Charm City history comes alive in new digital collection

Thu, 25 Jun 2015 10:13:36 -0400
active, baltimore, digital-collections, history, library, photography, special-collections

UMBC students, faculty, and staff now have access to a new online collection of Baltimore photographs through UMBC’s Digital Collections. The Baltimore Collection, which includes approximately 96 photographs and negatives, represents contributions from various donors that have been compiled to showcase the rich history of our city. The original photographs are available for view at Special Collections.

The Baltimore Collection features a wide range of images that capture prominent historical figures and events in Baltimore, as well as scenes from daily life in and around the city. These photographs offer a detailed and vivid look at life in Baltimore in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, highlighting memorable events that have shaped the city’s past and defined its landscape while showcasing the Baltimoreans who lived during this time.

Highlights

Among the photographs in the Baltimore Collection are several images depicting the aftermath of the Great Baltimore Fire, which took place on February 7 and 8, 1904. Nearly 86 city blocks and over 1500 buildings were destroyed during the fire. Images in the collection portray the extent of the fire’s damage, from crumbling foundations of former buildings to wide expanses of city streets that have been reduced to piles of rubble.

The Baltimore Collection also features images of the Baltimore Sesqui-Centennial in 1880, which celebrated the 150th anniversary of the founding of Baltimore. The photographs show streets and buildings throughout Baltimore, including the Washington Monument in Mount Vernon Place and the Baltimore Sun Building, decorated with flags, banners, and commemorative arches.

In addition to images of historic events and daily life, the Baltimore Collection also contains negatives of the iconic Edgar Allan Poe. These images include portraits and magazine photographs of Poe as a younger man and later in life. The collection also features photographs of Poe’s memorial grave in the Westminster Burying Ground in Baltimore.

Access the digital images of the Baltimore Collections here to learn more about the people, places, and events that have shaped Baltimore’s history!

UMBC’s Special Collections is also open to the public by appointment in the summer and as well as Monday through Friday from 1pm-4pm, with extended hours on Thursday until 8 pm during the semester.

This post was written by Special Collections & Reference student assistant Sarah Klimek. Sarah helped to digitize, create metadata, produce contextual information for the collection, make the landing page, and publicize it all while volunteering in Special Collections during spring 2015. Thanks, Sarah!