Baltimore, Maryland

History

During the 17th century, various towns called "Baltimore" were founded as commercial ports at various locations on the upper Chesapeake Bay. The present city dates from July 30, 1729 and is named after Cæcilius Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore who was the first Proprietary Governor of the Province of Maryland. Baltimore grew swiftly in the mid-late 18th century as the granary for sugar producing colonies in the Caribbean. The profit from sugar encouraged the maximum possible cultivation of cane and the importation of food. The relatively shorter distance between Baltimore and the Caribbean colonies allowed swift transport and minimized the spoilage of flour.

Related Topics:
17th century - Chesapeake Bay - July 30 - 1729 - Cæcilius Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore - Proprietary Governor - Province of Maryland - 18th century - Sugar - Colonies - Caribbean - Transport - Flour

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One of Baltimore's greatest moments occurred during the War of 1812 when Fort McHenry came under attack by British forces near the harbor after the British had burned Washington, D.C.. Known today as the Battle of Baltimore, American forces won the decisive battles by repulsing a joint land and naval attack by the British forces. They fought to a stalemate at the Battle of North Point after killing the British commander General Ross. British reinforcements were not possible after the British Navy was repulsed by the defenders of the fort, and all forces then withdrew. It was the naval engagement that inspired Francis Scott Key to write the poem, "The Star-Spangled Banner," the lyrics to the United States national anthem. The battle was memorialized in the Battle Monument which is on the city seal.

Related Topics:
War of 1812 - Fort McHenry - British - Harbor - Washington, D.C. - Battle of Baltimore - Battle of North Point - Francis Scott Key - Poem - The Star-Spangled Banner - National anthem - Battle Monument

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Baltimore is also the site of the first architectural monument honoring George Washington, a 178 foot doric column erected in 1829 and designed by Robert Mills, who later designed the Washington Monument in Washington D.C.

Related Topics:
Monument - Robert Mills - Washington Monument

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Baltimore became an independent city in 1851, being detached from Baltimore County at that time.

Related Topics:
1851 - Baltimore County

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During the Civil War, Maryland was officially part of the Union but kept slavery legal. Many, if not most, people in Baltimore at the time were sympathetic to the Confederacy. Pro-Southern sentiment led to the Baltimore riot of 1861 when Union soldiers marched through the city. After the riot, Union troops occupied Baltimore and Maryland came under direct federal administration — in part, to prevent the state from seceding — until the end of the war in April 1865. The case Ex parte Merryman, written by Supreme Court Justice Roger Taney, dealt with the habeus corpus rights of Marylanders jailed by the Abraham Lincoln Administration.

Related Topics:
Civil War - Union - Slavery - Confederacy - Baltimore riot of 1861 - 1865 - Ex parte Merryman - Roger Taney - Habeus corpus - Abraham Lincoln

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The Great Baltimore Fire on February 7, 1904 destroyed over 1,500 buildings in 30 hours and forced most of the city to rebuild. Immediately afterward, Mayor Robert McLane was quoted in the Baltimore News as saying, "To suppose that the spirit of our people will not rise to the occasion is to suppose that our people are not genuine Americans. We shall make the fire of 1904 a landmark not of decline but of progress." He then refused assistance, stating "As head of this municipality, I cannot help but feel gratified by the sympathy and the offers of practical assistance which have been tendered to us. To them I have in general terms replied, 'Baltimore will take care of its own, thank you.'" Two years later, on September 10, 1906, the Baltimore-American reported that the city had risen from the ashes and "One of the great disasters of modern time had been converted into a blessing."

Related Topics:
Great Baltimore Fire - February 7 - 1904 - Robert McLane - September 10 - 1906

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Baltimore is the location of the Baltimore World Trade Center, the world's tallest equilateral five-sided building (the five-sided JPMorganChase Tower in Houston, Texas is taller, but has unequal sides).

Related Topics:
Baltimore World Trade Center - JPMorganChase Tower - Houston, Texas

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Baltimore is also the location of Pimlico Race Course, the home of the Preakness Stakes, the second leg of the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing. The Preakness has been run since 1873.

Related Topics:
Pimlico Race Course - Preakness Stakes - Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing - 1873

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Baltimore's population peaked at 949,708 in the 1950 Census, which ranked it as the sixth-largest city in the country, behind Detroit and ahead of Cleveland. For the next five decades, the city's population declined while its suburbs grew dramatically.

Related Topics:
1950 - Detroit - Cleveland

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In 1955 Flag House Courts, a public housing project made up of 3 12-story buildings, was built. The buildings were eventually demolished in 2001.

Related Topics:
1955 - Flag House Courts - 2001

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Baltimore has become a prime city for filming movies and television. Many movies such as Hairspray, Ladder 49, scenes from 12 Monkeys and the film Hardball were filmed in Baltimore, in fact many scenes from the 1972 cult classic film Pink Flamingos were shot in the city's Waverly and Hamden neighborhoods (the film was made by John Waters, a Baltimore native). Additionally, television shows such as NBC's "Homicide: Life on the Street" and HBO's "The Wire" have also been filmed in the city.

Related Topics:
Hairspray - Ladder 49 - 12 Monkeys - Hardball - Filmed in Baltimore - 1972 - Pink Flamingos - Waverly - John Waters - NBC - HBO

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In recent years, efforts to redevelop the downtown area have led to a revitalization of the Inner Harbor. In 1979 the Baltimore Convention Center was opened and was subsequently renovated and expanded in 1996. Harborplace, a modern urban retail and restaurant complex, was opened on the waterfront in 1980, followed by the National Aquarium in Baltimore, Maryland's largest tourist destination, in 1981. In 1992, the Baltimore Orioles of Major League Baseball moved from Memorial Stadium to Oriole Park at Camden Yards downtown, and six years later the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League moved next door into the newly renamed M&T Bank Stadium, formerly known as PSINet Stadium until PSINet went bankrupt.

Related Topics:
1979 - Baltimore Convention Center - 1996 - Harborplace - 1980 - National Aquarium in Baltimore - 1981 - 1992 - Baltimore Orioles - Major League Baseball - Oriole Park at Camden Yards - Baltimore Ravens - National Football League - M&T Bank Stadium - PSINet - Bankrupt

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On October 2, 1996, Baltimore became the first city in the United States to adopt 311 as a non-emergency "hot line" telephone number, in order to reserve the use of 911 for genuine emergencies. The concept has been highly successful, and numerous other American municipalities have since implemented the practice.

Related Topics:
October 2 - 1996 - 311 - 911

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A 60-car train derailment occurred in a tunnel in Baltimore on July 18, 2001. The derailment sparked a chemical fire that raged for six days and virtually shut down the downtown area until the heat caused a water main to rupture, largely extinguishing the fire but also causing significant flooding in the streets above. Three weeks later, manhole covers flew into the air as underground explosions along West Pratt Street followed due to residual explosive chemicals from the fire left in the sewers.

Related Topics:
Tunnel - July 18 - 2001

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In 2003, the Baltimore Development Corporation announced that three hotel projects were being reviewed. As of 2005, the 752-room, $305 million Hilton hotel project has received a 9-6 approval vote from the Baltimore City Council on August 15th. A second approval vote is scheduled for sometime in September 2005. The hotel is expected to be built near the Baltimore Convention Center. The City of Baltimore hopes to have it finished and opened by Spring 2008. (See Baltimore Convention Center Hotel Project for more details regarding the convention center hotel.)

Related Topics:
Baltimore Development Corporation - The hotel - Baltimore Convention Center - 2008

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Also in 2003, Baltimore was affected by Hurricane Isabel from flooding as a result of tidal surge, affecting primarily the Fells Point community and the Inner Harbor and surrounding low areas. Many places were flooded including the sports center ESPN Zone, the Baltimore World Trade Center (which remained closed for approximately a month during cleanup efforts) and most of the Inner Harbor. Water levels rose some 20 feet in areas, flooding underground parking garages and displacing thousands of cubic yards of trash and debris.

Related Topics:
Hurricane Isabel - Tidal surge - Fells Point - Inner Harbor - ESPN Zone - Baltimore World Trade Center

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According to crime statistics, there were 278 murders in Baltimore in 2004. Though this is significantly down from the record-high 353 murders in 1993, Mayor O'Malley had promised during his 1999 campaign and the first two years of his first term that he would bring murders down to 175 a year by 2002 ? a goal that has yet to be met. The murder rate in Baltimore is nearly seven times the national rate, six times the rate of New York City, and three times the rate of Los Angeles, California. Baltimore also has much higher-than-average rates of aggravated assault, burglary, robbery, and theft.

Related Topics:
Murder - 1993 - 1999 - 2002 - New York City - Los Angeles, California - Assault - Burglary - Robbery - Theft

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Statistics compiled by independent groups indicate that many young men in the city are under the supervision of the criminal justice system. While racial disparities in arrest and incarceration rates exist in Baltimore, both young white and black men in the city are arrested and incarcerated at relatively high rates.

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