth, Baltimore & Lincoln’s Assassination: A Walking Tour of Green Mount Cemetery
2026-06-06 09:30 - 11:30 | Green Mount Cemetery, 1501 Greenmount Ave, Baltimore, MD, 21202, United States
Join us at Green Mount Cemetery to discover the tangled history of John Wilkes Booth, Baltimore, and the plots to kidnap and assassinate Abraham Lincoln. We’ll trace Booth’s childhood on Exeter Street and how he followed his Shakespearean-trained father’s footsteps into the theater world. We’ll get to know Booth–the womanizer, the white supremacist, and the presidential assassin. We’ll also revisit major events of the Civil War, including the Pratt Street Riots and the surrender at Appomattox, and how they influenced the conspirators’ actions leading up to the day Booth murdered Lincoln.
As we walk, you’ll hear about the events of the fateful day and the fates of the Booth’s co-conspirators. And of course, we’ll see the unmarked burial site of Booth and the graves of two of his co-conspirators. We hope you’ll walk to the grounds of Green Mount Cemetery with us to discover this poignant history in a whole new light.
Accessibility: Although there are some paved pathways, we will be walking over mostly uneven grassy terrain and cobblestones.

Antique Woodworking Machines with Thomas Brown Woodwright
2026-06-09 15:30 - 16:30 | Thomas Brown Woodwright, 2728 Loch Raven Rd, Baltimore, MD, 21218, United States
Step inside a working time capsule where craftsmanship, history, and ingenuity collide at Thomas Brown Woodwright. In this one-of-a-kind workshop, operating since 1991, you’ll experience the rare sight, and sound, of antique woodworking machines, some dating back nearly two centuries, still shaping wood for real-world projects today. Watch skilled artisans transform raw materials into stunning architectural elements using techniques that have all but vanished elsewhere, and discover how this small but mighty shop has helped preserve some of the region’s iconic historic buildings. Whether you’re a history buff, a maker, or just curious, this tour offers a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at a place where they can make anything!

Zion Church of the City of Baltimore
2026-06-10 17:30 - 18:30 | 400 E Lexington St, Baltimore, MD 21202, 400 E Lexington St, Baltimore, MD, 21202, United States
The story of Zion Church of the City of Baltimore is the story of the German speaking people in Baltimore dating back to the “Colonial Period,” through the “Golden Age of Germans in Baltimore” into the “World War” years and finally the modern or present era. Every generation of Baltimore German-Americans is reflected in the building. Along the tour you will learn about the architecture including the unique and significant stained glass windows as well as the “new” (1912) part of the building including the church’s iconic tower and “Adlersaal.” We will visit the Hofmann Memorial Library and tour the picturesque walled garden, an oasis in the middle of the city. Guests will hear stories about Zion’s past Pastors who led the German immigrant community during the Revolutionary and Civil Wars and held it together during the two World Wars when German speakers were viewed with distrust and considered enemies. We also touch upon the role that Zion played in the history of Lutheranism in America as well as how the political and cultural life of Baltimore City shaped and was shaped by Germans living here.
Accessibility: There are some stairs going up to the Adlersaal on the second floor, but there is an elevator for those who can’t manage the stairs.

Little Italy: A Light City Tour
2026-06-11 19:30 - 20:30 | Vaccaro’s Italian Pastry Shop, 222 Albemarle St, Baltimore, Maryland, 21202
On June 11, join us for another tour of our new series, Light City Baltimore, to experience our city in the evening and in a brand new light! Beginning in the 1600s, waves of immigrants from England, Germany, and over the last 100 years Sicily, Naples and Abruzzi have defined the place along the banks of the Jones Falls that we now call Little Italy. Join Baltimore Heritage Executive Director Johns Hopkins to learn a little more about the neighborhood’s standouts like the bocce ball courts, St. Leo’s Church, and the power-house residence of Tommy D’Alesandro and his daughter Nancy Pelosi. We’ll also hear a few colorful stories, including about gangster Al Capone’s four month stint in Charm City and our hometown hero Spiro Agnew’s fall from grace. And we’ll finish at Vaccaro’s Italian Pastry Shop for a classic sweet treat. Make it a Baltimore night and grab dinner in Little Italy, then walk it off on our tour!
This is part of our Light City tour series–join us for a series of evening walking and boat tours to see our city in a new light. Participants are encouraged to take advantage of Baltimore’s evening offerings, including local entertainment and restaurants.
This project has been funded in part by a grant from the Moe Family Fund for Statewide and Local Partners of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
