Location

South Caroline Street & Philpot Street (Street View)

GPS: 39° 16′ 45.60″ N 76° 35′ 46.80″ W

History

One of the most important figures in American civil rights, Frederick Douglass spent his honorable life defending human liberties, including his own. Born a slave in Talbot County, Maryland, Douglass was passed around between owners for most of his early life. He began learning to read at an early age from the white children in his neighborhoods and from Sophia Auld, the wife of his Baltimore owner, Hugh Auld. Douglass began reading newspapers at the age of twelve, helping to form the basis of his ideas of liberty at a young age. Constantly angering his owners through his courage and knowledge, he was shipped off to a rural farm run by a man know for “breaking slaves”. Here, at the age of sixteen, Frederick’s spirit was crushed until he finally fought back against his enemy. He won the fight and began planning his escape, eventually succeeding through the help of the Underground Railroad. He immediately joined abolitionist groups and began writing and making speeches. His autobiography, published in 1845, was a major success and his status as leading man for his numerous causes was established.

Notes

The memorial bust is placed on the grounds of the newly opened Frederick Douglass Isaac Myers Maritime Park. The park is part of the Living Classrooms project and is located at the site of the first African-American owned and operated shipyard in the United States. Douglass worked at these docks during his early years in Baltimore. The statue sits right on the dock and is constructed in sections. The artist Marc Andre Robinson created the work and it was installed in 2006. A second Douglass monument is located on the campus of Morgan State University.

Nearby

• Katyn Memorial
• Christopher Columbus at Columbus Center

Links

• On Panoramio & Flickr
• The Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park

Location

Key Highway and S Shore Promenade at Rash Field (Street View – approximate)

GPS: 39° 16′ 53.62″ N 76° 36′ 30.08″ W

History

The Pride of Baltimore was a reproduction of a Baltimore clipper topsail schooner named The Chausseur which fought in the War of 1812 under privateer Thomas Boyle. The Pride was lost at sea in a micro-burst squall with her captain and three souls in May of 1986. She had been commissioned in 1975, was built alongside the Science Center, and was launched by Barbara Mikulski in 1977. A Pride of Baltimore II was launched in 1988. Monument dedicated in 1992.

Notes

Located at the east end of Rash Field, which lies on the south side of the Inner Harbor. The Rusty Scupper restaurant is nearby and the mound of Federal Hill looms immediately to the south. Currently occupying Rash Field to the west is the Trapeze School of Baltimore and sand volleyball courts. The Pride Memorial itself is composed of a central wooden mast held in place by guide wires, a set of inscribed plaques, and an etching of the ship.

Nearby

• Samuel Smith Monument
• Armistead Monument at Federal Hill

Links

• A City is Stunned by the Loss of her Pride
• Smithsonian outdoor sculpture entry
• Pride of Baltimore Memorial on Wikimapia
• On Panoramio & Flickr

Location

E Falls Ave and Eastern Ave (Street View)

GPS: 39° 17′ 7.16″ N 76° 36′ 13.24″ W

History

Dedicated October 8, 1984 by Mayor of Baltimore William Donald Schaefer and President Ronald Reagan, the statue depicts the history-making explorer who discovered the New World. Carved in Italian Carrara marble, the monument is a gift of the Italian American Organization United of Maryland and the Italian American Community of Baltimore.

Notes

We had to ask at the Baltimore Inner Harbor Visitor Center to track down this historic monument – one of two Columbus statues in the city (the other is in Druid Hill Park). None of the three employees working there knew its location offhand, but were soon able to find it online. It’s at the edge of Harbor East and Little Italy, across the street from the restaurant Della Notte, east of Pier Six Pavilion and signs marked Columbus Center (also right near the Public Works Museum). Columbus faces east along Eastern Avenue. The monument and piazza in which it resides are quite striking, with relief work adorning each face of the marble base. The Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria are depicted, along with Columbus’ birthplace in Genoa and his landing and meeting with the Native Americans.

Nearby

• Katyn Memorial
• Frederick Douglass Memorial Bust

Links

• Columbus Monument on a Baltimore tourism website
• Smithsonian entry for this monument
• On Panoramio & Flickr