Though it's the 13th largest city in the country---and one that traces its history back to the early 1700s---Baltimore is often overshadowed by Washington, DC and Philadelphia. In fact, it has experienced an incredible rebirth over the past 20 years, redeveloped its waterfront and sports facilities, and become an underrated yet intriguing destination with a down-to-earth personality.
America's Oldest Game box - goes near BaltimoreBeacons over the Bay box - goes near BaltimoreBounty of the Bay box - goes near BaltimoreThe Inner Harbor is an ideal starting point to explore Baltimore, often called "Charm City." Nowhere else is the city's success more evident than around the Inner Harbor, where new museums, restaurants, stores, and hotels are under construction almost all the time. The newer structures complement already well-known establishments such as the wonderful National Aquarium, the Maryland Science Center, and the Gallery at Harborplace. From the harbor, water taxis give great skyline views and access to historic landmarks and neighborhoods, including the lively, sometimes boisterous waterfront neighborhood of Fells Point.
Away from the waterfront, Baltimore is an amalgam of distinct neighborhoods that better tell the city's history than the sparkling Inner Harbor. There are neighborhoods of white marble steps, row houses, tree-shaded streets, and impressive history and architecture. Mount Vernon, for example, is often called one of the nation's most beautiful neighborhoods because of its distinctive 19th-century architecture and the impressive 178-ft Washington Monument. The city's elite once lived here; today, Mount Vernon is a cultural mecca with formidable museums, churches, and the Peabody Conservatory of Music.
Baltimore has its roots in Maryland's farming past. With its natural harbor on the Chesapeake Bay, the town evolved to become a convenient port for farmers to ship their produce overseas. Baltimore quickly became a seafaring and trading community. Its proximity to the nation's capital, too, assured Baltimore a colorful role in American history. During the War of 1812, the British, having burned Washington, DC, attacked Baltimore by land and sea. On the water, they were held off by the guns of Fort McHenry. The 25-hour bombardment of the city inspired Francis Scott Key, a Maryland lawyer who was detained aboard a ship after obtaining the release of a friend, to write a poem that eventually became the national anthem, "The Star-Spangled Banner." The first bloodshed of the Civil War occurred on the streets of Baltimore. When the 700-member 6th Massachusetts Regiment arrived at President Street Station and began marching along Pratt Street to catch a train at another station, a mob of Southern sympathizers began throwing stones. Nine civilians and three soldiers died in the ensuing fight.
The riches of the Chesapeake Bay helped the city to flourish in the late 1800s, with canning industries that preserved and shipped goods to other parts of the country. Shipbuilding and transportation were viable industries at this time, and the city was an active port of entry for European immigrants and rural residents of the upper South.
Like other cities, Baltimore suffered "suburban flight" in the 1960s, but a renaissance began in the 1970s with building efforts downtown and at the Inner Harbor. The rejuvenation continues today with the opening of newer museums, like Port Discovery, the Baltimore children's museum, which opened in December 1998; the restoration of the city's old Power Plant into a sports and entertainment complex; the expansion of the Baltimore Convention Center; and the opening of a stadium for Baltimore's pro football team, the aptly named Ravens. Away from the Inner Harbor, neighborhoods like Fells Point, Federal Hill, Canton, Mount Vernon, Mount Royal, Little Italy, and Roland Park continue to flourish.
