Baltimore

Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. It is also the fourth most populous cities in the Mid-Atlantic region. The city is home to some of the earliest National Register Historic Districts in the nation, including Fell's Point, Federal Hill, and Mount Vernon. The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, the oldest railroad in the United States, was built in 1830 and cemented Baltimore's status as a major transportation hub. Johns Hopkins Hospital and Johns Hopkins University are the city's top two employers. Baltimore and its surrounding region are home to the headquarters of a number of major organizations and government agencies, including the NAACP, ABET, the National Federation of the Blind, Catholic Relief Services, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, World Relief, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, and the Social Security Administration. In December 2021, several Woodland period Native American artifacts were found in Herring Run Park in northeast Baltimore, dating 5,000 to 9,000 years ago. Baltimore has more public statues and monuments per capita than any other city inThe Baltimore area has been inhabited by Native Americans since at least the 10th millennium BC, when Paleo-Indians first settled in the region. In the early 1600s, the immediate Baltimore vicinity was sparsely populated, if at all, by the Susquehannock, Piscataway, and Algonquian people living in the lower Chesapeake River valley. The Battle of Baltimore was a pivotal engagement during the War of 1812, culminating in the failed British bombardment of Fort McHenry.

History

Baltimore is the primary city name, but also Arlington are acceptable city names or spellings. The official name is City of Baltimore. The city is named after The 2nd Baron Baltimore Cecil Calvert, an Anglo-Irish member of the Irish House of Lords. In December 2021, several Woodland period Native American artifacts were found in Herring Run Park in northeast Baltimore, dating 5,000 to 9,000 years ago. The first printing press was introduced to the city in 1765 by Nicholas Hasselbach, whose equipment was later used in the printing of Baltimore's first newspapers, The Maryland Journal and The Baltimore Advertiser. In 1774, Baltimore established the first post office system in what became the United States, and the first water company in the newly independent nation (Baltimore Water Company, 1792) The city is one of the oldest continuously operating public markets in the U.S., and was also a center of slave trading in the 1760s and 1770s. Baltimore is an anglicization of the. Irish name Baile an Tí Mhóir, meaning "town of the big house". The city's name is derived from the. Baltimore Manor, the name of the estate in County. Longford which the Calvert family, Barons Baltimore, owned in Ireland. The Baltimore area had been inhabited by Native Americans since at least the 10th millennium BC, when Paleo-Indians first settled in the region. In the early 1600s, the immediate Baltimore vicinity was sparsely populated, if at all, byNative Americans. In 1661 David Jones claimed the area known today as Jonestown on the east bank of the Jones Falls stream. The colonists engaged in sporadic warfare with the Susquehannock.

Geography

Baltimore is in north-central Maryland on the Patapsco River close to where it empties into the Chesapeake Bay. The city's elevation ranges from sea level at the harbor to 480 feet (150 m) in the northwest corner near Pimlico. The Phoenix Shot Tower (1828), at 234.25 feet (71.40 m) tall, was the tallest building in the United States until the time of the Civil War. The Harbor East area has seen the addition of two new towers which have completed construction: a 24-floor tower that is the new world headquarters of Legg Mason, and a 21-floor Four Seasons Hotel complex. In the mid-1790s, developers began building entire neighborhoods of the British-style rowhouses, which became the dominant house type in the city early in the 19th century. The streets of Baltimore are organized in a grid and spoke pattern, lined with tens of thousands of brick and formstone-faced rowhouse. In 2013, the Everyman Theatre was honored by the Baltimore Heritage Preservation Awards for its new home in the celebration of Everyman's 100th anniversary. The National Aquarium, along with Camden Yards, have helped revive the Inner Harbor from what was once an industrial district full of dilapidated warehouses into a bustling commercial district of bars, restaurants and retail establishments. Baltimore is almost surrounded by Baltimore County, but is politically independent of it. It is bordered by Anne Arundel County to the south.

Demographics

After New York City, Baltimore was the second city in the United States to reach a population of 100,000. The city's population has declined overall from 2010 to 2020 by about 34,830 people, representing a 5.6% drop. The year between 2018 and 2019 had the largest year-to-year population loss, and in 2020 Baltimore lost more population than any other major U.S. city. According to the 2020 Census, 8.1% of residents between 2016 and 2020 were foreign born persons. In 2009, 23.7% of the population lived below the poverty line, compared to 13.5% nationwide. The median sale price for homes in Baltimore was $95,000 in 2012. The homeless population in Baltimore is increasing steadily; it exceeded 4,000 people in 2011. The life expectancy in Baltimore in 2015 was 74 to 75 years. Fourteen neighborhoods expect life expectancy of 78 to 80 years. In 2011, the number of young homeless people was particularly severe, particularly young people aged 18 to 64. In 2012, same-sex marriage in Maryland was legalized, going into effect January 1, 2013. In 2005, approximately 30,778 people (6.5%) identified as gay, lesbian, or bisexual. Baltimore's Jamaican community is largely centered in the Park Heights neighborhood, but generations of immigrants have also lived in Southeast Baltimore. As per the 2010 Census, Baltimore's population is 63.7 per cent Black, 29.6 per cent white, and 2.3 per cent Asian (0.54% Korean, 0.46% Indian, 037% Chinese, and 0.21% Nepali) The median age was 35 years old, with 22.4% under 18 years old.

Crime

Crime in Baltimore reached another peak in 2015 when the year's tally of 344 homicides was second only to the record 353 in 1993. The killings in 2015 were on pace with recent years in the early months of 2015 but skyrocketed after the unrest and rioting of late April. In 2016, according to annual crime statistics released by the Baltimore Police Department, there were 318 murders in the city. This total marked a 7.56 percent decline in homicides from 2015. The DEA reported that 10% of Baltimore's population about 64,000 people are addicted to heroin, most of which is trafficked into the city from New York. The goal is to keep children out of dangerous places and reduce crime. In Baltimore, "arrest numbers have plummeted from more than 40,000 in 2014, the year before Gray's death and the subsequent charges against the officers, to about 18,000 [as of November 2017]. This happened even as homicides soared from 211 in 2014 to 344 in 2015 an increase of 63%," David Simon, a former police reporter for The Baltimore Sun, said in an interview with The Guardian. Simon's HBO miniseries We Own this City aired in April 2022 and covered many of the events surrounding the death of Freddie Gray and the work slowdown by theBaltimore Police Department during that time period. "I can go to jail for making the wrong arrest, so I'm not getting out of my car to clear a corner,' and that's exactly what happened post-Freddie Gray," Simon said.

Economy

As of March 2018 the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics calculated Baltimore's unemployment rate at 5.8% while one quarter of Baltimore residents (and 37% of Baltimore children) live in poverty. The city now relies on a low-wage service economy, which accounts for 31% of jobs in the city. Downtown Baltimore is the primary economic asset within Baltimore City and the region with 29.1 million square feet of office space. The Port of Baltimore generates $3 billion in annual wages and salary, as well as supporting 14,630 direct jobs and 108,000 jobs connected to port work. In 2014, the city hosted 24.5 million visitors, who spent $5.2 billion. Baltimore Harbor's restoration has made it "a city of boats", with several historic ships and other attractions on display and open to the public. The Inner Harbor is also home to the Pride of Baltimore, the oldest surviving screw-pile lighthouse on Chesapeake Bay, which once marked the mouth of the Patapsco River. All of these attractions are owned and maintained by the Historic Ships' Pride organization in Baltimore, which is also the state of Maryland's "Historic Ships Pride" organization.

Culture

Baltimore has 72 designated historic districts traditionally occupied by distinct ethnic groups. Mount Vernon is the traditional center of cultural and artistic life of the city. Baltimore is known for its Maryland blue crabs, crab cake, Old Bay Seasoning, pit beef, and the "chicken box". The city has many restaurants in or around the Inner Harbor. Homicide: Life on the Street was set and filmed in Baltimore, as well as The Wire. House of Cards and Veep are set in Washington, D.C. but filmed inBaltimore. The Baltimore Public Market System is the longest-running public market system in the country, having been around since 1782. Baltimore has the largest holding of works by Henri Matisse in the world. The American Visionary Art Museum has been designated by Congress as America's national museum for visionary art. The National Great Blacks In Wax Museum is the first African American wax museum in the U.S., featuring more than 150 life-size and lifelike wax figures. The oldest continuously running tavern in country, "The Horse You Came on", is located in Fells Point. The last place in America where one can still find arabbers, who sell fresh fruits and vegetables from a horse-drawn cart, goes up and down the street. The city is home to the oldest continuously operating public market in the United States, the Lexington Market, which is one of the longest running and longest running in the nation. Baltimore was the second largest port of immigration to the United. States, behind Ellis Island in New York and New Jersey.

Sports

Baltimore has a long and storied baseball history, including its distinction as the birthplace of Babe Ruth in 1895. The team moved to New York City before the 1903 season and was renamed the New York Highlanders. After playing one season in 1915 as the Richmond Climbers, the team returned the following year to Baltimore, where it played as the Orioles until 1953. Since then, the Ravens won a Super Bowl championship in 2000 and 2012, six AFC North division championships (2003, 2006, 2011, 2012, 2018, and 2019), and appeared in four AFC Championship Games (2000, 2008, 2011 and 2012) The first major league to base a team in Baltimore was the All-America Football Conference (AAFC), which had a team named the Baltimore Colts. Baltimore also hosted a Canadian Football League franchise, the Baltimore Stallions for the 1994 and 1995 seasons, and ultimate end to the Canadian Football. League in the United States, The Maryland Jockey Club, was formed in Baltimore in 1743. After the 1983 season, the company left Baltimore for Indianapolis in 1984, where they became the Indianapolis Colts. Since the 1990s, there have been several attempts at a professional football team prior to the 1950s, which were blocked by the Washington team and its NFL friends. Most were minor league or semi-professional teams, including Ripken (2007), and two of the team's managers have been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame (2007) The team currently known as the Baltimore Orioles has represented Major League Baseball locally since 1954 when the St. Louis Browns moved to Baltimore.

Parks and recreation

The City of Baltimore boasts over 4,900 acres (1,983 ha) of parkland. As of 2015, The Trust for Public Land, a national land conservation organization, ranks Baltimore 40th among the 75 largest U.S. cities. The city is also home to Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine, a coastal star-shaped fort best known for its role in the War of 1812. The Baltimore City Department of Recreation and Parks manages the majority of parks and recreational facilities in the city including Patterson Park, Federal Hill Park, and Druid Hill Park. It is the only city in the state of Maryland that has a national park system, with over 1,000 acres (4,900 ha) in total. It also has one of the largest parks systems in the United States, with more than 1,100 acres (3,000 ha) to its name. The City ofBaltimore is home to the National Museum of American History, which was established in 1812 and dates back to the American Civil War. The National Park Service was founded in 1881 and is the largest park system in the country. It has more than 2,500 acres (9,000 hectares) of land, making it the second largest city park system after Washington, D.C. and the third largest in the nation behind New York City. Baltimore is the home of the National Zoo, which opened in 1883. It was the first national park to open in 1885. It opened its doors to the public.

Politics and government

Baltimore is an independent city, and not part of any county. For most governmental purposes under Maryland law, Baltimore City is treated as a county-level entity. The city hosted the first six Democratic National Conventions, from 1832 through 1852, and hosted the DNC again in 1860, 1872, and 1912. In virtually all elections, the Democratic primary is the real contest. No Republican has been elected to the City Council since 1939, and the city's last Republican mayor, Theodore McKeldin, left office in 1967. The last Republican candidate for president to win the city was Dwight Eisenhower in his successful reelection bid in 1956. The Baltimore City Police Department, founded in 1784 as a "Night City Watch" and day Constables system, reorganized in 1853, with a following reorganization under State of Maryland supervision in 1859. The City Public Schools Police, established in the 1970s, brought 120 lawsuits against police for alleged brutality and misconduct, including the $12.12 million Freddie Gray settlement. The current law enforcement agency serving the citizens of Baltimore is the City of Baltimore Campus and Campus Security, established by the Maryland Transportation Authority under the "BaBa" law, originally established as the Baltimore City Schools Police Department (originally the Baltimore Public Schools Public Safety Department) The city's public schools are provided by the City's Public Schools Board of Trustees, which was established in 1973. The mayor of the city is Brandon Scott, who took office on December 8, 2020.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Baltimore, Anne Arundel County, Maryland = 1.7. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 50. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 20. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Baltimore = 4.1 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 18,252 individuals with a median age of 35.3 age the population dropped by -2.56% in Baltimore, Anne Arundel County, Maryland population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 7,235.43 residents per square mile of area (2,793.74/km²). There are average 2.44 people per household in the 249,335 households with an average household income of $37,890 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 10.80% of the available work force and has dropped -4.84% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 19.52%. The number of physicians in Baltimore per 100,000 population = 395.2.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Baltimore = 42 inches and the annual snowfall = 21.3 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 114. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 213. 87 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 28.7 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 41, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Baltimore, Anne Arundel County, Maryland which are owned by the occupant = 42.80%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 59 years with median home cost = $134,050 and home appreciation of -10.19%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $19.00 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $6,352 per student. There are 15 students for each teacher in the school, 673 students for each Librarian and 409 students for each Counselor. 3.52% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 10.82% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 9.06% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).