Baltimore's Inner Harbor: Industry, Immigration and Innovation
America defeated the British here. Frederick Douglass escaped from here. Today we are pioneering watershed restoration here. Join us to discover 300 years of history around Baltimore’s world famous Inner Harbor. Come see how Baltimore’s wonderful waterfront connects the past with the present and Baltimore to the rest of the world.
This virtual tour was created as a companion to our in-person Inner Harbor history boat tour. For more information on our boat tour, please visit baltimoreheritage.org/baltimore-by-boat
Thank you for support from NPS Chesapeake Gateways and PNC Bank.
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Baltimore's Inner Harbor: From an Industrial Waterfront to Haborplace and More
In 1985, WJZ-TV local news cameras captured the view of the Inner Harbor from above as they documented the quickly changing landscape from the back seat of a helicopter. An aerial vantage point was…
Harborplace
For Baltimoreans of a certain generation, it’s hard to imagine the harbor without Harborplace. Bolstered by the enthusiastic support of Mayor William Donald Schaefer, the brainchild of urban pioneer,…
USS Constellation
Docked in the northwest corner of the harbor, the magnificent USS Constellation is a sloop-of-war, a National Historic Landmark, and the last sail-only warship designed and built by the United States…
The Jones Falls
In the 1660s, David Jones, a Quaker farmer, selected a location for his farm in the relatively new area of Baltimore County (founded in 1659), just north of what was known as Coles Harbor, and along…
Harbor Point
The story of Harbor Point is the story of innovation, invention, and reinvention. Harbor Point is the former home of Baltimore Chromium Works (now AlliedSignal), a company built around Isaac Tyson’s…
Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park
The Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park is a Living Classrooms Foundation campus (and headquarters). It is a national heritage site that celebrates the contributions of African Americans in…
Fell's Point Recreation Pier
In 1912, The Baltimore Sun heralded the forthcoming construction of the Broadway commercial and recreation pier. Citing the success of similar piers in New York and Boston, the Sun declared that piers…
Henderson’s Wharf
The ghostly traces of the words “Baltimore and Ohio Railroad” painted on the brick wall give a clue to the former life of the substantial building that anchors the east end of Fell Street. Designed by…
St. Michael the Archangel Ukrainian Catholic Church
Among a sea of church steeples that dot East Baltimore, the five domes of St. Michael the Archangel Ukrainian Church stand apart with their burnished glow. Since 1992, the Cossack Baroque style…
National Brewery - "Natty Boh"
Located in Baltimore’s Brewers Hill neighborhood, the National Brewing Company building, affectionately known to locals as the "Natty Boh" building, has been standing since 1872. The company was then…
Mr. Trash Wheel
In 2014, a new species appeared in the Baltimore Harbor. With 5 feet tall googly eyes, a playful persona, and a steady diet of harbor detritus, Mr. Trash Wheel is cleaning up the harbor one swallow at…
Fort McHenry
Fort McHenry's history began in 1776 when the citizens of Baltimore Town feared an attack by British ships. An earthen star fort known as Fort Whetstone was quickly constructed. The fort, like…
Silo Point
Of the many repurposed industrial buildings in Baltimore’s urban landscape, perhaps none is as extraordinary as Silo Point. Looming high above the brick rowhomes of Locust Point, Silo Point luxury…
Baltimore Immigration Memorial
On March 23, 1868, the S.S. Baltimore arrived in Locust Point, ushering in a wave of future Americans with origins across Europe. Their journeys are remembered in this community through the Baltimore…
Procter & Gamble Baltimore Plant: Under Armour's world headquarters
Today the site of Under Armour's world headquarters, five of these buildings used to house Procter & Gamble's Baltimore Plant: Process Building (1929), the Soap Chip Building (1929), the Bar Soap…
Domino Sugar: A bastion of industry along the harbor
The Domino Sugar refinery (and its iconic red neon sign) is one of the last major working industries along Baltimore's inner harbor. Raw sugar arrives at the plant in giant ships and barges, and is…
Phoenix Shot Tower
The Shot Tower, when it was built in 1828, was the tallest structure in the United States until 1846. Once there were three such towers in Baltimore; now there are only a few left in the entire world.…
Seven Foot Knoll Lighthouse
Seven Foot Knoll lighthouse takes its name from its original location—the rocky shoals where the mouth of the Patapsco River meets the Chesapeake Bay. The sandy, soft bottom of these shoals…
The National Aquarium
How the National Aquarium came to be in Baltimore is the story of three different aquariums that, over time, became one. Our story begins in the middle. In the 1970s, Baltimore mayor William…