Mount Hope Insane Asylum

The Hill’s values were, and may still have not changed. It still remains a historical and genealogical area. Residents in the 1930 thought the hill to be a Attic, or a “view from a ole woman’s porch sitting in a narrow high ceiling room remembering her dead, and feeling the pinch of low wages and Negros invasions.” But on Bolton Hill it wasn’t always parties with artist, writers’, and presidents it was hit just as well with what was deemed trouble at that period. Cars, loss of servants, housing shortage and greed spread what some considered heaven in Baltimore.
Blockbusting (wisegeek) is a discriminatory housing practice which has been banned in many regions of the world, although documented instances of blockbusting continue to occur. Several steps are involved in Blockbusting, with the ultimate result of driving one group of people out of a neighborhood and replacing them with another. Blockbusting often plays on fear and racially-fraught emotions to manipulate people and some people argue that the technique has become less effective as people are more open to integrated communities. In the book it talks about how communities would ban together to fight off the mob or other groups from block busting I had never heard of the term. We note around some areas of Baltimore there appears to be a problem with abandoned home or loitering. We would ask why any one hasn’t done something to make the area look better. But according to Bolton Classic the 1200 block of Bolton Street had been rebuilt three times. Once in 1919, from the actually residents of the neighbor collected up to 40,000 for renovations. Again in the 30’s individual buyers bought the property and restored some back to there originally style. And lastly in the 60’s the federal government stepped in and sent funds to rebuild and restore homes.
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-blockbusting.htm

Believe it or not

Not being a normal Baltimorean, I was tickled pink , blue and gold when I saw some of not only the birds (ravens) everywhere, the bugs that sit down with you at your dinner table that come from nowhere and the dog size rats. OMGGGGGGGGGGGGG the rats stories I want to tell my grand kids……… Come to find out not only at one point hanging Negros was a past time events like baseball. There is a war time project (1942-46) by a Dr. Curt P Richter to find a new poison just in case the enemy used rats in germ warfare. Forget bombings or deadly gases, 15 air-raid wardens. Side bar, for those members that are not to old who may remember the drills in school for the 12 alarm to get down and cover your head from being bombed.
Ok these guys and the doctor conduct an experiment in 28 blocks around just his house with other residents willing to see worked through the area “posse” distributed the poison bait on Saturday afternoon on Sunday these people went back and started collecting the dead rats in oil drums. A total of 367 dead rats were recovered on the 1400 block of Bolton and Linden alone. They just wanted to see if they could be struck down if there was and emergency. Dr. Richter was deemed, “Rat-Catcher”. So with the rat population ever growing when is a good time to say Baltimore has and emergency. Just a thought!
But people are running out of this to do check out this YouTube video its BARF.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Yv9I33uob0

Medical Care in the City of Baltimore 1752-1919: Mount Hope Asylum for the Insane/ Mount Hope retreat:
Baltimore was a city with its residents were successful in wining over the British, the medical care was still left as homespun enemies diseases like yellow fever, shitts, typhoid, and cholera repeatedly struck the citizens all over the city. The urban poor were particularly powerless due to inadequate diets, dense housing, poor sanitation, and a variety of bad working conditions. At the same time many institutions charged looking after victims with inadequate funding, poor design, and doctors and staff under misconceptions concerning the cause and cure for diseases.
Mount Hope was founded in 1840 by the Roman Catholic Sisters of Charity and operated as an insane asylum. In 1946, it became the Seton Institute. Fear of hospitals in the eighteenth and early nineteenth century was so great that most cases were treated at home until the patient was near death. Hospital wards were generally squalid, overcrowded, and badly ventilated. We have seen many cases either in movies or history books. The mental, blind, and disabled were housed together with the ill. Private hospitals would not keep infectious patients so they were transferred to the local almshouse. In almshouse medical wards, little was done to quarantine patients with infectious diseases, who, in turn, could potentially spread to attending doctors, nurses, and other inmates.
In 1844 the Sisters of Charity under the Roman Catholic Church operated as a Hospital. The facility was accused of mistreatment and torture of patients. Nor were the sexes segregated, and prostitutes, often suffering from a variety of illnesses themselves, set up business in the wards with little interruption. As practice has seen the Catholic diocese would remover priest from their churches to prevent them from any scandal or civil punishment. Noted may were sent to these retreats for treatment mostly of sexual misconduct involving minors. People share bed with sometimes lying dead for hours before the corpses were removed. In the lying-in wards, women had a better chance of surviving childbirth by birthing at home with a midwife or physician than by giving birth in a one of the hospitals. Many retreats still operate around the world today from their web site.

This is a new walk

From this great book, of Bolton Hill I have kept it by my bed, Its like one of those bed time stories your grandparent would tell you of the good ole days. Reading this book I would suggest to any one that wanted to know a little about baltimore and do with out all the extra volume of words that take your attention away from what you would like to know.



So for tonight my honorable readers as promised we take a walk to Lollipop lane, or I took a walk down bolton st to Lollipop Ln. An when I looked for it or history of this lane it only says it a place for romance and a great kiss. So I wanted to see if the writer had something for the lovers in baltimore. Well in the book the man that is telling about bolton st is standing on lollipop ln in the ally and that is just what it is a alley. Nothing is special, romantic or even glamous its an ally by a beautiful house. I thought that it might jump like other streets do so I took a walk around the corner and there wasnt.

So I have to look some more on that topic. According to the book the roads were named after the men that layed them but it also says that bolton Hill is the misnamed of the actually street that is should be named "Rose Hill" a district was 74 acre estate of William gibson. His home stood were the Key statue stands today. The book talks about slightly speaks about when slavely actually ended the up keep of homes on Bolton Hill change due to the slave were the ones that kept the home and lands. Once slavely ended and negros ( I dare say) no longer needed to be under their masters the homes were to big for the owners to tend to themselves and it showed in pics.

1. 1950 the daughters of confedearacy.
2. blue stocking
3. woodrow wilson
   

So were gone to go back to just the fact s about bolton Ave.

Botlton Classic

My wordperfect just died, So for the rest of the blogg bare with me.

In the Library with in the catalogs and dust I found this small yet unique book.
"Bolton Hill Baltimore Classic", in the beginning of the book written by Frank R Shivers jr. he is sitting with an old professor that other thougt was sick.

In the opening Dr. Sledd the professor relate to Bolton Hill as the place were "People who really were important or had family in baltimore lived there.

He considered Bolton Street had a tone. French for superiority comfortably or well off.

People and places I will talk about from the book and do futher research on are:

1. Lollipop lane (1310 Bolton St) home of a lady that cared for children
2. Dr. W Halsted (1310 Eutaw pl) and Dr. H Kelly ( 1406 Eutaw pl) doctors that started at John Hopkins.
3. Gibson Woods and Bolton Mansion

After the year 1869 Townsend street turned to Lafayette and Garden to Linden because of the men that laid the street foundations.

1. Johnny Jump Hill a section that ventage carpets were cleaned.
2. Brown Memorial Church - know in the book for its tiffany glass and big weddings.
3. Judge William Frick and his villa off of North east of Park and Mosher slave quarters.
4. Mount Hope insane Asylum.
5. 1905 issue of the "Battle of Davisonia Heights: between Spike McMechen and what people called his "Mt Royals" barrl against Bert Eutaw adn Star Lanvale.

The Temple of Oheb Shalom

In Bolton Hill there are many beautiful bulidings and landscape features. But as one searches deeper and reads the signs on the building you see or get a glimse of important piece of history. I have a uncle that is a mason which made my grand mother a eastern star. But what are the orgins of mason and what is the original founder lingered in the back of my mind.

Good questions come to those that wait. I took a walk down eutaw street to take some pictures of the creative foundation of the homes. On the near corner as you start the walk there is the Temple of Oheb Shalom. A Jewish temple that was purchase by mason. Infact the first African American named, Prince Hall. Mr Hall has been recognized as the Father of Black Masonry in the United States. Makin visions possible for African Americans to be recognized and enjoy all privileges of free and accepted masonry. In the late 1770’s many black men were not allowed to join organizations. But the Master of the Lodge in Baltimore was Sergeant John Batt. Mr. Batt saw in Hall something different from others. And took him under his tolage.

Rumors surrounding were and when his ogirinal birth place is located is between Barbados to the British West Indies. His father was an Anglo-Saxon and his mother a freed slave.

Let it be know that along with Prince Hall, there were other newly made masons to join the lodge, "Cyrus Johnson, Bueston Slinger, Prince Rees, John Canton, Peter Freeman, Benjamin Tiler, Duff Ruform, Thomas Santerson, Prince Rayden, Cato Spain, Boston Smith, Peter Best, Forten Howard and Richard Titley."

As history shows a war broke out, many black men or negros joined the military. Prince Hall was presumed to pressed John Hancock to be allowed to join the Continental Army and became one of a few blacks fought at the battle Bunker Hill. From the site is religiously motivated in in ministry and later became a minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Cambridge and fought for the end of slavery. This seem to be the relationship for ministers because they were able to speack to large groups and seen as leaders.

A warrant or doucmentation needed to be sent to England if a group wanted to be noticed as equal to other lodges. From the site on Prince Hall a warrant was granted on September 29, 1784 under the name of African Lodge, # 459 on the register of the Grand Lodge of England by authority of then Grand Master, the Duke of Cumberland, delivered in Boston on April 29, 1787 by Captain James Scott, brother-in-law of John Hancock and Master of the Neptune.

We think of John key Scott as writing the star spangel banner and John hancook as signing the declaration of inderpendce, but a messengers or other key aspect they aided Prince Hall in becoming what today as we know it the first Master of the lodge which was organized one week later, May 6, 1787.

Today, the Prince Hall fraternity has over 4,500 lodges worldwide, forming 44 independent jurisdictions with a membership of over 300,000 masons whereby any good hearted man who is worthy and well qualified, can seek more light in masonry. Quite sure this number has grown and not as advertised.

http://www.mindspring.com/~johnsonx/whoisph.htm

Bolton beginnings

Today I look back on a piece of history that is important to the Baltimore Area know as Bolton Hill. This area is the site for the new armory and the State buildings.