Happy birthday, Baltimore! The city was officially founded on this day in 1729! In the early 1600s, the land around present-day Baltimore was sparsely populated, if at all, by Native American communities. By 1706, settlers in the Province of Maryland had established the Port of Baltimore, a vital link in the transatlantic tobacco trade with Europe. Just over two decades later, in 1729, the Town of Baltimore was officially established.
Though Philadelphia gets most of the credit, Baltimore briefly served as the nation’s capital during the Revolutionary War. From December 1776 to February 1777, the Second Continental Congress met in the Henry Fite House, safely away from advancing British troops. Baltimore played a defining role in the War of 1812, particularly during the Battle of Baltimore. It was during the British bombardment of Fort McHenry that Francis Scott Key penned a poem that would become “The Star-Spangled Banner.”
The establishment of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1830—America’s first—furthered the city’s importance as a transportation and industrial hub. Throughout the 19th century, Baltimore’s Inner Harbor became the second-largest port of entry for immigrants arriving in the United States.
That same harbor is now home to one of Baltimore’s biggest attractions: the National Aquarium. It welcomes 1.5 million visitors annually, houses over 17,000 specimens, and contains more than 2.2 million gallons of water—earning it the title of Maryland’s most-visited tourist destination.
Baltimore has a long list of historic innovations:
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1817: First U.S. city to use hydrogen gas lamps to light its streets.
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1840: Home to the world’s first dental college, the Baltimore College of Dental Surgery.
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1844: Shared in the creation of the first telegraph line, linking Baltimore to Washington, D.C.
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1876: Birthplace of the nation’s first research university, Johns Hopkins University, which, along with its affiliated hospital, is now the largest private employer in Maryland.
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1940s: Origin of the first six-pack of beer, thanks to National Bohemian Beer (aka Natty Boh). Why six? Because four was too few and eight was too many.
No mention of Baltimore is complete without Edgar Allan Poe, one of America’s most celebrated writers. Poe lived in multiple cities, but Baltimore was where he died and was buried. His dark, brooding tales are part of the city’s cultural DNA—so much so that its NFL team, the Ravens, takes its name from his most famous poem.
Another famous Baltimorean, though lesser known, is Elijah Bond, inventor of the Ouija board. While he passed away in 1921, his grave marker—updated in 2007—is now a custom headstone shaped like a Ouija board, cementing his place in Baltimore’s spooky folklore.
If you’ve ever wondered why Baltimore is called “Charm City,” thank a savvy 1975 advertising campaign. Designed to improve the city’s image and attract visitors, the campaign encouraged tourists to collect charms from various local attractions—like a living souvenir bracelet. The idea caught on and the nickname stuck.
Baltimore boasts the most public statues and monuments per capita in the U.S., and over 65,000 buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places—more than any other American city.