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Charm City

Baltimore architecture

During the British bombardment of Fort McHenry in September 1814, the sight of the American flag still flying at dawn inspired Francis Scott Key to write the poem that became 'The Star-Spangled Banner,' the US national anthem. The city also claims the first Catholic cathedral built in the United States after independence.

  • 15Landmarks
  • 1800Oldest · Fort McHenry
  • 124 mTallest · Baltimore World Trade Center
  • 15Architects

Before you go

  • Fly intoBWI Marshall (BWI)

    Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport lies about 9 miles south of downtown and honors Baltimore native Thurgood Marshall, the first African American justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. It is a major operating base for Southwest Airlines. A rail station on the airport grounds connects travelers to Amtrak and MARC trains, and the Light RailLink stops right beside Concourse E.

  • CurrencyUS Dollar ($)
  • LanguageEnglish

    English is spoken everywhere, and locals love their city's nicknames. Baltimore is widely called 'Charm City' and shortened to 'B'more,' while the older nickname 'Mobtown' recalls its rowdy nineteenth-century past.

  • Getting aroundLight RailLink

    The Maryland Transit Administration runs the Light RailLink and the Metro SubwayLink, plus a network of BaltimoreLink buses. The free Charm City Circulator buses loop through downtown and out to places like Fells Point, Federal Hill and Fort McHenry. Baltimore Penn Station links the city to Amtrak's Northeast Corridor.

  • Where to stayFind hotels in Baltimore on Expedia Vacation rentals on Vrbo

    Stamped! may earn a commission when you book through these links.

  • Tours and ticketsFind tours in Baltimore on GetYourGuide More tours on Viator

    Skip-the-line tickets and guided tours of the landmarks. Stamped! may earn a commission.

15 landmarks in Baltimore

  1. Baltimore Basilica
    Photo: The original uploader was Basilica1 at English Wikipedia., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

    Baltimore Basilica

    409 Cathedral St, Baltimore, MD

    Formally the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, this was the first Catholic cathedral built in the United States after the nation's founding. It was designed by Benjamin Henry Latrobe in the Neoclassical style and rose between 1806 and 1821. Its sober, classical form made it one of the first major religious buildings erected after the adoption of the U.S. Constitution. A major restoration and renovation was carried out in 2006, and the church remains an active cathedral, minor basilica and national shrine.

    Built
    1821
    Architect
    Benjamin Henry Latrobe
    Style
    Neoclassical
    Today
    Cathedral
  2. Washington Monument (Baltimore)
    Photo: User:ScottyBoy900Q, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    Washington Monument (Baltimore)

    Mount Vernon Place, Baltimore, MD

    Begun in 1815 and finished in 1829, this was the first major monument ever raised to honor George Washington. Architect Robert Mills shaped it as a colossal white marble Doric column. A statue of Washington crowns the shaft, which stands about 54 meters tall. The column anchors Mount Vernon Place, the elegant square at the heart of the Mount Vernon neighborhood.

    Built
    1829
    Architect
    Robert Mills
    Style
    Doric Column (Neoclassical)
    Height
    54 m (179 ft)
    Today
    Monument
  3. Bromo-Seltzer Tower
    Photo: Jonmallard, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    Bromo-Seltzer Tower

    21 S Eutaw St, Baltimore, MD

    This 15-story clock tower was built between 1907 and 1911 for Isaac Emerson, the inventor of the Bromo-Seltzer headache remedy. Local architect Joseph Evans Sperry gave it a Renaissance Revival design, and at 88 meters it was the city's tallest building until 1923. The Emerson Drug Company plant that once surrounded it has been razed, but the tower survives as a city-owned landmark. Today it is also known as the Bromo-Seltzer Arts Tower and is run by the Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts.

    Built
    1911
    Architect
    Joseph Evans Sperry
    Style
    Renaissance Revival
    Height
    88 m (289 ft)
    Stories
    15
    Today
    Arts Tower
  4. Baltimore City Hall
    Photo: Jonmallard, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    Baltimore City Hall

    100 N Holliday St, Baltimore, MD

    Baltimore's seat of government was designed by George A. Frederick, who was only 22 when he won the commission. Built between 1867 and 1875, it is a showpiece of the Second Empire style, with mansard roofs, framed dormers and a rusticated base. Two floors of repeating Serlian windows march across the facade above the rusticated basement. It still houses the offices of the mayor and the chambers of the City Council.

    Built
    1875
    Architect
    George A. Frederick & Wendel Bollman
    Style
    Second Empire
    Stories
    6
    Today
    City Hall
  5. George Peabody Library
    Photo: Matthew Petroff, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    George Peabody Library

    17 E Mount Vernon Pl, Baltimore, MD

    This spectacular reading room was completed in 1878 to a design by Baltimore architect Edmund G. Lind. Its atrium rises 61 feet to a latticed skylight of frosted glass. Five tiers of ornamental black cast-iron balconies wrap the space, lined with gold-scalloped columns holding the book stacks. Now part of Johns Hopkins University, it remains open to the public in keeping with George Peabody's original wish.

    Built
    1878
    Architect
    Edmund George Lind
    Style
    Neo-Grec
    Today
    Research Library
  6. Oriole Park at Camden Yards
    Photo: Aspifi, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    Oriole Park at Camden Yards

    333 W Camden St, Baltimore, MD 21230

    When it opened in 1992, Camden Yards was the first of the 'retro' ballparks that reshaped American baseball design. Designed by HOK Sport, now Populous, it replaced the old Memorial Stadium and set off a wave of traditional-looking parks through the 1990s and early 2000s. The ballpark sits beside Camden Station and the historic B&O Warehouse on the edge of downtown. It is the home of Major League Baseball's Baltimore Orioles.

    Built
    1992
    Architect
    HOK Sport (now Populous)
    Style
    Retro-Classic
    Today
    Ballpark
  7. Fort McHenry
    Photo: Fort McHenry Social Media Team, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

    Fort McHenry

    2400 E Fort Ave, Baltimore, MD

    This pentagonal bastion fort on Locust Point was designed by the Frenchman Jean Foncin and built between 1798 and 1800. In September 1814 it held off a British naval bombardment during the War of 1812. The sight of the American flag still flying at dawn inspired Francis Scott Key to write the poem that became 'The Star-Spangled Banner.' Today it is a National Monument and Historic Shrine run by the National Park Service.

    Built
    1800
    Architect
    Jean Foncin
    Style
    Bastion Fort
    Today
    National Monument
  8. Legg Mason Tower
    Photo: Baltimore1, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    Legg Mason Tower

    100 International Dr, Baltimore, MD 21202

    This 24-story glass tower was completed in 2009 on the waterfront of Harbor East, at the edge of the Inner Harbor. Designed by Beatty Harvey Coco Architects with HKS Architects, it rises about 110 meters. It was built as the headquarters of the asset manager Legg Mason and is now known simply as 100 International Drive. The building also hosts the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School and was pre-certified LEED Silver.

    Built
    2009
    Architect
    Beatty Harvey Coco Architects & HKS Architects
    Style
    Modernism
    Height
    110 m (361 ft)
    Stories
    24
    Today
    Office / University
  9. Baltimore World Trade Center
    Photo: Jmj1000 at en.wikipedia, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

    Baltimore World Trade Center

    401 E Pratt St, Baltimore, MD 21202

    Designed by Pei Cobb Freed & Partners under principal architects Henry N. Cobb and Pershing Wong, this tower was completed in 1977. It is the world's tallest skyscraper built on a regular pentagon plan, rising 405 feet beside the Inner Harbor. The tower stands on a one-acre plaza between Pratt Street and the water. It is owned by the Maryland Port Administration.

    Built
    1977
    Style
    Modernism
    Height
    124 m (405 ft)
    Stories
    30
    Today
    Office
  10. National Aquarium
    Photo: Matthew Binebrink, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    National Aquarium

    501 E Pratt St, Baltimore, MD 21202

    Opened in 1981 during the Inner Harbor's urban renewal, the aquarium's angular concrete building is capped by a striking glass pyramid. Its design was led by Peter Chermayeff, then at Cambridge Seven Associates. Visitors climb through five levels of exhibits, including a multi-story Atlantic coral reef and an open-ocean shark tank. A glass pavilion added in 2005 holds the Australia: Wild Extremes exhibit, and the aquarium is Maryland's largest tourist attraction.

    Built
    1981
    Architect
    Peter Chermayeff (Cambridge Seven Associates)
    Stories
    5
    Today
    Aquarium
  11. Baltimore Penn Station
    Photo: Baltimore Heritage from Baltimore, MD, USA, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

    Baltimore Penn Station

    1500 N Charles St, Baltimore, MD 21201

    Baltimore's main intercity rail hub was designed by New York architect Kenneth MacKenzie Murchison and built in 1911 for the Pennsylvania Railroad. Its Beaux-Arts facade presents a grand civic front to North Charles Street. The station was rebuilt in 1984 and today is owned by Amtrak on the Northeast Corridor. Amtrak, MARC commuter trains and the Light RailLink all stop here.

    Built
    1911
    Architect
    Kenneth MacKenzie Murchison
    Style
    Beaux-Arts
    Today
    Railway Station
  12. Phoenix Shot Tower
    Photo: Smash the Iron Cage, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    Phoenix Shot Tower

    Baltimore, MD

    This red brick tower, about 71 meters tall, was built in under six months and was the tallest structure in the United States when it was completed in 1828. First called the Phoenix Shot Tower and later the Merchants' Shot Tower, it is the only survivor of four shot towers that once stood in Baltimore. Now a National Historic Landmark, it even lent its name to the city's early pro basketball team, the Bullets.

    Built
    1828
    Height
    71 m (234 ft)
    Today
    Historic Landmark
  13. American Visionary Art Museum
    Photo: Jmj1000 (talk) (Uploads), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

    American Visionary Art Museum

    800 Key Hwy, Baltimore, MD

    Opened in 1995 on the south shore of the Inner Harbor, this museum is Congress's designated national museum for visionary, or outsider, art. Architects Rebecca Swanston and Alex Castro designed it on land once occupied by a copper paint factory and a whiskey warehouse. Its exterior walls are covered in mosaic murals made by young apprentices in the museum's youth program. The campus also includes a converted whiskey warehouse and a Tall Sculpture Barn.

    Built
    1995
    Architect
    Rebecca Swanston & Alex Castro
    Today
    Museum
  14. Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall
    Photo: Caseyjonz, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

    Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall

    1212 Cathedral St, Baltimore, MD

    Home of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, the Meyerhoff opened in 1982 to designs by Pietro Belluschi, Inc. and Jung/Brannen Associates. Its oval auditorium sits inside a brown-brick cylinder that runs the full height of the building. Inside, a series of convex curves avoids flat surfaces and right angles to shape the sound. The hall seats 2,443 and is named for philanthropist Joseph Meyerhoff, president of the Baltimore Symphony from 1965 to 1983.

    Built
    1982
    Architect
    Pietro Belluschi & Jung/Brannen Associates
    Style
    Modernism
    Today
    Concert Hall

  15. Lovely Lane Methodist Church

    2200 St. Paul St, Baltimore, MD

    Designed by the famed New York architect Stanford White, this Romanesque Revival church was completed in 1884 as the 'Centennial Monument of American Methodism.' Its gray granite exterior is deliberately plain, while its square bell tower is patterned on the medieval campanile of the Abbey of Pomposa near Ravenna. The congregation calls itself the 'Mother Church of American Methodism,' tracing its roots to the 1784 Christmas Conference. It stands on St. Paul Street in Charles Village.

    Built
    1884
    Architect
    Stanford White
    Style
    Romanesque Revival
    Today
    Church

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