Posted on 09/03/2013 8:08:27 AM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
One of the architectural quirks of certain cities on the eastern seaboard of the U.S. is the solo row house.
Standing alone, in some of the worst neighborhoods, these nineteenth century structures were once attached to similar row houses that made up entire city blocks.
Time and major demographic changes have resulted in the decay and demolition of many such blocks.
Occasionally, one house is spared - literally cut off from its neighbors and left to the elements with whatever time it has left.
Still retaining traces of its former glory, the last house standing is often still occupied.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
I grew up and lived for 48 years in the Detroit Suburbs. I now work in Baltimore and live in the northern suburbs.
You are dead on. Detroit with crabcakes.
Well, it does have a lot of salt water...
I went to school with a guy that grew up partly in Baltimore. He said that in his day, some people would be out scrubbing the marble steps on weekends, but as the demographic changed, fewer and fewer were doing it.
Camden Yards is a really nice ballpark. Take in a day game and then take a scenic drive across the Bay Bridge to one of the waterside restaurants at Kent Narrows or St. Michaels for dinner. You won't regret it.
Ping
Heh - the truth often stings.
BTW, can you guess what Baltimore and New Orleans have in common? Aside from the obvious, that is...
One would be leftists. Two would be, well, you can guess that one yourself.
Good morning Baltimore! There’s the flasher
who lives next door, there’s the bum on his
barroom stool to wish me luck on my way
to school..the rats on the street all dance
round my feet— Hairspray
John Waters talks of the Hons, the big-haired
middle aged women...leave them a tip at
the bar and they’ll yell after you, Hon! You
forgot your quarter”
Is this his legacy?
Absolutely. And the legacy of all of the other rotten Democrats that ruined the city. O'Malley didn't give a damn about Baltimore and used the mayoral office as a stepping stone to the governorship. Just like past mayors of the city have done. None of them gives a damn about Baltimore. Just rope in those Democrat voters.
I have gotten into trouble on several occasions by referring to Baltimore as “Detroit with Crabcakes”.”
Could we say “Detroit with an infestation of Urban Crabs?”
In fairness I do have to say that when I was there I encountered a number of locals who were hospitable and friendly. And most of them were black.
They are having a disturbing flash mob problem though.
I don’t think I have ever been anyplace where I have seen so much good old fashioned garbage (cardboard boxes, beer cans, plastic jugs, etc. etc. etc.) in the water. So they just chuck their trash into Chesapeake Bay? What a shame.
A blog site that has interesting things to say about the not-seedy parts of Baltimore.
http://pigtown-design.blogspot.com
FYI: “Pigtown” is a section of Baltimore that was historically where German butchers lived and worked. In the past thirty years it became an area of row houses, naturally, that tried not to sink into the earth, but to regain health and safety.
I say we take off and nuke the entire site from orbit. It’s the only way to be sure.
McCormick somehow scrubs their emissions (which I am happy for, because the spice smell alone could make your eyes bleed on a still summer day).
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Um, Mccormicks moved to Hunt Valley (you know, in our northern baltimore county suburbs) decades ago. I guess that’s not the northern ‘burb you live in.
That’s why there’s no smell of spices downtown at the harbor. The location of the plant was conway and light, and is now a parking lot.
We natives know some pretty darn nice places to eat and hang out, if y’all have any interest, hon. Safe, too (as long as a modicum of common sense and street smarts are employed).
DC Metro is slow and unreliable? Are you talking about the correct thing? The DC Metro is excellent and usually features 2 tracks.
If you are talking about MARC real trains, somewhat correct. Camden line is a freight line, part of the oldest line in the country, and can be a bit slow. Penn line is passenger, though, and is plenty speedy.
Neither of which matters when at least you can rest, work or goof off while waiting for that commute rather than having to stay alert and not make any mistakes during it.
Indeed. Pigtown was also where they offloaded pigs and herded them though to other areas such as my grandfather’s rendering plant in west Baltimore.
The stink was a good thing. It was a working town, working port. Not worthless as today.
Ask my native mother about Baltimore before The Riots. Even my non-native dad. It’s horrid how people libel it even from the old days with virtually no knowledge.
It’s heartbreaking. I grew up in Baltimore County, and I remember trips “downtown” with my mother for doctor appointments or for shopping at the department stores. In those days, there were no suburban malls.
On those trips, my childish eyes were always filled with wonder at the beauty of the city, and, in those days, we were perfectly safe standing and waiting for a bus, even after sunset on a winter evening. (Mother didn’t drive.)
As a young teen, I caught a bus from school to go to my orthodontist’s office in Baltimore. I loved doing that, and I would take little side trips after my appointments. Soaking in the sights of the architecture was a great joy for me.
I know that, up until about the late 1970s or perhaps early 1980s, many Baltimore rowhouse neighborhoods were owned by hard-working blue collar families who kept them clean and in good repair.
There have been attempts at gentrification over the years, but the city, most notably under Mayor OweMalley, has made no serious attempt at stopping criminal activity. People would fix up houses only to have them robbed and vandalized.
I was talking about the DC metro. I lived in Japan and saw how trains can work. In Japan you could cover twice the distance in half the time of the DC metro. They also have express trains which skip the minor stops. If you live at a minor stop it is faster to catch the express to the closest stop and then wait a couple minutes for the local to your stop.
I saw Baltimore over 50 years ago and I don’t think those row houses were ever beautiful.
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