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The Inner Harbor is a historic
seaport A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...
,
tourist attraction A tourist attraction is a place of interest that tourists visit, typically for its inherent or an exhibited natural or cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, offering leisure and amusement. Types Places of natural b ...
, and
landmark A landmark is a recognizable natural or artificial feature used for navigation, a feature that stands out from its near environment and is often visible from long distances. In modern use, the term can also be applied to smaller structures or f ...
of the city of
Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
. It was described by the
Urban Land Institute The Urban Land Institute, or ULI, is a nonprofit research and education organization with regional offices in Washington, D.C., Hong Kong, and London. ULI advocates progressive development, conducting research, and education in topics such as s ...
in 2009 as "the model for post-industrial waterfront redevelopment around the world". The Inner Harbor is located at the mouth of
Jones Falls The Jones Falls is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed April 1, 2011 stream in Maryland. It is impounded to create Lake Roland before running through the city of Baltim ...
, creating the wide and short northwest branch of the Patapsco River. The district includes any water west of a line drawn between the foot of President Street and the
American Visionary Art Museum The American Visionary Art Museum (AVAM) is an art museum located in Baltimore, Maryland's Federal Hill neighborhood at 800 Key Highway. The museum specializes in the preservation and display of outsider art (also known as "intuitive art," "raw ...
. The name "Inner Harbor" is used not just for the water but for the surrounding area of the city, with approximate street boundaries of
President Street President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese f ...
to the east, Lombard Street to the north, Greene Street to the west, and
Key Highway Maryland Route 2 (MD 2) is the longest state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The route runs from Solomons Island in Calvert County north to an intersection with U.S. Route 1 (US 1)/ US 40 Truck ( North Avenue) in Baltimore. The route ...
on the south. The harbor is within walking distance of
Oriole Park at Camden Yards The Oriole Park at Camden Yards is a baseball stadium located in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the home field of Major League Baseball's Baltimore Orioles, and the first of the "retro" major league ballparks constructed during the 1990s and early ...
and
M&T Bank Stadium M&T Bank Stadium is a multi-purpose football stadium located in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the home of the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). The stadium is immediately adjacent to Oriole Park at Camden Yards, the home of the ...
. A
water taxi A water taxi or a water bus is a watercraft used to provide public or private transport, usually, but not always, in an urban environment. Service may be scheduled with multiple stops, operating in a similar manner to a bus, or o ...
connects passengers to
Fells Point Fell's Point is a historic waterfront neighborhood in southeastern Baltimore, Maryland. It was established around 1763 along the north shore of the Baltimore Harbor and the Northwest Branch of the Patapsco River. The area has many antique, music, ...
, Canton, and
Fort McHenry Fort McHenry is a historical American coastal pentagonal bastion fort on Locust Point, now a neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland. It is best known for its role in the War of 1812, when it successfully defended Baltimore Harbor from an attack b ...
.


History

While Baltimore has been a major U.S. seaport since the 18th century, the historically shallow water of the Inner Harbor (prior to manipulation through dredging) was not conducive to large ships or heavy industry. These were concentrated in Locust Point,
Fell's Point Fell's Point is a historic waterfront neighborhood in southeastern Baltimore, Maryland. It was established around 1763 along the north shore of the Baltimore Harbor and the Northwest Branch of the Patapsco River. The area has many antique, musi ...
, and Canton. In the mid-20th century, Baltimore suffered from the economic decline of restructuring common to many industrial cities in the United States. Old harbors were abandoned with the arrival of
container ship A container ship (also called boxship or spelled containership) is a cargo ship that carries all of its load in truck-size intermodal containers, in a technique called containerization. Container ships are a common means of commercial intermodal ...
s after World War II. Later, the old harbors were adapted as focal points to reconnect cities with their waterfronts, and develop public spaces, tourism, business, and housing. During the 1940s, John H. Threadgill, the head of the Steamship Trade Association, initiated a study for a cross-harbor bridge. A bridge across the Inner Harbor of Baltimore was one idea that was discussed frequently. In his capacity as head of the association, Threadgill ultimately recommended that the idea for a cross-harbor bridge be abandoned, due to the fact that Baltimore relied heavily on a shipping trade and fears that the bridge would negatively impede the flow of shipping traffic at the
Port of Baltimore Helen Delich Bentley Port of Baltimore is a shipping port along the tidal basins of the three branches of the Patapsco River in Baltimore, Maryland on the upper northwest shore of the Chesapeake Bay. It is the nation's largest port facilities fo ...
. Threadgill was named head of Baltimore's Port Commission during the 1950s. In the 1950s, economic changes ended both the freight and passenger use of the Inner Harbor, such as the Old Bay Line's steamers. Rotting warehouses and piers were eventually torn down and replaced by open, grass-covered parkland that was used for recreational purposes and occasional large events. The waterfront was gradually transformed with award-winning parks and plazas surrounded by office buildings, hotels and leisure attractions, which reversed the city's decline and became a model for urban renaissance in cities around the world. The renewal of Baltimore's Inner Harbor area began with the adoption of the
Charles Center Charles Center is a large-scale urban redevelopment project in central Baltimore's downtown business district of the late 1950s and early 1960s. Beginning in 1954, a group called the "Committee for Downtown" promoted a master plan for arresting th ...
project by the City Council and Mayor
Thomas D'Alesandro Thomas Ludwig John D'Alesandro Jr. (August 1, 1903 – August 23, 1987) was an American politician who served as the 39th mayor of Baltimore from 1947 to 1959. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously represented in the United States H ...
in March 1958. Between 1958 and 1965, Baltimore renewed the center of its business district by rebuilding Charles Center with office buildings, hotels, and retail shops. At the beginning of mayor
Theodore R. McKeldin Theodore Roosevelt McKeldin (November 20, 1900August 10, 1974) was an American politician. He was a member of the Republican Party, served as mayor of Baltimore twice, from 1943 to 1947 and again from 1963 to 1967. McKeldin was the 53rd Govern ...
's second term in 1963, the redevelopment program was expanded to include surrounding the Inner Harbor. Corporate headquarters and hotels were built around the shoreline of the Inner Harbor. A public park and promenade were added for leisure activity and community gatherings. On July 4, 1976, following the rendezvous of Tall Ships in New York for the
U.S. Bicentennial The United States Bicentennial was a series of celebrations and observances during the mid-1970s that paid tribute to historical events leading up to the creation of the United States of America as an independent republic. It was a central event ...
, eight ships from other nations visited Baltimore, where they attracted a huge number of tourists. This interest helped spur the development of other tourist attractions – including the National Aquarium,
Maryland Science Center The Maryland Science Center, located in Baltimore's Inner Harbor, opened to the public in 1976. It includes three levels of exhibits, a planetarium, and an observatory. It was one of the original structures that drove the revitalization of the ...
, and the
Harborplace Harborplace is a shopping complex on the Inner Harbor in Baltimore, Maryland. Description The property is composed of 2 two-story pavilions: the Pratt Street Pavilion and the Light Street Pavilion. Each of these buildings contains many stores an ...
festival marketplace A festival marketplace is a European-style shopping market in the United States. It is an effort to revitalize downtown areas in major US cities begun in the late 20th century. Festival marketplaces were a leading downtown revitalization strategy ...
(operated by
The Rouse Company The Rouse Company, founded by Hunter Moss and James W. Rouse in 1939, was a publicly held shopping mall and community developer from 1956 until 2004, when General Growth Properties (GGP) purchased the company. Beginnings - Moss-Rouse Company ...
), which opened on July 4, 1980. The nearby
Baltimore Convention Center The Baltimore Convention Center is a convention and exhibition hall located in downtown Baltimore, Maryland. The center is a municipal building owned and operated by the City of Baltimore. The facility was constructed in two separate phases: th ...
and
Hyatt Regency Hyatt Hotels Corporation, commonly known as Hyatt Hotels & Resorts, is an American multinational hospitality company headquartered in the Riverside Plaza area of Chicago that manages and franchises luxury and business hotels, resorts, and vacat ...
Baltimore Hotel added to the services and resulted in population density and visitors. With the success of the Inner Harbor in the 1970s and 1980s, Baltimore became a worldwide tourist destination and model of urban planning and development. It influenced more than 100 other cities and won more than 40 national or international awards, including a citation by the
American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to su ...
in 1984 as "one of the supreme achievements of large-scale urban design and development in U.S. history". In recent years, the area along the waterfront to the east of the Inner Harbor (in the direction of Fells Point and
Little Italy Little Italy is a general name for an ethnic enclave populated primarily by Italians or people of Italian ancestry, usually in an urban neighborhood. The concept of "Little Italy" holds many different aspects of the Italian culture. There are ...
) has been developed with condominiums, retail space, restaurants, and hotels – an ongoing project known as
Harbor East Inner Harbor East, now more recently referred to more commonly as simply as Harbor East, is a relatively new mixed-use development project in Baltimore, Maryland, United States along the northern shoreline of the Northwest Branch of the Pataps ...
. While little development land remains around the Inner Harbor, the available land has been subject to many plans, which have not been realized. Recently completed projects include mixed-use developments incorporating office space, street-level retail, and condominiums, as well as hotel projects such as the
Ritz Carlton The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, LLC is an American multinational company that operates the luxury hotel chain known as The Ritz-Carlton. The company has 108 luxury hotels and resorts in 30 countries and territories with 29,158 rooms, in addi ...
Residences, a condominium project on
Key Highway Maryland Route 2 (MD 2) is the longest state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The route runs from Solomons Island in Calvert County north to an intersection with U.S. Route 1 (US 1)/ US 40 Truck ( North Avenue) in Baltimore. The route ...
at the southeast corner of the Inner Harbor. In September 2003, the Inner Harbor area was flooded by
Hurricane Isabel Hurricane Isabel was the strongest Atlantic hurricane since Mitch, and the deadliest, costliest, and most intense hurricane in the 2003 Atlantic hurricane season. Hurricane Isabel was also the strongest hurricane in the open waters of the Atlan ...
. The
Baltimore World Trade Center Located on the Inner Harbor of Baltimore, Maryland, the Baltimore World Trade Center is the world's tallest regular pentagonal-based skyscraper (the pentagonal-based JPMorgan Chase Tower in Houston is taller, but is not regular). It was designed ...
remained closed for a month, but all the other buildings were saved from flooding by the Inner Harbor development controls, which were created by the master developer team of Charles Center-Inner Harbor Management, Inc. In March 2004, a
water taxi A water taxi or a water bus is a watercraft used to provide public or private transport, usually, but not always, in an urban environment. Service may be scheduled with multiple stops, operating in a similar manner to a bus, or o ...
capsized during a storm on the Northwest Branch of the Patapsco River near Fort McHenry. While occurring over a mile downstream of the Inner Harbor, the accident was associated with the Inner Harbor by news reports and casual observers. Five passengers died in the accident, which the
National Transportation Safety Board The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and incid ...
determined was caused when the small pontoon-style vessel encountered unpredictable strong winds and waves.


Attractions


Museums

*
American Visionary Art Museum The American Visionary Art Museum (AVAM) is an art museum located in Baltimore, Maryland's Federal Hill neighborhood at 800 Key Highway. The museum specializes in the preservation and display of outsider art (also known as "intuitive art," "raw ...
* Baltimore Public Works Museum (opened 1982; closed 2010) * Baltimore Museum of Industry *Civil War Museum at
President Street Station The President Street Station in Baltimore, Maryland, is a former train station and railroad terminal. Built in 1849 and opened in February 1850, the station saw some of the earliest bloodshed of the American Civil War (1861-1865), and was an impo ...
*
Geppi's Entertainment Museum Geppi's Entertainment Museum was a 16,000-square-foot (1,500 m2) privately owned pop culture museum located at historic Camden Station at Camden Yards in Baltimore, Maryland. The museum chronicled the history of pop culture in America from the ...
(opened 2006; closed 2018) * Jewish Museum of Maryland at Lloyd Street Synagogue *
National Museum of Dentistry The Dr. Samuel D. Harris National Museum of Dentistry – located in Baltimore, Maryland, and opened in 1996 – preserves and exhibits the history of dentistry in United States and throughout the world. Situated on the campus of the University ...
* Port Discovery Children's Museum (on the site of the historic Baltimore Fishmarket) * Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture *
Ripley's Believe It or Not! Odditorium ''Ripley's Believe It or Not!'' is an American franchise founded by Robert Ripley, which deals in bizarre events and items so strange and unusual that readers might question the claims. Originally a newspaper panel, the ''Believe It or Not'' fea ...
(opened 2012; closed 2020) *
Sports Legends Museum at Camden Yards Sports Legends Museum at Camden Yards was a non-profit sports museum in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, owned and operated by the Camden Yards Sports Complex#Babe Ruth Birthplace and Museum, Babe Ruth Birthplace & Museum. It opened on May 14, ...
(opened 2005; closed 2015)


Ships

*
Historic Ships in Baltimore Historic Ships in Baltimore, created as a result of the merger of the USS Constellation Museum and the Baltimore Maritime Museum, is a maritime museum located in the Inner Harbor of Baltimore, Maryland in the United States. The museum's collecti ...
: ** US Coast Guard Cutter WHCEC-37 – last fighting ship still afloat that survived the attack on
Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...
** – ''Tench''-class submarine; last ship to sink enemy vessel in
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
** Lightship ''Chesapeake'' **
Seven Foot Knoll Light The Seven Foot Knoll Light was built in 1855 and is the oldest screw-pile lighthouse in Maryland. It was located atop Seven Foot Knoll in the Chesapeake Bay until it was replaced by a modern navigational aid and relocated to Baltimore's Inner Har ...
house ** – only
Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
-era ship still afloat *Vessels on active/reserve status: **  – US Navy Aviation Logistics Support (roll-on/roll-off) container ship *Former vessels **  – US Navy hospital ship (in Baltimore through March 2013)


Entertainment venues


Sports

*
Camden Yards Sports Complex The Camden Yards Sports Complex is located in the center of Baltimore, Maryland. The complex is composed of multiple buildings and stadiums including Oriole Park at Camden Yards and M&T Bank Stadium. The two stadiums are home to the Baltimore Or ...
**
Baltimore Grand Prix The Grand Prix of Baltimore presented by SRT was an IndyCar Series and American Le Mans Series race for 3 years held on a street circuit in Baltimore, Maryland. The inaugural race was held September 4, 2011. ESPN said it was the best inaugural ...
(street race for Indycar and
American Le Mans Series The American Le Mans Series (ALMS) was a sports car racing series based in the United States and Canada. It consisted of a series of endurance and sprint races, and was created in the spirit of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The American Le Mans' hea ...
) **
Oriole Park at Camden Yards The Oriole Park at Camden Yards is a baseball stadium located in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the home field of Major League Baseball's Baltimore Orioles, and the first of the "retro" major league ballparks constructed during the 1990s and early ...
(home of the
Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...
) **
M&T Bank Stadium M&T Bank Stadium is a multi-purpose football stadium located in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the home of the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). The stadium is immediately adjacent to Oriole Park at Camden Yards, the home of the ...
(home of the
Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its ...
; formerly known as PSINet Stadium and then as Ravens Stadium) **
Sports Legends Museum at Camden Yards Sports Legends Museum at Camden Yards was a non-profit sports museum in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, owned and operated by the Camden Yards Sports Complex#Babe Ruth Birthplace and Museum, Babe Ruth Birthplace & Museum. It opened on May 14, ...
(closed 2015) **
Babe Ruth George Herman "Babe" Ruth Jr. (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Su ...
birthplace and museum


Concert halls and arenas

*
Baltimore Convention Center The Baltimore Convention Center is a convention and exhibition hall located in downtown Baltimore, Maryland. The center is a municipal building owned and operated by the City of Baltimore. The facility was constructed in two separate phases: th ...
*
Royal Farms Arena CFG Bank Arena (originally the Baltimore Civic Center and formerly Royal Farms Arena, Baltimore Arena and 1st Mariner Arena) is a multipurpose arena in Baltimore, Maryland. This venue is located about one block away from the Baltimore Convention ...
(formerly known as the Civic Center and previously as Baltimore Arena and 1st Mariner Arena) *
Pier Six Pavilion Pier Six Pavilion is a music venue located in Baltimore, Maryland. The waterfront venue is located on Pier Six of the Inner Harbor and opened in 1981. History The venue opened in 1981 as a temporary structure known as the "Harbor Lights Concert ...
*
Power Plant Live! Power Plant Live! is a collection of bars, restaurants and other businesses in the Inner Harbor section of downtown Baltimore, Maryland. It was developed by The Cordish Companies and opened in phases during 2001, 2002, and 2003. The entertainme ...
(a collection of bars and clubs that includes
Rams Head Live! Rams Head Live! is an indoor music venue, club, and bar located in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Located in the Power Plant Live! district of downtown Baltimore, the venue is surrounded by several other bars and clubs. Rams Head Live! ...
)


Notable architecture

*
National Katyń Memorial The National Katyń Memorial is a monument in Baltimore, Maryland, which memorializes the victims of the 1940 Katyn massacre of Polish nationals carried out by Soviet forces. Baltimore's Polish-American community was instrumental in having the mo ...
* Bnai Israel – an active
Moorish Revival Moorish Revival or Neo-Moorish is one of the exotic revival architectural styles that were adopted by architects of Europe and the Americas in the wake of Romanticist Orientalism. It reached the height of its popularity after the mid-19th centu ...
synagogue The Lloyd Street Synagogue, just up the street, is a museum. Between the two synagogue buildings is the Jewish Museum of Maryland.


Other attractions

*
National Aquarium in Baltimore The National Aquarium – also known as National Aquarium in Baltimore and formerly known as Baltimore Aquarium – is a non-profit public aquarium located at 501 East Pratt Street on Pier 3 in the Inner Harbor area of downtown Baltimore, Maryl ...
* Harborplace and the Gallery (which includes a Ripley's Believe It or Not! museum) *
Maryland Science Center The Maryland Science Center, located in Baltimore's Inner Harbor, opened to the public in 1976. It includes three levels of exhibits, a planetarium, and an observatory. It was one of the original structures that drove the revitalization of the ...
*The
Pratt Street Power Plant The Pratt Street Power Plant — also known as the Pier Four Power Plant, The Power Plant, "Pratt Street Toenail", and Pratt Street Station — is a historic former power plant located in downtown Baltimore, Maryland, USA. It has undergone signif ...
(containing
Barnes & Noble Barnes & Noble Booksellers is an American bookseller. It is a Fortune 1000 company and the bookseller with the largest number of retail outlets in the United States. As of July 7, 2020, the company operates 614 retail stores across all 50 U. ...
,
Hard Rock Cafe Hard Rock Cafe, Inc. is a British-based multinational chain of theme restaurants, memorabilia shops, casinos and museums founded in 1971 by Isaac Tigrett and Peter Morton in London. In 1979, the cafe began covering its walls with rock and rol ...
, and the original
ESPN Zone ESPN Zone was a theme restaurant and entertainment center chain in the United States that included arcades, TV studios, and radio studios, operated by the Disney Regional Entertainment subsidiary of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts using the Disne ...
, which closed in June 2010; in the late 1980s, contained an indoor
Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...
"fun house"-themed
Six Flags Six Flags Entertainment Corporation is an American amusement park corporation, headquartered in Arlington, Texas. It has properties in Canada, Mexico, and the United States. Six Flags owns the most theme parks and waterparks combined of any amu ...
amusement park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...
) *Top of the World at the
Baltimore World Trade Center Located on the Inner Harbor of Baltimore, Maryland, the Baltimore World Trade Center is the world's tallest regular pentagonal-based skyscraper (the pentagonal-based JPMorgan Chase Tower in Houston is taller, but is not regular). It was designed ...
*Holocaust Memorial *Columbus Center, home of the
University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute Formed in 1985, the University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute (UMBI) is part of the University System of Maryland. It was created to provide a unified focus for Maryland's biotechnology research and education. About UMBI The University of ...
*Lockwood Place * Baltimore Visitor Center * Lloyd Street Synagogue, the third-oldest synagogue in the United States, now a museum * McKeldin Square


Free speech

As a central and busy part of Baltimore, the Inner Harbor has been the site of much political and artistic activity. The city is involved in ongoing disputes over
free speech Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recog ...
in the area. One early conflict concerned marchers for gay rights, whose permit was revoked by the city. (The city announced that only five or fewer people could march, and that they could not carry signs.)
The Rouse Company The Rouse Company, founded by Hunter Moss and James W. Rouse in 1939, was a publicly held shopping mall and community developer from 1956 until 2004, when General Growth Properties (GGP) purchased the company. Beginnings - Moss-Rouse Company ...
, which began operating
Harborplace Harborplace is a shopping complex on the Inner Harbor in Baltimore, Maryland. Description The property is composed of 2 two-story pavilions: the Pratt Street Pavilion and the Light Street Pavilion. Each of these buildings contains many stores an ...
in 1980, has long been in conflict with street performers. The company regulates performances, and has often been accused of suppressing free speech. These disputes came to a head in 2002–2003, when two events triggered a lawsuit against the city.


ACLU lawsuit

On October 21, 2002, street performer Jerry Rowan was banned from the area for making an "insensitive" joke. Discussing the then-current D.C. sniper case, Rowan said: "I was driving downtown this morning, and on the radio I heard that they've finally come out with a composite of the sniper, so there should be an arrest forthcoming. Apparently, he's a white guy that speaks Spanish and looks like he's Arab." Police officers overheard the joke and reported it to Rouse. The company had previously sent a letter to Rowan admonishing him for "off-color humor", as well as "lack of respect for program administrators". After this report, the company banned him from the area. On April 4, 2003, a police officer asked Baltimore's Women in Black to disband. The group had (and has) gathered in McKeldin Square every Friday since September 11, 2002. Rowan and the Women in Black filed suit against the city of Baltimore on October 7, 2003, arguing their right of free speech. They were assisted by attorney Rajeev Goyle on behalf of the
American Civil Liberties Union The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1920 "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States". T ...
. The lawsuit was resolved in 2013 in a settlement that resulted in a consent decree with the city, creating "instant permits" for spontaneous demonstrations and waived permit requirements for groups of 30 people or less. The negotiations with the ACLU, the city, The Rouse Company, and The Waterfront Partnership in the settlement yielded other specific results in favor of free speech activities. McKeldin Square, Rash Field, Kaufman Pavilion, the area West of the Visitor Center, and Area 10 were all designated as official free-speech zones. Additionally, the settlement required the City of Baltimore to pay the attorney's fees for the ACLU. Elsewhere, police enforce rules against protest. On May 21, 2011, teacher Bruce Friedrich was threatened with arrest while handing out animal rights pamphlets. On September 18, 2011, police arrested artist Mark Chase for selling his paintings "in or near" the Inner Harbor amphitheater. "Your constitutional rights have nothing to do with the law," said the arresting officer when Chase objected on
First Amendment First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...
grounds.


See also

*
Mr. Trash Wheel Mr. Trash Wheel, officially called the Inner Harbor Water Wheel, is a trash interceptor, a vessel that removes trash from the Jones Falls river as it empties into the Inner Harbor in Baltimore, Maryland. It is powered by water power, water wheels ...
– a vessel that removes trash from Inner Harbor


References


External links

* * * * {{authority control Landmarks in Baltimore Neighborhoods in Baltimore Redeveloped ports and waterfronts in the United States Ports and harbors of Maryland Tourist attractions in Baltimore Downtown Baltimore Historic American Engineering Record in Baltimore Patapsco River