Baltimore Heritage

Public Archaeology at The Caulkers' Houses: Open House Weekend
2019-06-01 - 2019-06-02 | The Caulker’s Houses, 612 S. Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD, 21231, United States
During the month of May, volunteer archaeologists led by Lisa Kraus and Jason Shellenhamer are carefully digging through layers of history at the Caulker’s Houses in Fell’s Point. Please stop by the weekend of June 1–2 anytime from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. to discover what the dig has turned up on our free public archaeology tour of organized in partnership by the Herring Run Archaeology Project, Baltimore Heritage, and the Preservation Society of Federal Hill and Fell’s Point, and the Friends of 612-614 South Wolf Street.
Built as early as 1801, the Caulker’s Houses at 612 and 614 South Wolfe Street are two of the smallest and oldest wooden homes remaining in Fell’s Point. Between 1842 and 1854, the buildings became homes to African American ship caulkers Richard Jones, Henry Scott, and John Whittington. The shipbuilding industry in Fell’s Point depended on free and enslaved black labor and these small homes provide an important reminder of that history. The buildings are also known the Two Sisters Houses after sisters Mary Leeke Rowe Dashiell and Eleanor Marine Dashiell, the last owners before Preservation Society acquired the buildings.
Questions? Please contact the Herring Run Archaeology Project at herringrunarchaeology@gmail.com. Interested in volunteering? Visit the Herring Run Archaeology Project website for more information and to sign up online.

Mount Vernon Place and the Washington Monument: Monumental City Tour
2019-05-19 09:30 - 10:30, 2019-04-21 09:30 - 10:30 (America/New_York) | 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. The recent renovations to the two-hundred-year-old Washington Monument are the latest news from the revival of this historic neighborhood over the last decade.
Join us on a tour to hear the stories behind the Washington Monument and see the landmarks of Baltimore’s grandest historic neighborhood. If you are able, you can climb the Monument’s stairs for a birds-eye view of central Baltimore! Space inside the monument is limited. Each tour is capped at fifteen people and we’ll meet at the south entrance of the monument.
Our Monumental City tours are guided walks exploring iconic Baltimore landmarks in Downtown, Jonestown, Federal Hill and Mount Vernon the first four Sundays of the month from April through November, except holiday weekends. Our Washington Monument tour is organized in partnership with the Mount Vernon Place Conservancy.

Pennsylvania Avenue by Foot: A Rising Black Arts and Entertainment District
2019-05-18 10:00 - 12:00 | Arch Social Club, 2426 Pennsylvania Avenue, Baltimore, MD, 21217, United States
Pennsylvania Avenue has long been a center for Baltimore’s arts and entertainment scene. Virtually every famous entertainer of the day played here: Bill Holliday, Redd Foxx, Cab Calloway, to name just a few. Today Pennsylvania Avenue is on its way to being the newest designated Arts and Entertainment District and would be the city’s only one focusing on black artists. The arts designation will help spur ongoing revitalization.
Recently, National Geographic awarded the Arch Social Club (founded in 1912) over $100,000, and state investments have resulted in facade improvement along many blocks. Join us and our guides who have been leading the effort to get Pennsylvania Avenue designated as an Arts and Entertainment District as we walk through “The Avenue” exploring its history and its future.
Explore all five of our spring Baltimore by Foot walking tours. Our Baltimore By Foot Tours program has been funded by Mayor Catherine E. Pugh and the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts.

Historic Jonestown and the Shot Tower: Monumental City Tour
2019-05-12 10:00 - 11:00 | Carroll Mansion, 800 Lombard Street, Baltimore, MD, 21202, United States
Anchored by the Phoenix Shot Tower, Historic Jonestown is one of the oldest neighborhoods in the city and includes often overlooked landmarks. In addition to going inside the Shot Tower, on this tour you’ll learn about the city’s oldest religious building (Friends Meeting House) and the third oldest synagogue in the country (Lloyd Street Synagogue), and the longest-lived signer of the Declaration of Independence, Charles Carroll. The Shot Tower, the tallest structure in the United States until 1846, stands out in Baltimore’s skyline as a reminder of our early industrial heritage and is a must-see for visitors and locals alike!
Our Monumental City tours are guided walks exploring iconic Baltimore landmarks in Downtown, Jonestown, Mount Vernon and Federal Hill on the first four Sundays of every month, excluding holiday weekends. Our Jonestown tour is organized in partnership with Carroll Museums, Inc.

Catacombs, 100-Year Vendors and History at Lexington Market
2019-05-11 10:30 - 11:30 | Faidley’s Seafood (Entrance), 203 N. Paca Street, Baltimore, MD, 21201, United States
Begun in the early 1800s on land donated by John Eager Howard, Baltimore’s iconic Lexington Market holds the title as the oldest market in America. Ralph Waldo Emerson also dubbed it “the gastronomic capital of the world.”
During the tour, we will visit Faidley’s, Berger’s, Konstant’s Candy, and other vendors that have been in their stall for a century or more. We will also explore the catacombs under the marketplace. Rediscovered in 1951 during the construction of a parking garage, the origins of these tunnels and vaults are mysterious. Were they used for cold storage before refrigeration? Did they house distilleries during Prohibition? We may not get the definitive answer, but we’ll at least get a first-hand look at these spaces that are normally closed to the public.
Be sure to bring your canvas bags to do some quintessential Baltimore shopping afterward. And while 10:30 am may seem early for a Saturday morning, at least we’re not lining up when the historic starting bell would ring in the new market day at 2:00 am!

Maryland House & Garden Pilgrimage 2019 Coming to Baltimore
2019-05-11 10:00 - 17:00 | Village Learning Place, 2521 Saint Paul Street, Baltimore, MD, 21218, United States
The annual Maryland House and Garden Pilgrimage is coming to Baltimore this year on Saturday, May 11, 2019. See the Pilgrimage’s website for information about the event.
Tickets are available online.

Union Square by Foot: What Would H. L. Mencken Think of Summer Concerts & Window Boxes
2019-05-11 10:00 - 12:00 | Union Square Park, 1524 Hollins Street, Baltimore, MD, 21223, United States
Built on the former estate of Baltimore’s second mayor, Thorowgood Smith, beginning in the 1840s, Union Square was The Place to live for a new burgeoning class of lawyers, doctors and other professionals. “Millionaire’s Row” ran along Stricker Street adjacent to the park and nearby Hollins Market (the city’s oldest standing public market building) bustled with activity.
Today, with concerts in the park in the summertime, a significant uptick in rehab activity, and the imminent start to reopening H.L. Mencken’s home on the Square, Union Square has a vibrant feel. Join long-time resident and Baltimore historian professor Betsy Nix on a walking tour to learn about the history of this gorgeous neighborhood and how its historic architecture is helping to fuel a rebirth.
Explore all five of our spring Baltimore by Foot walking tours. Our Baltimore Behind the Scenes Tours program has been funded by Mayor Catherine E. Pugh and the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts.

Live Baltimore's Spring 2019 Trolley Tour
2019-05-11 08:30 - 13:00 | SMC Campus Center, University of Maryland, Baltimore, 621 W. Lombard Street, Baltimore, 21201, United States
Join Live Baltimore for a comprehensive introduction to Baltimore City living! Take a narrated bus tour of more than ten neighborhoods, meet with real estate professionals and community organizations, sit in on expert-led workshops, AND become eligible for $5,000 toward the purchase of a home anywhere in Baltimore City! Thirty Buying Into Baltimore $5,000 incentive awards are available following this event. Ready to buy now? Just curious? Everyone will benefit from this fun and informative event!
There is a $10 per person fee to pre-register for events. Children under 10 are free. All attendees of the event, over the age of 10, must be registered—even if they do not wish to qualify for the $5,000 incentive. No registration refunds will be given. Registration is available on the day of the event for a $15 per person fee, payable by cash or credit card.

Jones Falls Walking Tour with Charm City Meadworks
2019-05-05 09:30 - 12:00 | Charm City Meadworks, 400 East Biddle Street, Baltimore, MD, 21202, United States
We are thrilled to be partnering on a walking tour of the Jones Falls River with Charm City Meadworks and Blue Water Baltimore! The walk is part of Urban Wilderness Weekend, a weekend full of dance parties, art shows and other activities hosted by Charm City Meadworks and sponsored by the National Wildlife Federation.
On our Jones Falls walk, we will cover 2-miles in approximately 2 hours. Along the way, we’ll explore the more-than-human world through our senses, learn about urban watershed ecology, and have the opportunity to reflect upon and share the insights that nature-based experiences yield. In addition to learning about the nature that is around us in the Jones Falls watershed, we’ll learn about the valley’s rich human heritage, from where the bottle cap was invented to why Baltimore has a hundred year old building built entirely on stilts. The ticket includes the tour and a glass of mead at the end, where there will be food vendors and an urban wilderness art show.
Charm City Meadworks is handing the reservations through its online portal.
Register Today!

Downtown Landmarks and Lions: Monumental City Tour
2019-05-05 09:30 - 10:30 | Hollywood Diner (at the Baltimore Farmer’s Market), 400 East Saratoga Street, Baltimore, MD, 21202, United States
Where can you find a piece of the Berlin Wall, a cannon ball mounted on a Conestoga wagon hitch, and over a hundred lions looking down at you from the tops of Baltimore’s buildings? On our Downtown Landmarks and Lions tour, of course! In this leisurely stroll—we cover a little over a mile in a little over an hour—you’ll see and hear the highlights of downtown Baltimore’s history and architecture. Best of all, you’ll discover where all the noble lions, hellish fiends, and neo-Egyptian sphinxes are hiding—the trick is in looking up! If you are Baltimore born-and-raised or a visitor from out-of-town, you don’t want to miss this Monumental City walking tour!
Our Monumental City tours are guided walks exploring iconic Baltimore landmarks in Downtown, Jonestown, Mount Vernon and Federal Hill the first four Sundays of each month from April through November, except holiday weekends.

Tuscany-Canterbury by Foot: The Masterworks of Architect Clyde Nelson Friz
2019-05-04 10:00 - 12:30 | Scottish Rite Temple, 3800 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD, 21218, United States
Architect Clyde Nelson Friz may be be known for the Beaux Arts designs of his later works—the Pratt Library Central Branch and The Scottish Rite Temple (both begun in 1928)—but he was already a self-made man when he arrived in Baltimore right before the turn of the century. He found plenty of demand for his trade after Baltimore’s Great Fire of 1904 and the burgeoning residential growth of the city as it pushed into the surrounding farmlands. One such area was the Tuscany-Canterbury neighborhood—a 90-acre residential treasure, just north of Johns Hopkins University Homewood Campus, celebrating its centennial this year.
Friz was deeply involved in helping to form the character of the neighborhood, where he lived and designed its architecture over several decades (between the 1910s and the 1930s), drawing from such Revival styles as Half-Timbered Tudor, Italian Renaissance, and the Mediterranean. Few may know of these tucked away projects today, but at the time, Friz received numerous accolades through national architectural publications.
Join us on a walking tour to explore some of Baltimore’s most significant apartment houses. Our tour guides are Jillian Storms, AIA, who has been studying Clyde Friz’s life and grew up in the neighborhood, and Baltimore historian Charlie Duff. The tour will begin at The Scottish Rite Temple and include The Tuscany, The Lombardy, and The Gardens of Guilford. We’ll be treated to a peek inside numerous apartments, including the maids quarters that made this genteel living possible in its day.
Please note: This tour will involve hilly terrain and stairs. The apartment houses on this tour do not have elevators.
Explore all five of our spring Baltimore by Foot walking tours. Our Baltimore Behind the Scenes Tours program has been funded by Mayor Catherine E. Pugh and the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts.

From Chagall to Chad: African Art and Judaica at Historic Madison House
2019-05-02 17:30 - 18:30 | Madison House, 4 East Madison Street, Baltimore, MD, 21201, United States
When Paul Scott Rhodes purchased the elegant (and enormous) mansion at 4 East Madison Street in Mt. Vernon three years ago, the physician and hotelier knew that it was perfect for his extensive collection of African art and pieces from his collection of Jewish artists, including several signed works in Marc Chagall’s Bible series. Join us and Dr. Rhodes as we peek through the wonderfully restored historic building and learn from the owners’ collection of African art and Judaica along the way.
4 East Madison Street, now a bed and breakfast, dates to the early 1850s as a private residence that in the early 20th century became the country’s first orthopedic clinic. Under the direction of the renowned Hopkins orthopedic surgeon William Steven Baer, patients getting help for their bones here included Franklin Roosevelt, John Kennedy, Katherine Hepburn, Errol Flynn and countless others. Now restored back to its historic grandeur, the mansion includes period chandeliers, vintage William Morris wall coverings, Persian carpets, as well as African ritual objects, etchings, lithographs and an extensive Judaica collection. The tour will include wine and cheese.
Our Baltimore Behind the Scenes Tours program has been funded by Mayor Catherine E. Pugh and the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts.

Federal Hill Beyond the Views: Monumental City Tour
2019-04-28 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 fortified the hill 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 tunnelled under it! Join us on a tour of Federal Hill and the surrounding neighborhood 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.
Our Monumental City tours are guided walks exploring iconic Baltimore landmarks in Downtown, Jonestown, Mount Vernon and Federal Hill on the first four Sundays of each month from April through November, except holiday weekends.

East Baltimore Midway by Foot: The Remaking of a Historic Neighborhood
2019-04-27 10:00 - 12:00 | Midway Park, 2226 Kirk Avenue, Baltimore, MD, 21218, United States
When the East Baltimore Midway neighborhood began developing in the mid nineteenth century, its major thoroughfare, North Avenue, was then called Boundary Avenue and the community was still part of Baltimore County. Annexed into the city in 1888 and served by the “Belt Line” of the B&O Railroad beginning in the 1890s, home construction took off and the area just north of Green Mount Cemetery became a middle-income community of rowhouses, shops, and industry.
Disinvestment began after World War II and was compounded by riots in the neighborhood following the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. in the 1960s. Today, residents and partner organizations like the Central Baltimore Partnership and Jubilee Baltimore have embarked on a new revitalization plan. Join local leaders on a walking tour to see how East Baltimore Midway is transforming into a vibrant community with school improvements, new live/work spaces and more.
Explore all five of our spring Baltimore by Foot walking tours. Our Baltimore By Foot Tours program has been funded by Mayor Catherine E. Pugh and the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts.

Friends of St. Vincent Cemetery: Spring 2019 Clean-up
2019-04-27 09:00 - 13:00 | St. Vincent’s Cemetery, 2301 North Rose Street, Baltimore, MD, 21213, United States
The Friends of St. Vincent Cemetery will hold their Spring 2019 Clean Up Event on Saturday, April 27, 2019 from 9:00 am until 1:00 pm.
Help is needed to pull weeds and gather debris. Please wear appropriate work clothes and shoes. Bottled water and light snacks will be provided.
For more information or to sign-up to participate, contact Stephanie Town at 610-368-1910 or rakeleafs@yahoo.com.

Auchentoroly Terrace by Foot: A Historic Neighborhood & A Changing Druid Hill Park
2019-04-20 10:00 - 12:00 | Shaarei Tfiloh Synagogue, 2001 Liberty Heights Avenue, Baltimore, MD, 21217, United States
Originally named Auchentorolie after the ancestral estate of the area’s first owner, George Buchanan, today’s Auchentoroly Terrace neighborhood is made up of wonderful houses built at the height of the Victorian era. It is also at the forefront of change. The drinking water reservoir in neighboring Druid Hill Park is undergoing a dramatic shift and neighborhood leaders are working with city officials to improve the park’s accessibility by transforming its encircling highways into complete streets.
Join local resident and public artist Graham Coreil-Allen, a community leader working on neighborhood and park planning, on a walking tour to learn about the history of Auchentoroly Terrace and Druid Hill Park, as well as the direction they both are heading in the near future. Local leaders and heritage advocates Ms. Barbara Anderson-Dandy, Ms. Sandra Almond Cooper and Ms. Donna Cypress will also speak about the neighborhood’s significant African American history.
Explore all five of our spring Baltimore by Foot walking tours. Our Baltimore by Foot Walking Tour program has been funded by Mayor Catherine E. Pugh and the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts.

Central Branch - Enoch Pratt Free Library
2016-12-22 13:56 | MD

Motor House
2016-12-22 13:56 | MD

2300 E. Eager Street
2016-12-22 13:56 | MD
