Baltimore Revisits First Bloodshed of the Civil War
This month Baltimore will commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, as it was in Baltimore that the first blood was shed.
The city has pulled together a calendar of special events and exhibitions as well as a new, three-day pass for visitors to explore the places and stories of Baltimore’s Civil War.
Civil War Baltimore offers a look at a large American city (at the time, it was the third largest) in a state that did not secede but was overseen and at times administered by the U.S. Army.
[ Also Read: Lincoln’s Secret Passage through Baltimore ]After a violent skirmish that drew the first blood in the conflict, Federal troops moved in. For the next four years, Baltimoreans who supported the South lived under the watchful eyes of a military commander and his provost marshal.
The city cared for tens of thousands wounded from both sides while serving as a major transportation hub and supply depot for the Union army. To visit Baltimore is to see how this story unfolded.
[ Also Read: Project to Identify Jewish Property Seized by Nazis ]On the weekend of April 15-17, 2011, Baltimore will commemorate the Pratt Street Riot, which led to the first bloodshed of the Civil War.
The weekend will include a Grand Procession on Pratt Street, the rededication of President Street Station as a historic Baltimore building, living history presentations throughout the city, a symposium hosted by the National Park Service, and a Civil War living history encampment and candlelight tours at Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine.
[ Also Read: What Do They Say about President Obama? ]Visit Baltimore has created a Baltimore Civil War Experience Pass, which provides a 25 percent savings on regular admission to four historical venues related to Baltimore’s participation in the Civil War: B&O Railroad Museum, Sports Legends Museum at Historic Camden Station, Maryland Historical Society and Mount Clare House Museum.
The pass is valid for three consecutive days and provides admission for one person to each of the four participating museums.
Visit Baltimore is the official sales and marketing organization for Baltimore that generates economic benefits for stakeholders through the attraction of convention, group and leisure visitors.
For more information, visit www.CivilWarBaltimore.com.
