Baltimore in 1889

More Than Meets the Eye: History of Maryland Through Prints, 1750-1900
Room 4: Changes in the Land

Maryland Historical Society
Library of Maryland History
201 W. Monument Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
Phone: 410-685-3750
Fax: 410-385-2105
E-mail: library @mdhs.org

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Maryland History In Prints: 1752-1900
by Laura Rice

Baltimore in 1889

Drawn by H.P. Arms
Lithographed and printed by Issac Fridenwald
1889

Lithograph, printed in colors

In 1888, Baltimore contained nearly 80,000 houses, almost all of brick. North Avenue "is graded for three miles, is one hundred feet wide, and is becoming a place of fine residences." North Avenue was still the northern boundary of the city proper, although development was extending beyond. The Jones Falls, not yet built over, divided the city into east and west, and passenger railways provided easy access to outlying neighborhoods and communities like Calverton, Catonsville, Hampden, Woodberry, Govanstown, and Towson. After dark, the streets and wharves were lighted by both gas and electricity.

This exuberant view of Baltimore depicts the city as prosperous and bustling. To modern eyes, the appearance of heavy industry in the downtown area combined with belching smokestacks and rail traffic presents a less-than-appealing image of city life; to a nineteenth-century eye, however, it spoke of prosperity. One resident observed in 1888 that "since 1860, a marked change has taken place in the life, vim, traffic, trades, architecture, warehouses, stores, wharves, street-travel and general city activities. In its wealth, commerce, parks, railroads, public places, residences, church edifices, and extraordinary facilities as a good seaport, this City is acquiring a wide reputation, and attracting the attention of great capitalists and commercial companies." This print was produced to promote just that image of Baltimore.

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Room 1: Immigrants in Maryland
Room 2: Evangelical Religion and Reform
Room 3: Rowdies and Riots
Room 4: Changes in the Land
CONTENTS: Room 4
23. Baltimore Town in 1752
24. Cotton Duck Factory, Low St. Balt.
25. The Maryland Chemical Works
26. The Blue Mountains Md.
27. Phoenix Line, "Safety Coaches"
28. Westminster Presbyterian Church, Corner Fayette and Greene Streets, Baltimore
29. The Baltimore Bird
30. Waterloo Inn, the first Stage From Baltimore to Washington
31. The Thomas Viaduct, Across the Patapsco River on the Washington Branch of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
32. Baltimore in 1889