Inner Harbor

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The Inner Harbor neighborhood is centered on a tourism-friendly plaza that surrounds part of the harbor

The Inner Harbor is a historic seaport, tourist attraction, and iconic landmark of the City of Baltimore, Maryland, United States. The harbor itself is actually the end of the Northwest Branch of the Patapsco River and includes any water west of a line drawn between the National Aquarium in Baltimore and the Rusty Scupper restaurant. The term "Inner Harbor" is used not just for the water but for the surrounding area of the city, with approximate street boundaries of President Street to the east, Lombard Street to the north, Greene Street to the west, and both Camden Street and Conway Street to the south. The harbor is within walking distance of Oriole Park at Camden Yards and M&T Bank Stadium and has a water taxi that connects the Inner Harbor to Fells Point, Canton, and Fort McHenry.

[edit] History

The Inner Harbor is framed by both the city's skyline and its parks.

While Baltimore has been a major U.S. seaport since the 1700s, the historically shallow water of the Inner Harbor (prior to manipulation through dredging) was not conducive to large ships or heavy industry, most of which was concentrated in Locust Point, Fell's Point, and Canton.

During the 1940s, John H. Threadgill, the head of the Steamship Trade Association, spearheaded a study on the idea of a cross-harbor bridge.^[1] A bridge across the Inner Harbor of Baltimore was one idea that was discussed frequently. In his capacity as head of the association, Threadgill ultimately recommended that the idea for a cross-harbor bridge be abandoned, due to the fact that Baltimore relied heavily on a shipping trade and fears that the bridge would negatively impede the flow of shipping traffic at the Port of Baltimore.^[2] Threadgill was named head of Baltimore’s Port Commission during the 1950s.^[3]

The Inner Harbor was chiefly a light freight commercial port and passenger port until the 1950s, when economic shifts ended both the freight and passenger use of the Inner Harbor, such as the Old Bay Line's steamers. Rotting warehouses and piers were eventually torn down and replaced by open, grass-covered parkland that was used for recreational purposes and occasional large events, such as city fairs and the significant 1976 United States Bicentennial visit of tall ships. This initial renewal of the harbor area and its continued transformation into a major cultural and economic area of the city was spearheaded by Baltimore Mayor Thomas J. D'Alesandro, Jr. (1947–1959). Harborplace, the waterfront festival marketplace, officially opened on July 1, 1980. Since being reincarnated as a cultural hub, the Inner Harbor has become the home to many tourist attractions. The two anchor attractions, in addition to Harborplace, are the National Aquarium in Baltimore and the Maryland Science Center.

Baltimore harbor from Federal Hill in 1849 with the Washington monument in the background

In recent years, the area along the waterfront to the east of the Inner Harbor (in the direction of Fells Point and Little Italy) has been developed with condominiums, retail space, restaurants, and hotels; this ongoing project is known as Harbor East.

While little development-appropriate land remains around the Inner Harbor, what land is available has attracted much interest and many plans, many of which have never been realized. In recent years, there has been a decided push by developers to construct projects on the remaining parcels. The ongoing, proposed, and recently completed projects include many mixed-use developments incorporating office space, street-level retail, and condominiums as well as some hotel projects.

Recent or proposed projects include Lockwood Place, a mixed-use project on Pratt Street between Market Place and Gay Street featuring Best Buy, Filene's Basement, Panera Bread, Famous Footwear, and P.F. Chang's; the Ritz Carlton Residences, a condominium project on Key Highway at the southeast corner of the Inner Harbor; and 10 Inner Harbor, a proposed mixed-use project at southwest corner of Light and Conway Streets that includes a 59-story tower, which would be the tallest building in Baltimore (a title currently held by the Legg Mason Building).

In September 2003, the Inner Harbor area was flooded by Hurricane Isabel. The Baltimore World Trade Center remained closed for a month.

On March 6, 2004, a water taxi on the Seaport Taxi service operated by the Living Classrooms Foundation capsized during a storm on the Northwest Branch of the Patapsco River near Fort McHenry. A total of 5 passengers died in the accident, which the National Transportation Safety Board determined was caused by insufficient stability when the small pontoon-style vessel encountered strong winds and waves. While occurring over a mile downstream of the Inner Harbor, it nonetheless was associated with the Inner Harbor by news reports and casual observers. The company no longer operates water taxi vessels in the harbor.^[4]

[edit] Attractions

A night time panorama of Baltimore's Inner Harbor from Federal Hill

[edit] Museums

• American Visionary Art Museum
• Baltimore Museum of Industry
• Geppi's Entertainment Museum (opened September 2006)
• Jewish Museum of Maryland - one of the oldest synagogues in the United States.
• Civil War Museum
• Port Discovery Children's Museum (on the site of the historic Baltimore Fishmarket and the 1988-1989 Fishmarket dance/music complex)

[edit] Ships

View from the Inner Harbor

• SS John W. Brown - one of two Liberty ships afloat
• Baltimore Maritime Museum:
  • USCGC Taney - last fighting ship still afloat that survived the attack on Pearl Harbor
  • USS Torsk - Tench-class submarine; last ship to sink enemy vessel in World War II
  • Lightship Chesapeake
  • Seven Foot Knoll Lighthouse
• USS Constellation - last Civil War-era ship still afloat

• Vessels on active/reserve status:
  • USNS Comfort - US Navy hospital ship
  • SS Wright - US Navy Aviation Logistics Support (roll-on/roll-off) container ship

[edit] Entertainment venues

[edit] Sports

• Camden Yards Sports Complex
  • Oriole Park at Camden Yards (home of the Baltimore Orioles)
  • M&T Bank Stadium (home of the Baltimore Ravens; formerly known as PSINet Stadium and then as Ravens Stadium)
  • Sports Legends at Camden Yards
  • Babe Ruth birthplace and museum

[edit] Concert halls and arenas

• Baltimore Convention Center
• 1st Mariner Arena (formerly known as the Baltimore Arena)
• Pier 6 Concert Pavilion
• Power Plant Live! (a collection of bars and clubs that includes Rams Head Live!)

[edit] Notable architecture

• Bnai Israel - Moorish Revival synagogue now open as a museum

[edit] Other attractions

Baltimore is the home of the National Aquarium, one of the world's largest.

• National Aquarium in Baltimore
• Harborplace and the Gallery
• Maryland Science Center
• The Pratt Street Power Plant (containing Barnes & Noble, Hard Rock Cafe, and the world's first ESPN Zone, among other offerings; in the late 1980s, contained an indoor Victorian era "fun house"-themed Six Flags amusement park)
• World Trade Center Baltimore
• Holocaust Memorial
• Columbus Center, home of the University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute
• Lockwood Place
• Baltimore Visitors Center
• Lloyd Street Synagogue, the third-oldest synagogue in the United States, now a museum

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Baltimore Inner Harbor web page
• Official Harbor Place website
• Baltimore Maritime Museum
• Baltimore Museum of Industry
• Baltimore Walking Tours
• Global Harbors: A Waterfront Renaissance

Coordinates: 39°17′0.58″N 76°36′35.63″W / 39.2834944°N 76.6098972°W / 39.2834944; -76.6098972