Twisted Tour Guide: Baltimore

By Marques Vickers

Evade the Tourist Herds and Enter Into An Insider’s Baltimore.

Known and unknown history, hidden delights and fascinating stories pervade the history of Baltimore. This kaleidoscope of discovery, personalities, egos, scandals and conflicts frame one of America’s oldest cities.

This guide transports you to the precise famous and infamous locations where history occurred. The scenes may sometimes appear ordinary, weird, but often illuminate the physical background and descriptions behind events. Many of the narratives defy believability, yet they are true.

This Twisted Tour Guide is your alternative to conventional travel. It accommodates the restless visitor, tourist and resident seeking a unique and different perspective to traditional tourism. Baltimore remains an intriguing historical destination despite contemporary urban issues and challenges.

Historical Events
Battle of Baltimore, War of 1812 Between England and The United States, Star Spangled Banner, Locust Point Immigration, American Civil War, 1861 Pratt Street Riot, Archdiocese of Baltimore Scandal, Camp Washburn, Underground Railroad, Illegal Bodysnatching, Invention of the Ouija Board, Great Fire of 1904, Rosewood Training Center Scandal, Zion Lutheran Church Wartime Loyalties, Johns Hopkins Medical Scandals, Alger Hiss Communist Trial, Governor George Wallace Shooting, Vice President Spiro Agnew Resignation, Baltimore Colts Relocation, Baltimore City Hall and Jail Scandals and Gun Trace Task Force Debacle.

Landmarks:
Fort McHenry, Latrobe Park, Our Lady of Good Counsel Church, The Horse You Came On Tavern, Fells Point, Captain’s House Brothel, Federal Hill Park, Clifton Mansion, Lake Clifton Valve House, Basilica of the Assumption Cathedral, Mount Vernon-Belvedere, Carroll Mansion, Homewood Mansion, Johns Hopkins University, Star-Spangled Banner Flag House, St. Mary’s Seminary Chapel, Mother Seton Hall, Battle of North Point Sculpture, Patterson Park, Asian Pagoda Observatory, Peale Museum, The Causeway, Lafayette Monument, Phoenix Shot Tower, Washington Monument, Mount Clare Train Station, President Street Train Station, Quaker Meeting House, Edgar Allan Poe House, Washington Medical College, Westminster Burial Grounds, Enoch Pratt Free Public Library, St. Vincent de Paul Church, Max’s Taphouse, Garrett Jacobs Mansion, Orianda Mansion, Crimea Estates, Cylburn Arboretum, John Wilkes Booth Grave, Green Mount Cemetery, George Peabody Library, Davidge Hall, Rawlings Conservatory, Druid Hill Park, Babe Ruth Birthplace, George Ruth’s Taverns, St. Mary’s Industrial School, Admiral Fell Inn, Public Bath House #2, Belvedere Hotel, The Block, Emerson Bromo Seltzer Tower, Gayety Theatre, Sagamore Pendry Hotel, Haunted Lord Baltimore Hotel, St. Mary’s Ecumenical Institute of Theology, Two O’Clock Club, American Visionary Art Museum, Memorial Stadium and Graffiti Alley,

Political and Historical Figures
Babe Ruth, Francis Scott Key, French General Lafayette, General Benjamin Butler, Bishop John Carroll, Benjamin Henry Latrobe, Charles Carroll, Major General George Armistead, Mother Elizabeth Seton, Big Ann Wilson, Frederick Douglass, John Wilkes Booth, Elijah Bond, Wallis Simpson Duchess of Windsor, Al Capone, American Spy Virginia Hall, Supreme Court Justices Thurgood Marshall and Roger Taney.

Literary, Visual and Performance Artists and Venues
Edgar Allan Poe, Rembrandt Peale, Billie Holiday, Lyric Theatre Boycott of Conductor Karl Muck, H. L. Mencken, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Upton Sinclair, Blaze Starr, Tom Clancy, John Waters and Michael Phelps,

Murders and Massacres:
Emily Brown Burking Killing, Bromo Seltzer Bottle Poisoning, Spiritualist Emma Kefalos Murder, City Councilman Leone Shooting, Westview Mall Shooting, Leakin Park Dead Body Dumping, Hae Min Lee Killing, Joseph Palczynski Hostage Standoff, Black Widow Spider Murders and Freddie Gray’s Death.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Marques Vickers
• Release date: May 23, 2023
• ISBN: 9798215605462

Marques Vickers

Visual Artist, Writer and Photographer Marques Vickers is a California native presently living in the San Francisco Bay Area and Seattle, Washington regions.He was born in 1957 and raised in Vallejo, California. He is a 1979 Business Administration graduate from Azusa Pacific University in the Los Angeles area. Following graduation, he became the Public Relations and ultimately Executive Director of the Burbank Chamber of Commerce between 1979-84. He subsequently became the Vice President of Sales for AsTRA Tours and Travel in Westwood between 1984-86.Following a one-year residence in Dijon, France where he studied at the University of Bourgogne, he began Marquis Enterprises in 1987. His company operations have included sports apparel exporting, travel and tour operations, wine brokering, publishing, rare book and collectibles reselling. He has established numerous e-commerce, barter exchange and art websites including MarquesV.com, ArtsInAmerica.com, InsiderSeriesBooks.com, DiscountVintages.com and WineScalper.com.Between 2005-2009, he relocated to the Languedoc region of southern France. He concentrated on his painting and sculptural work while restoring two 19th century stone village residences. His figurative painting, photography and sculptural works have been sold and exhibited internationally since 1986. He re-established his Pacific Coast residence in 2009 and has focused his creative productivity on writing and photography.His published works span a diverse variety of subjects including true crime, international travel, California wines, architecture, history, Southern France, Pacific Coast attractions, fiction, auctions, fine art marketing, poetry, fiction and photojournalism.He has two daughters, Charline and Caroline who presently reside in Europe.

Book preview

TWISTED TOUR GUIDE: Baltimore

Published by Marques Vickers at Smashwords

Copyright 2023 Marques Vickers

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Preface

A Vanished East Coast Immigration Hub

Pursuing The Death Trail of Edgar Allan Poe and Less Dignified Clientele

The Finest Brothel Amidst A Fully Functioning Inventory

A Historic Highland Punctuated By A Commanding View

A Mansion Estate of Possibilities Tainted By A Catastrophic Legacy

An Architectural Masterpiece Centuries Later Accompanied By Scandal

The Last Surviving Signer of the Declaration of Independence

A Wedding Gift To A Self-Indulgent and Doomed Son

A Celebrated American Flag Sewn By A Female Entrepreneur

The First Catholic Seminary in the United States

The Pivotal Battle of Baltimore Harbor

The Contradictory Composer of The Star Spangled Banner

Warfare, Surgery and An Asiatic Inspired Lookout Pagoda

A Potential Founder’s Family Scandal Based on Envy

The Matriarch of Early Baltimore Prostitution

The Celebrated Return To America By General Lafayette

A Lingering Brick Tower Becomes A Remnant Of An Archaic Ammunition Process

The First Major Public Monument To Honor George Washington

The Clandestine Historic Underground Railroad Presence

A Tragically Renowned Writer Permanently Associated With Baltimore

Frederick Douglass’ Escape From Slavery to Freedom

A Sole Survivor Wages Battle Against A Seemingly Hopeless Warfare

Headless Chickens Lead of Parade of Paranormal Tales

The Transformation Of A Gilded Age Treasure

The Creator Of The Original Russian Railroad Network

The Pratt Street Riot and Massacre of 1861

An Estate Grounds Flowering Into An Arboretum

An Unmarked Gravestone For A Reviled Assassin

A Cathedral of Books Encased Within Five Tiers

Body Snatching and Burking Infamously Supplying Medical Schools With Cadavers

An Iconic Arboretum Flowering in Druid Lake Park

Who Knows Who Actually Invented the Ouija Board?

The Birthplace Of The Athlete Who Permanently Altered Baseball

An Isolated Refuge Navigating Amongst An Onslaught of Debauchery

Public Bath Houses Before Indoor Plumbing

A Faded Luxury Hotel Still Featuring A Picturesque Panorama

The Block Featuring Baltimore’s Tolerated and Intentionally Contained Vice

The Towering Icon Of A Controversial Pain Neutralizer

A History of Entertainment, Burlesque and Nudity

The Destructive Downtown Fire of 1904

Baltimore’s Wealthy Domestic Servant Scandal

An Immigration Warehouse Evolves Into A Luxury Hotel

The Future Duchess of Windsor’s Baltimore Upbringing

An Ethical Question Of Emigrant Loyalty

An Inaccurate Accusation Destroys A Conductor’s Artistic Reputation

Lady Sings and Lives The Blues

The Haunting of the Lord Baltimore Hotel by Little Molly

A Sage Whose Influence Terminally Passed

A Commanding Palatial Seminary

The Pathetic Final Act For F. Scott Fitzgerald

A Desperate Treatment Failure For A Ruthless Gangster

The Corresponding Ethics With Medical Research, Funding, and Pursuing Solutions

An American Wartime Spy Whose Exploits Were Belatedly Acknowledged

The Baltimore Born Literary Crusader Who Made A Difference

A Communist Inquiry That Elevated Richard Nixon’s Recognition

A Spiritualist’s Homicide Defying Resolution or Media Reverence

A Civil Rights Titan Breaks Barriers Through The Legal System

The Burlesque Queen of Baltimore

The Consequences Of A Hatred Based Presidential Campaign

The Man Who Would Have Been President

A Rampage Shooting Kills A Baltimore City Councilman

Anger, Betrayal And The Abrupt Relocation Of A Professional Football Franchise

A Local Best Selling Author Emerges From An Insurance Agency

An Unconventional Artist Most Comfortable In His Hometown

A Shocking Robbery and Senseless Murder

A Museum Defying Tradition and Expanding A Perception of Visual Art

Where The Murdered Are Buried In Shallow Graves

A Four-Day Desperate Police Standoff

A Speeding Aquatic Bullet Establishing Seemingly Unapproachable Standards

A Multi-Use Sports Stadium That Outlived Its Usefulness

The Black Widow Spider and Her Doomed Partners

An Artistic Alleyway Condoning Graffiti Expression

A Racketeering Operation and Conviction At The Baltimore City Jail

A Tragic Death Clouded By A Designation Of Accident And Homicide

A Supreme Court Chief Justice Obliterated From Historical Association

A Task Force Flagrantly Crossing A Corruption Line

Two Mayoral Scandals Advancing the Fresh Millennium

SOURCES AND ARCHIVES SOURCED

TourBaltimoreGhosts.com, FBI.gov, HistoryCollection.com, Baltimore.org, Arts.gov, ChicagoTribune.com, PreservationMaryland.org, Wikipedia.org, Cleveland.com, SI.edu, Britannica.com, Sports.Yahoo.com, Stevenson.edu, PBS.org, History.com, MDHistory.org,  Explore.BaltimoreHeritage.org, Cambridge.org, ExploreBaltimore.org, Oxygen.com, UPI.com, BaltimoreSun.com, Murderpedia.org, TheBayNet.com, InmateAid.com, Trulia.com, PeopleMagazine.com, Caselaw.findlaw.com, BromoseltzerTower.com, NYTimes.com, PostcardHistory.net, MHT.Maryland.gov, BaltimoreHeritage.org, Historic-Structures.com, Maryland.gov, Prologue.Blogs.archives.gov, CarrollMuseums.org, Hmdb.org, APNews.com, FoxBaltimore.com, CivicWorks.com, Hsobc.org, NPR.org,  WhistlerPaintings.gla.ac.uk, MDHistory.Libraryhost.com, PoeInBaltimore.org, Justice.gov, Wikitree.com, BaltimoreMagazine.com, WilliamFuld.com, New York Daily Tribune, Baltimore Crime Museum. BCRP.BaltimoreCity.gov, ConstitutionCenter.org, NPS.gov, Baltimorestyle.com, HistoryHomes.com, Library.jhu.edu, Smithsonianmag.com, NBC24.com   MarylandMatters.org, AtlasObscura.com, BCRP.baltimorecity.gov, News.com.au, Menckenhouse.org, Los Angeles Times, PrisonLegalNews.org, TheGuardian.com, NCBI.nim.nih.gov, Petrieflom.law.Harvard.edu, The-Numbers.com, Greenmountcemetery.com, Sobopost.org, Rykoskifamilyhistory.wordpress.com, CBSNews.com, HauntedRooms.com, USGhostAdventures.com, The Karl Muck Scandal: Classical Music and Xenophobia in World War I America by Melissa D. Burrage, LyricBaltimore.com, Baltimore’s Patterson Park by Tim Almaguer, HuffPost.com, BaltimoreCityParks.com, ThePeale.org, NewYorkTimes.com, BCRP.BaltimoreCity.gov, BaltimoreFishbowl.com, JMoreLiving.com, Pendry.com, GeneralSaintSulpice.org, Patch.com,  StMarySpacast.org, SetonShrine.org, StMarys.edu, TomClancy.com, HopkinsMedicine.org, CBSNews.com, News.Maryland.gov, Pathways.thinkport.org, Baltimoreauthors.ubalt.edu and ZionBaltimore.org.

Photography shot during 2023. Some of the locations may have altered with time and ownership changes. Many of the locations are still privately inhabited. Please don’t disturb the residents.

PREFACE

Evade the Tourist Herds and Enter Into An Insider’s Baltimore.

Known and unknown history, hidden delights and fascinating stories pervade the history of Baltimore. This kaleidoscope of discovery, personalities, egos, scandals and conflicts frame one of America’s oldest cities.

This guide transports you to the precise famous and infamous locations where history occurred. The scenes may sometimes appear ordinary, weird, but often illuminate the physical background and descriptions behind events. Many of the narratives defy believability, yet they are true.

This Twisted Tour Guide is your alternative to conventional travel. It accommodates the restless visitor, tourist and resident seeking a unique and different perspective to traditional tourism. Baltimore remains an intriguing historical destination despite contemporary urban issues and challenges.

A Vanished East Coast Immigration Hub

Our Lady of Good Counsel Church:

1532 East Fort Avenue, Baltimore

Latrobe Park:

1627 East Fort Avenue, Baltimore

Locust Point is a narrow peninsula that extends east from Baltimore harbor centered between the central and northwestern branches of the Patapsco River. In 1702, the Maryland House of Delegates designated the area Whetstone Point. During the early eighteenth century, the land was sparsely populated, but by mid century had grown significantly due to the industrial flour industry.

On the east end, a fortress was constructed during the Revolutionary War in 1776 to protect the harbor and city from attack. In 1805, a much larger Fort McHenry was constructed and successfully held off a critical British Invasion and bombardment in September 1814. This Battle of Baltimore was the inspiration behind poet Francis Scott Key’s Star Spangled Banner.

By 1846, the peninsula had expanded significantly with row houses and authorities renamed the neighborhood Locust Point due to the proliferation of locust trees growing in the area. Industry accelerated due to the railroads and the implementation of establishing a steamship line to carry post-Civil War trade.

The effect of the sea trade culminated in Locust Point becoming a major immigration receiving station from Germany, Poland, Hungary, Italy and Russia. The railroad infrastructure enabled arriving passenger to transfer via train upon their clearance of customs. Between 1868 and 1914, an estimated 1.2 million immigrants arrived at Locust Point. The volume made Baltimore the third largest port of entry on the east coast behind New York’s Ellis Island (17 million) and Boston (1.7 million).

Nearly one quarter of the newly arrived immigrants remained in the Locust Point area becoming employed by the nearby factories. Our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic church began as a mission in 1855. The distinctive silver roofed Chapel was completed four years later. It remains the most distinctive reminder of the era and neighborhood along with the six-acre greenbelt Latrobe Park established in 1902.

The United States halted immigration into Locust Point at the outset of World War I. The Locust Point area no longer features any trace of the former immigration related buildings. The traditional inexpensive row houses have subsequently evolved into chic office spaces and residential housing.

Pursuing The Death Trail of Edgar Allan Poe and Less Dignified Clientele

The Horse You Came In On Saloon:

1626 Thames Street, Baltimore

The Horse You Came In On Saloon, popularly known as The Horse is reputedly the oldest operating tavern in the United States. It was originally constructed as Al and Ann’s in 1775 in the Fells Point neighborhood.

Historically the establishment has served generations of shipbuilders, sailors and a varying diversity of the working and criminal class. The bar claims it was the last place that writer Edgar Allan Poe frequented before his delirium and abrupt death. He would be found in the gutter fronting Gunner’s Hall Tavern further downtown. The claimed distinction seems appropriate but impossible to substantiate. A designated seat labeled Poe’s Last Stop commemorates the assertion.

The Horse has undergone substantial renovations throughout its history including the indignity of being sold at auction in 2006. Its most distinctive customer promotion is the Jack Daniels Bottle Club. Customers purchase and store a bottle of the fabled whiskey inside the saloon until fully consumed.

The Finest Brothel Amidst A Fully Functioning Inventory

Captain’s House:

1629-31 Aliceanna Street, Baltimore

From the outset of its founding in the 1730s by shipbuilder William Fell, the deep water port brandishing his name has serviced sailors, immigrants and entrepreneurial merchants. Fells Point like any navigational center is a picturesque, bawdy and complex composition.

Ancient cobblestone streets wind between endless rows of attached 18th and 19th century houses.

That edge has typically been gentrified during the modern era catering to a more discriminate tourist clientele. Before and now, shops, restaurants and taverns proliferate the landscape. The rough edges of history the questionable clientele bars, brothels and vice dens have been transformed into polished architectural gems with exquisite detailing.

One of the most unassuming three-story masonry structures crowned by emerald green shutters and doors once touted a vaulted reputation. The building, known as the Captain’s Hotel was described by a client as the finest brothel in a town of many fine brothels.

The 9-bedroom and 5,200 square foot building is currently a shell with lobby space and an existing bar from a former use. Complete renovation will one day transform this historically significant building, but likely without stressing the infamous feature from its storied past.

A Historic Highland Punctuated By A Commanding View

Federal Hill Park:

300 Warren Avenue, Baltimore

Federal Hill Park features one of the most panoramic vistas of Baltimore’s skyline and Inner Harbor. Located south of the present day downtown, the incline was labeled a great red bank of clay by English explorer Captain John Smith in 1608 during his exploration of Chesapeake Bay.

Prior to the Revolutionary War, the hill was a public gathering site. The name was derived from a 1788 celebration honoring the ratification of the U.S. Constitution. Amidst the festivities was the construction of The Federalist warship. The vessel became the name for the hill.

In 1795, a signal station was constructed using a semaphore and 125 signal flags. Incoming ships were identified so that merchants could prepare for their arrival. The outpost proved invaluable for sighting the English military flotillas during the Battle of Baltimore in 1814.

An artillery discharge was fired in 1819 to salute popular General Andrew Jackson and five years later visiting French General Lafayette. In 1851, citizens congregated atop the hill to burn effigies in protest of Americans being executed during the raging Cuban Revolution.

On the evening of May 12, 1861, nearly a month following the Pratt Street riot, the hill was occupied during the middle of the night by a thousand Union troops. A canon battery accompanied them under the command of General Benjamin Butler. His regiment entered the city under darkness and an inclement thunderstorm from Annapolis via the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.

At that time, the state of Maryland was wavering with their support of the Union cause. The temporary fortress was designed as a reminder to uphold their allegiance. The cannons purposely faced downtown. The Union army maintained their presence on the hill throughout the Civil War. Some of the corked cannons still remain. The land was converted afterwards into a public park in 1875.

During the twentieth century, the surrounding neighborhood became predominantly working class. Increased crime, depressed property values and racial tensions marred the 1970s as industrial and shipyard jobs disappeared.

Investment funds, rising housing values and neighborhood rehabilitation resuscitated the area. Continued development of the adjacent Inner Harbor has established a rare urban success story within Baltimore. The Federal Hill district has eradicated significant blight replacing it with renovated row houses, vibrant restaurants and boutique shops.

A Mansion Estate of Possibilities Tainted By A Catastrophic Legacy

Lake Clifton Park:

2801 Harford Road, Baltimore

Baltimore merchant Henry Thompson constructed the Clifton Mansion in 1802 as a Georgian style stone mansion retreat. Thompson would serve as Captain of the First Baltimore Horse Artillery in the War of 1812 against the British. Commercial merchant and philanthropist Johns