Baltimore
History - Founded in 1729 and incorporated
in 1796 by Maryland’s founding family, the six
Lords Baltimore, the city grew from a tiny village
of 200 homes to a prosperous shipbuilding center and
port. Originally founded to serve the needs of 18th
century farmers, its waterways grew to provide passage
for cargo and citizens alike. Baltimore’s port
was the second most popular point of entry for immigrants
after Ellis Island. By 1860 Baltimore was the third
largest city in America and is now the 13th largest.
Its port is now 5th among United States ports.
Due to its long history, Baltimore has an amazing
number of “firsts.” The Peabody
Conservatory of Music is the oldest music
school in the nation. St. Mary’s, built in 1791,
was the first Roman Catholic seminary in the United
States. The city also is home to the nation’s
first Catholic Cathedral; the Basilica of the National
Shrine of the Assumption built in 1821. The Baltimore
College of Dental Surgery, founded in 1839, was the
first dental college in the world. Jacob Russell started
America’s first commercial ice cream factory
in 1851.
Baltimore is also the birthplace
of many infamous people. Billie Holiday, considered
one of the world’s greatest female jazz singers,
called Baltimore home. George Herman “Babe”
Ruth, the legendary baseball player, was also born
in Baltimore near beautiful Camden Yards (Baltimore
Orioles’ baseball field). And Edgar Allen Poe,
America’s famous writer, died in Baltimore in
1849.
Baltimore’s baseball team, the Baltimore
Orioles, play their home games at the Camden
Yards complex. This complex includes the landmark
B&O Warehouse that houses a cafeteria, sports
bar, gift shop, the Camden Club, and local businesses.
This warehouse is the longest building on the east
coast measuring 1,016 feet long by 51 feet wide. Behind
the stadium, bronze baseballs are imprinted on Eutaw
Street showing the location of home runs hit out of
the park.
