Baltimore Heritage

Booth, Baltimore & Lincoln’s Assassination: A Walking Tour of Green Mount Cemetery
2025-05-31 11:30 - 12:30, 2025-06-04 09:30 - 10:30, 2025-06-04 14:00 - 15:00, 2025-06-14 11:30 - 12:30 (America/New_York) | Green Mount Cemetery, 1501 Greenmount Ave, Baltimore, MD, 21202, United States
In partnership with Green Mount Cemetery and Baltimore Center Stage, 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.
This tour is being offered in partnership with Baltimore Center Stage’s production of John Wilkes Booth: One Night Only. With your Green Mount Cemetery tour ticket, you’ll receive a coupon code for $10 off a ticket to the show.
Accessibility: Although there are some paved pathways, we will be walking over mostly uneven grassy terrain and cobblestones.

Patterson Park
2025-06-01 09:30 - 10:30, 2025-08-03 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.”

Fell's Point
2025-06-08 09:30 - 10:30, 2025-07-13 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.

Jonestown: A Walking Tour
2025-06-08 10:00 - 11:30 | 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.

Herring Run Heritage Walking Tour
2025-06-08 13:00 - 15:00 | 4000 Harford Road (At Argonne Drive), Baltimore, MD 21218
On June 8, join Baltimore Heritage and the Friends of Herring Run Parks to experience this urban oasis like you never have before! The co-founders of the Herring Run Archaeology Project, Lisa Kraus and Jason Shellenhamer, will share with us discoveries from years of archaeological and historical exploration here. As we walk around the park, they will guide us through the new Herring Run Park Heritage Trail, which starts 11,000 years ago with the discovery of a pre-European contact Native American campsite, and goes all the way to 20th century Romani caravan bases. Herring Run Park was once the home of the Eutaw Farm plantation and enslaved African Americans lived and worked on this land. We’ll learn about extraordinary people like Emeline Jones, who after emancipation, became a world-renowned chef in Washington, DC. Centuries later, Black Baltimoreans fought here for equal access to the park. You’ll be amazed by all of the history packed into this one park. We hope to see you on this fascinating tour!

Prospect Hill Cemetery
2025-06-11 17:30 - 18:30 | Prospect Hill Cemetery, 701 York Road, Towson, 21204, United States
Hidden in plain sight is one of the most intriguing and rare remaining green spaces in central Towson, the historic Prospect Hill Cemetery. Come explore this beautiful, 130-year old cemetery and its rich history and meet some of the fascinating people who helped build Towson, from Revolutionary War and War of 1812 veterans to a Baltimore legend – movie star Divine of John Waters fame! Led by members of the non-profit board who oversee the cemetery, see the graves of over 500 veterans decorated with American flags for Memorial Day and discover this historic cemetery right in the heart of bustling Towson!

Celebrating LGBTQ Heritage in Mt. Vernon
2025-06-12 18:00 - 19:30 | Waxter Center, 1000 Cathedral Street, Baltimore, MD, 21201, United States
Many know Mount Vernon as the home of Baltimore’s Pride Parade as well as the city’s oldest gay and lesbian bars and businesses. But that only is only a small part of the LGBTQ history found in this neighborhood! Join Baltimore Heritage for a 90-minute walking tour of the neighborhood’s queer heritage landmarks, from the origins of the Chase Brexton Health Center to the locations where early-20th century lesbian women helped shape some of Baltimore’s premier educational institutions. We’ll hear about the medical professionals and volunteers who led the city’s first responses to the AIDS epidemic and residents who founded Baltimore’s only African American LGBTQ-identified church. This tour is a unique opportunity to explore the places and events that have shaped the growth of Baltimore’s LGBT community and civil rights movement. We hope you can join us on this walk of fascinating conversation about the city’s foremost LGBTQ-identified neighborhood.

The Catacombs Under Westminster: Two Hundred Years of Tombs and Edgar Allan Poe’s Gravesite
2025-06-14 11:00 - 12:00, 2025-06-28 11:00 - 12:00 | Westminster Hall and Burying Ground, 519 W Fayette Street, Baltimore, MD, 21201, United States
Join us to explore the eerie 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. The burial ground predates the church, which was built on arches above the gravesites, so that the graveyard and its tombstones lie both underneath and around the building. We bet you will also recognize more than a few Baltimore street names as we walk among the patriots and civic leaders buried at Westminster including Calhoun, Hollins, Gilmore, and Bentalou. All told, the compact cemetery next to the University of Maryland School of Law is the final resting place for over 1,000 individuals. We can’t wait to see you “Where Baltimore’s History Rests in Peace!”

History from the Middle of the Street: A Walking Tour for the Charles Street Promenade
2025-06-14 14:00 - 15:00 | 1 W Saratoga St, Baltimore, MD 21201, 1 W Saratoga St, Baltimore, MD, 21201, United States
Baltimore is kicking cars off of portions of Charles Street for a day, and we’re taking advantage of it! On Saturday, June 14, only pedestrians and bicycles will be allowed on a good portion of Charles Street between Saratoga and North Avenue as part of the Charles Street Promenade. Join Baltimore Heritage’s Executive Director, Johns Hopkins, on a stroll down the middle of the street to get a perspective that we normally don’t get of many of the city’s most interesting historic buildings. We’ll talk about some of Maryland’s oldest churches, take in architecture from Colonial Revival to Brutalist, and share stories from the founding of American philanthropy to the role rye whisky played in shaping more than a few beloved institutions…all from the middle of the street!
What is Charles St Promenade? Enjoy the day shopping, strolling, and dining, as Charles Street closes down to vehicular traffic for a full day of exploration and Downtown fun!

Federal Hill
2025-06-15 09:30 - 10:30, 2025-07-20 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.

Druid Ridge Cemetery by Bike
2025-06-15 09:30 - 11:30 | Druid Ridge Cemetery, 7900 Park Heights Avenue, Pikesville, MD, 21208, United States
Join Ralph Brown and Phil Briscoe on a bike tour of Druid Ridge Cemetery to see that, contrary to popular belief, not all famous Baltimoreans are buried at Green Mount Cemetery! Even 100 years ago, some people wanted to escape the bad city air and spend eternity in the bucolic hinterlands of the county. How could they have predicted that they would still end up within the confines of the Beltway? 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. Also—lots of trees and shade!

LGBTQ Heritage in Charles Village
2025-06-18 18:00 - 19:30 | Normal’s Books & Records, 425 East 31st Street, Baltimore, MD, 21218, United States
Join us on a LGBTQ Heritage walking tour of 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. Our wonderful guides will take us on a walk past local landmarks from the original home of the Gay Community Center of Baltimore, now the GLCCB, to the St. Paul Street church that supported the growth of the Metropolitan Community Church, Baltimore’s oldest LGBTQ religious organization, and the radical feminist writers and publishers that gave a voice to lesbian authors who might not otherwise have been read. We hope you’ll join us to celebrate the incredible community that called Charles Village its home.

Booth, Baltimore & Lincoln’s Assassination: A Walking Tour of Green Mount Cemetery
2025-06-21 09:30 - 10:30 | Green Mount Cemetery, 1501 Greenmount Ave, Baltimore, MD, 21202, United States
In partnership with Green Mount Cemetery and Baltimore Center Stage, 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.
*This is a special tour! After we finish walking, author Frank Gorman will be signing copies of his book, Confronting Bad History: How a Lost Cause and Fraudulent Book Caused the John Wilkes Booth Exhumation Trial. After assassinating Abraham Lincoln, John Wilkes Booth was killed near Front Royal, VA on April 26, 1865 and eventually was buried at Green Mount Cemetery. In 1907, an American lawyer, author, and conspiracy theorist proffered the notion that Booth in fact eluded capture and lived for many years afterward, ultimately committing suicide in 1903. In 1994, conspiracy theorists unsuccessfully petitioned Green Mount Cemetery to exhume his remains to verify this theory. They then filed suit against the cemetery, resulting in a trial. In his book, Frank Gorman, who represented the cemetery at trial, describes the overwhelming testimony and evidence showing that the myth of Booth’s 1903 death was a Lost Cause false narrative.
This tour is being offered in partnership with Baltimore Center Stage’s production of John Wilkes Booth: One Night Only. With your Green Mount Cemetery tour ticket, you’ll receive a coupon code for $10 off a ticket to the show.
Accessibility: Although there are some paved pathways, we will be walking over mostly uneven grassy terrain and cobblestones.

Mount Vernon Place
2025-06-22 09:30 - 10:30, 2025-07-27 09:30 - 10:30 | Washington Monument (South Entrance), 699 N. Charles Street, Baltimore, MD, 21201, United States
Mount Vernon began as a country estate for Revolutionary War hero John Eager Howard and grew to be the place to live for Baltimore’s rich and famous in the mid-nineteenth century. The Garrett family, owners of the B&O Railroad, the Walters, founders of the Walters Art Museum, and the Thomases, owners of Mercantile Bank, are among the families that built handsome mansions along the four parks that surround the Washington Monument. Join us on a tour to hear the stories behind the landmarks of Baltimore’s grandest historic neighborhood.

Hopkins Egyptian Antiquities Archive
2025-06-25 17:30 - 18:30, 2025-07-16 17:30 - 18:30 | Gilman Hall, 150 Gilman Hall, 3400 N Charles St, Baltimore, 21218, United States
Please join Baltimore Heritage for a special behind-the-scenes tour of the Col. Mendes Israel Cohen Collection of Egyptian Antiquities Archive at the Johns Hopkins Archaeological Museum. Discover rare ancient Egyptian artifacts (including some not seen by the general public) and explore the fascinating story of Col. Cohen’s 19th-century collecting adventures. Don’t miss this unique opportunity to uncover history and learn how experts are preserving these treasures for future generations.

Booth, Baltimore & Lincoln’s Assassination: A Walking Tour of Green Mount Cemetery
2025-07-12 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.

Historic Clifton Mansion
2025-07-12 10:00 - 11:00, 2025-07-23 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.

Brewer's Hill: Where Immigrants Brewed a Community
2025-07-19 10:00 - 11:00 | 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-hour, 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 by Boat
2025-08-02 09:30 - 22:45 | Harborplace Watertaxi Stop, 201 E. Pratt St, Baltimore, 21202, United States
Join us for our Baltimore by Boat tour starting at 9:30 am to beat the heat! 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. 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 $25. Boat tours are 75 minutes long.

The New Lexington Market & Exploring the Neighborhood Around It
2025-08-02 11:00 - 12:00 | Lexington Market (Paca St Entrance), Paca Street, Baltimore, MD, 21201, United States
For over 200 years, Lexington Market’s wooden sheds and concrete stalls have been a gathering place for Baltimoreans. And the market is still evolving! In October 2022, the new Lexington Market opened in a brand new building. On this tour we’ll first explore the area immediately surrounding the market 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 see the original wagon curbstones with their vendor stall numbers and discuss underground tunnels. We’ll end at the new market to see its wonderful public art and, of course, its merchants (new and old).
