Tag: Behind the Scenes Tours

Join us at Hayles and Howe Ornamental Plasterwork and Scagliola on March 14

One of Baltimore’s premier artisan plaster studios, Hayles & Howe Ornamental Plasterwork and Scagliola, is currently working on a remarkable project: the restoration of ornate moldings and ceiling elements from Philadelphia’s historic Metropolitan theater. Please join us for a rare chance to see these craftspeople in action!

Metropolitan Theatre, Philadelphia in 2012. Photograph by Chandra Lampreich, 2012. Courtesy Hidden City Philadelphia.

Our late afternoon tour on Wednesday, March 14—Awards from the President to the Queen: Inside Hayles and Howe Ornate Plasterwork and Scagliola—isn’t in Philadelphia, of course, but at the company’s studio on Sisson Street in Remington. This 4:00 p.m. tour is a little earlier than most of our Behind the Scenes tours so you can meet the skilled people working on this project. Wear shoes that you don’t mind getting dusty and sign up soon—we expect tickets to sell out!

Drinks at a storied historic bar and an architectural tour at a massive historic church

If you want to learn a little Baltimore history in a storied restaurant and bar, we’ve got you covered on Tuesday, March 6 for Baltimore on Show: A Behind the Scenes Tour and Drink at The Elephant. In addition to learning wonderful history, your fifteen dollar ticket includes the bar’s signature Tiffany Punch cocktail!

If you gravitate more towards fantastic architecture, join us on our Blending Gothic and Modern on a Massive Scale where will explore the rich details of the Cathedral of Mary our Queen (the third largest cathedral in the country!) on Thursday, March 15.

Finally, don’t forget to stop by the Hampden library tonight for a talk by Nathan Dennies on how Poole & Hunt became Clipper Mill! I hope to see you there.

The entrance to a brownstone Gothic church building with a light blue and red door.

Our New Year’s resolution? Explore even more historic places in 2018

Do you make New Year’s resolutions? This year, we’re resolving to spend even more time exploring Baltimore’s historic places and you’re invited to join us. Please come along on Tuesday, January 23, as we tour the first true brownstone building in Baltimore: today’s Grace & St. Peter’s Church and rectory. With ornate stained glass and floor tiles imported from England, this 1852 landmark shows off the high Anglican origins of the congregation.

We are excited to bring back one of our tastiest tours for the new year: Lexington Market. Our January tour is sold out and there are just a few tickets remaining for February. Fortunately, our monthly market tours continue through May so you have plenty of dates to choose from.

You can discover another chapter from Baltimore’s buried past next month with a talk on the archaeology of Herring Run at the Garrett-Jacobs Mansion on Sunday, February 18.

And, of course, we’re still speaking up to protect historic places. Mark your calendar for Maryland History Advocacy Day on Thursday, February 1 to bring your voice to Annapolis.

Enjoy holiday tours at Mount Clare Museum and the Mother Seton House

As we head into the holidays, we hope you can join us on our two remaining heritage tours of 2017. On Saturday December 16, we’re heading to the Carroll Park home of Charles Carroll the Barrister for The Holiday Season “Colonial Style”: Mount Clare Museum House Decorated for December. In addition to touring one of Maryland’s best preserved Colonial-era residences, we hope you’ll enjoy the building’s holiday decorating glory.

Our final tour of the year is a visit to the Mother Seton House and Godefroy Chapel on the afternoon of Wednesday, December 27. The Mother Seton House is the former residence of America’s first saint and the original St. Mary’s Seminary Chapel was designed by noted early American architect Maximilian Godefroy. We hope you can include this tour in your plans for the final week of 2017!

Finally, we still need your help to save the federal historic tax credit program from elimination by the tax bill now before Congress. This federal tax credit has been critical to fostering investment in Baltimore’s historic buildings and neighborhoods and Congress is now threatening to cut off this key source of support. Developers have used federal historic tax credits on everything from the American Can Company to Clipper Mill, from Montgomery Ward to Tide Point. Learn more about the program from our partners at Preservation Maryland then contact your elected officials to let them know how important this program is.

Rowhouses with colorfully painted porches and bay windows.

Historic holiday tours and events this December!

This Sunday, December 3, we are holding our second and final tour of the War Memorial in partnership with the Johns Hopkins University Symphony. After the guided tour, you can enjoy a concert featuring the symphony and the JHU Choral Arts Society for a performance by Maurice Durufle utilizing the acoustics of the War Memorial’s magnificent large hall.

Over the next few weeks, many local historic sites and neighborhoods are celebrating the holidays by opening their doors for tours and special events. We hope you can check out the open house at G. Krug and Son Ironworks, the annual Union Square Cookie Tour, the Charles Village Snowflake Tour, or another program at a historic site this December!