A Changed Perspective: The Evolution of Baltimore through Art and Cartography, 1792 - 1912

Introduction

Maryland Map, 1823History can be viewed in many ways, whether through books, music, or even poetry. However, history can also be seen through that which is unspoken as well. For Baltimore, maps demonstrate how planners of every era envisioned the development of the city. Over decades, Baltimore evolved from a small town into a large metropolis. In addition, some of the city's greatest sites were built, some of which still remain to this day. The information featured shows maps and artists' depictions of Baltimore over the span of 120 years.  By looking at these maps, it becomes clear that the development of the city was a common vision across the decades, and would eventually become reality as the city (and America as a whole) grew older.

National History Standards

Materials compiled in this document can be used by educators to fulfill the following National History Standards for Grades K-4:

Topic 1: Living and Working Together in Communities and Families, Now and Long Ago

STANDARD 2: The history of students’ own local community and how communities in North America varied long ago.

Standard 2A: The student understands the history of his or her local community. 

3-4:Interpret population data from historical and current maps, charts, graphs, and census tables in order to make generalizations about the changing size and makeup of the local community. [Interrogate the data]
K-4: Examine local architecture and landscape to compare changes in function and appearance over time. [Draw upon visual data]

Primary Resources

  1. DESCRIPTION:  Plan of the town of Baltimore
         CARTOGRAPHER: A. P. Folie
    DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED:  1792
    REPRODUCTIONS: How to Order Reproductions
    COPYRIGHT: Copyright and Other Restrictions
    SOURCE:  Cities and Towns
    REPOSITORY:  Library of Congress Geography and Map Division

  2. DESCRIPTION: Plan of the City and Environs of Baltimore
    CARTOGRAPHER: Warner & Hanna
    DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: Baltimore, 1801
    SOURCE: Mapping Maryland
    REPOSITORY: Maryland Historical Society

  3. DESCRIPTION:  Plan of the city of Baltimore compiled from actual survey
    CARTOGRAPHER: Fielding Lucas
    DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED:  Baltimore, 1822
    REPRODUCTIONS: How to Order Reproductions
    COPYRIGHT: Copyright and Other Restrictions
    SOURCE:  Cities and Towns
    REPOSITORY:  Library of Congress Geography and Map Division

  4. DESCRIPTION: Plan of the City of Baltimore
    CARTOGRAPHER: Thomas H. Poppleton
    DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: Baltimore, 1823
    SOURCE: Mapping Maryland
    REPOSITORY: Maryland Historical Society

  5. DESCRIPTION:  Plan of the city of Baltimore
    CARTOGRAPHER:     Fielding Lucas
    DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED:  Baltimore, 1836
    REPRODUCTIONS: How to Order Reproductions
    COPYRIGHT: Copyright and Other Restrictions
    SOURCE:  Cities and Towns
    REPOSITORY:  Library of Congress Geography and Map Division

  6. DESCRIPTION:  Plan of the city of Baltimore, Maryland
    CARTOGRAPHER: Sidney & Neff
    DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED:  1851
    REPRODUCTIONS: How to Order Reproductions
    COPYRIGHT: Copyright and Other Restrictions
    SOURCE:  Cities and Towns
    REPOSITORY:  Library of Congress Geography and Map Division

  7. DESCRIPTION: Map of the city and county of Baltimore, Maryland. From original surveys by J.C. Sidney, C.E.
    CARTOGRAPHER    : J. C. Sidney
    DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED:      Baltimore, James M. Stephens, c1857
    REPRODUCTIONS: How to Order Reproductions
    COPYRIGHT: Copyright and Other Restrictions
    SOURCE:  Cultural Landscapes
    REPOSITORY: Library of Congress Geography and Map Division Washington, D.C. 20540-4650

  8. DESCRIPTION: Map of the city and county of Baltimore, Maryland. From actual surveys by Robert Taylor. Lith by Hunckel & Son
    CARTOGRAPHER    : Robert Taylor
    DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED:      Baltimore, c1857
    REPRODUCTIONS: How to Order Reproductions
    COPYRIGHT: Copyright and Other Restrictions
    SOURCE:  Cultural Landscapes
    REPOSITORY: Library of Congress Geography and Map Division Washington, D.C. 20540-4650

  9. DESCRIPTION:  View of Baltimore City, Md., from the North
    CARTOGRAPHER: E. Sachse & Co.
    DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED:  1862
    REPRODUCTIONS: How to Order Reproductions
    COPYRIGHT: Copyright and Other Restrictions
    SOURCE:  Cities and Towns
    REPOSITORY:  Library of Congress Geography and Map Division

  10. DESCRIPTION: E. Sachse, & Co.'s bird's eye view of the city of Baltimore, 1869.
    CARTOGRAPHER:     E. Sachse & Co.
    DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED:  1870
    REPRODUCTIONS: How to Order Reproductions
    COPYRIGHT: Copyright and Other Restrictions
    SOURCE:  Cities and Towns
    REPOSITORY:  Library of Congress Geography and Map Division

  11. DESCRIPTION: The city of Baltimore City, Md. in 1880 : View from Washington Monument looking south
     CARTOGRAPHER:     A. Sachse & Co.
    DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED:  1880
    REPRODUCTIONS: How to Order Reproductions
    COPYRIGHT: Copyright and Other Restrictions
    SOURCE:  Cities and Towns
    REPOSITORY:  Library of Congress Geography and Map Division

  12. DESCRIPTION: A birds-eye view of the heart of Baltimore.
    CARTOGRAPHER:     Edward W. Spofford
    DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED:  1912
    REPRODUCTIONS: How to Order Reproductions
    COPYRIGHT: Copyright and Other Restrictions
    SOURCE:  Cities and Towns
    REPOSITORY: Library of Congress Geography and Map Division

See also: 

Additional Media Resources

The history of Baltimore's City Government  From the Baltimore City Government

History of Baltimore Neighborhoods From Live Baltimore

Mapping Maryland From the Maryland Historical Society

Additional Instructional Resources

Charts and Maps Used by the Early Settlers of Maryland From the Maryland State Archives

Close encounters of the first kind, 1585-1767 From the Maryland State Archives

Secondary Resources

Arnold, Joseph L. "Suburban Growth and Municipal Annexation in Baltimore, 1745-1918" Maryland Historical Magazine (June 1978): 109-128.

Bain, Daniel and Grace Brush, "Placing the Pieces: Reconstructing the Original Property Mosaic in a Warrant and Patent Watershed" Landscape Ecology (Jan. 2005): 843-856.

Cox, Richard C. "Understanding the Monumental City: A Bibliographical Essay on Baltimore History" Maryland Historical Magazine (March 1982): 70-111.

Cox, Richard C. "Trouble on the Chain Gang: City Surveying, Maps, and the Absence of Urban Planning in Baltimore, 1730-1823; With a Checklist of Maps of the Period." Maryland Historical Magazine (Spring 1986): 8-49.

Lefurgy, William G., "Baltimore's Wards, 1797-1978: A Guide" Maryland Historical Magazine (June 1980): 145-153.

Papenfuse, Edward C. and Joseph M. Coale III, The Hammond-Harwood House Atlas of Historical Maps of Maryland, 1608-1908 Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins Press, 1982.

Papenfuse, Edward C. and Joseph M. Coale III, The Maryland State Archives Atlas of Historical Maps of Maryland 1608-1908 Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins Press, 2003.

Raisz, Erwin. "Outline of the History of American Cartography." Isis, Vol 26, No. 2 (Mar., 1937), pp. 373-391

Schmidt, Benjamin. "Mapping an empire: Cartographic and Colonial Rivalry in Seventeenth-Century Dutch and English North America." The William and Mary Quarterly Vol. 54, No. 3 (Jul., 1997), pp. 549-578.

Password Access to Journal Articles

Some journal articles linked to this site require password access due to copyright and other restrictions. Teachers participating in the Teaching American History in Maryland program with a valid University of Maryland (UMBC) Library card can access these materials through ResearchPort.

Associated Heritage and Preservation Organizations

The Baltimore City Historical Society
201 West Monument Street
Baltimore, Maryland 21201
(410) 685-3750 extension 379

Maryland State Archives
350 Rowe Boulevard
Annapolis, MD 21401
(410) 260-6400

The Maryland Historical Society
201 West Monument Street
Baltimore, Maryland 21201
(410) 685-3750
Baltimore Museum of Art
10 Art Museum Drive
Baltimore, MD 21218-3898
(410)396-7100

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Credits

Teaching American History in Maryland is a collaborative partnership of the Maryland State Archives and the Center for History Education (CHE), University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC), and the following sponsoring school systems: Anne Arundel County Public Schools, Baltimore City Public School System, Baltimore County Public Schools, and Howard County Public Schools.

Other program partners include the Martha Ross Center for Oral History, Maryland Historical Society, State Library Resource Center/Enoch Pratt Free Library, with assistance from the National Archives and Records Administration and the Library of Congress. The program is funded through grants from the U.S. Department of Education.

This document packet was researched and developed by Dennis McIver.

 

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