REMINGTON: Remington. Before I moved to Baltimore I must admit I knew nothing about the neighborhood. Moreover, its industrial southern area initially was an obstacle to my exploring it, as it was not the urban landscape I liked to investigate. After living in Mount Vernon for awhile though I started hearing good things about the community and the Baltimore Whiskey Company was located there so I decided to give it a look. Well, the since renamed Baltimore Spirits Company has relocated to Medfield but I have continued to explore Remington nevertheless. It feels like a mix of traditional blue collar Baltimore, youthful energy from adjacent Johns Hopkins University, and some modern touches like R House food hall & Remington Row. With this diversity comes tension and I am curious as to how it will play out. Like many parts of Baltimore this neighborhood hit hard times upon the city’s deindustrialization and subsequent job loss. However, with the Renaissances of nearby Hampden and Charles Village, often overlooked Remington has come into its own. Its housing stock of a variety of rowhouses, many with porches or front yards, make for lovely strolls in the neighborhood as do the many corner homes that serve as local businesses. Adjacent Wyman Park and the Johns Hopkins Campus provide a bucolic eastern border, which along with its industrial south and Jones Falls (& I-83) along its western boundary, give the neighborhood an isolated town feel, much like Hampden. The secret seems to be out now though. Like many up and coming communities in Baltimore it is fighting to keep its identity in tact in the face of rapid large scale redevelopment. Perhaps, along with Old Goucher, its neighbor to the southeast, it can revitalize without being gentrified and maintain its historic blue collar vibe.
BOLTON HILL: Once the home of prominent Baltimore citizens, including F. Scott Fitzgerald, historic Bolton Hill may just be one of the most charming neighborhoods in Baltimore, but good luck finding it, it is hiding in plain sight (a recurring theme it seems). Technically abutting popular Mount Vernon and Charles North, geography and terrible urban planning have isolated it from these communities to the east. Train tracks, Jones Falls, and a highway bound it on the northeast, a stately armory and the very dated, sterile, and brutalist State Center shields it from the cultural life of Mount Vernon. However, the prestigious art school MICA has rejuvenated this area, seeming to give it new life. Moreover, the ugly tracks, highway, and State Center have made the community very accessible as Light Rail has 2 stops on its edge and the Metro and numerous bus lines stop at State Center. Also if you are like me, it is possible to walk around the imposing barricades and explore the neighborhood by foot, and it is truly a joy to explore. (While the Inner Harbor and south Baltimore give the impression the city is fairly flat, since I relocated here I now know that couldn’t be further from the truth- Mount Vernon, Mount Royal, Cathedral Hill, Seton Hill, Reservoir Hill, Mount Washington, Mount Winans, & Bolton Hill. This city is great for your calves and glutes!) The first thing I noticed about Bolton Hill were the grand religious buildings for such a small neighborhood. Once the home of a significant and wealthy Eastern European Jewish population, a large Moorish synagogue that would be at home in the Mediterranean, is one of the architectural highlights of the neighborhood. While now owned by the Masons and no longer serving its original purpose, it is a stunning anchor for the community. Less magnificent, but still impressive are the Catholic, Presbyterian & Episcopalian churches within this historic district. At the foot of the hill is the august Mount Royal Station, one of the most celebrated passenger train stations in the world at one time. Its stone tower and Renaissance architecture providing an elegant gateway to the area. Once threatened with demolition, MICA preserved it and has made it a vital part of its campus. While the grand religious buildings and the train station make up the jewels in the crown of Bolton Hill, the crown itself is also quite magnificent, with large rowhomes with gardens giving the place a Beacon Hill feel. There are also detached homes and mansions sprinkled throughout and a large utilitarian apartment building acting as a visible, if hideous, landmark. Numerous parks with elegant fountains provide a bucolic respite from urban living. On a temperate morning it is a very quiet area to stroll through. Maybe too quiet for me. Except for the businesses on the edge of the community that cater to college students there are but a few commercial gathering places to visit, go for a cozy meal or a cup of coffee. I suppose its proximity to neighborhoods with such amenities accounts for this, but I also think the families residing there prefer to keep their seclusion and continue to hide in plain sight.
You captured ‘my’ neighborhood well. I look forward to seeing future posts.