| Hampden,
Baltimore
City Zip Code(s): 21211
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Location
41st Street to the north, Clipper Mill to the south,
Jones Falls River, to the west and Wyman Park to the east.
Description
Singles and young families are discovering that Hampden's small
town atmosphere and proximity to downtown make it one of the most
desirable of Baltimore's neighborhoods. Hampden is great place to live,
work and play. It is also a fun place to visit with scores of elegant to
funky stores, eclectic restaurants and special events like the Hon Fest.
Hampden is a uniquely authentic experience that's happening every day!.
History
Hampden first came into
being in 1802 as a cluster of houses built for workers who manned the
newly erected flour and cotton mills along the Jones Falls Stream
Valley. James Hughes was the first of a number of cotton mill owners who
harnessed the water of the Jones Falls to power the flour and later, the
cotton mills. Hampden was a part of a number of grain milling operations
located along the many streams in the counties surrounding Baltimore
City. The creation of these mills in turn spurred the growth of the port
of Baltimore which exported the milled grains around the world. In 1810,
the first cotton mill was opened on the Jones Falls by Washington
Manufacturing Company in what is now Mount Washington.
By the 1830's, after the invention of
the cotton gin, most of Hampden-Woodberry's flour mills were converted
to cotton mills. In the 1870's the mill workforce increased from 616 to
2,931 people. This growth was propelled by the expansion of the
Woodberry Mill and the building of the Meadowmill, which was the largest
of the mills. Cotton duck, used to make sails for ships of all kinds,
was in huge demand. By the 1890's, Hampden-Woodberry produced almost 80%
of the world's cotton duck and was one of the biggest mill sites in the
country. Most of the original residents of Hampden were immigrants from
England, Germany and Poland. As the industrial revolution grew, people
left farming communities from the adjacent counties and as far away as
Pennsylvania to work in the mills.
Hampden derived its name from a
developer, Henry Mankin, who named the town after John Hampden, a key
figure in the English revolution of the 17th century. Hampden, a member
of Parliament, took issue with a tax levied to pay for the royal navy.
Hampden maintained that the tax was a form of taxation without
representation. Others rallied around the cause that sparked a
revolution in 1637. John Hampden, a member of a growing capitalist
class, was viewed as a hero and champion of the people.
Hampden's economic power grew
throughout the 19th century fueled by the cotton mills. At the turn of
the 20th century, the workers of Hampden-Woodberry made up one of the
largest workforces in the nation. During the first decade of the century
several labor strikes resulted in improved wages and working conditions.
During World War I, the demand for cotton duck kept the mills operation
at full capacity. In the 1920's more labor strikes took place for pay
increases and better working hours. This time, the strikes were not only
unsuccessful but the mill owners began to move operations to the rural
South in search of lower labor costs. The mills in Hampden-Woodberry
were able to weather this setback and production at the mills increased
to fuel the war effort during World War II. But the 1960's and 1970's
saw the demise of the mills as demand of their products dried up.
Fortunately, the mills have been
renovated by forward thinking companies and developers and enjoy a new
lease on life. Mills now house artist studios, health clubs, high tech
companies and more. The area within Hampden known as Stone Hill, one
block deep along 2900 and 3000 blocks of Keswick Road, is a perfect
example of the revitalization of the mill communities. An old community
that is not a restored museum village or over-preserved, but comfortable
and lived-in, preserved through the passing on of property and values
from generation to generation since the community began about 160 years
ago as mill housing. While the textile mills were bustling, benevolent
paternalism was in vogue and one of the forms it took was workers
housing. David Caroll owned some 200 houses in the valley - built them,
maintained them and rented them at nominal fees to the workers. Some
were built on the west of the Jones Falls, where today they cluster at
the foot of Television Hill; others were built on a hill north of Mt.
Vernon Mill No.2, and the final group was 46 houses erected on a hill on
the other side of the mill. This last group of houses, due to the two
feet thick stone walls, gives Stone Hill its name.
Stone Hill is a little known place. There aren't many ways into the
neighborhood - by car from Keswick Avenue, or by foot along Pacific
Street or up a flight of concrete steps from Chestnut Street. The steps,
which are directly opposite the old Mt. Vernon Mill No.2 are evocative:
they are a physical link between today's residential neighborhood and
the bygone industrial complex that built the houses. The combination of
the whirr of the machines in the old mill building and the chatter of
women walking up Chestnut Street make climbing the steps a trip in time.
(For more on Stone Hill, See "Stone Hill: The People and Their
Stories" by Guy Hollyday, sold at Hometown Girl, 1000 West 36th
Street in Hampden.)
Brick Hill, bounded by Falls Road and 33rd Street between Chestnut and
Falscliff, is another example of a renewed mill village. Part of the
area is the most intact mill village in the nation as acclaimed by CHAP.
This area includes the old mill, now a "creative business
center", the old manor home and the only surviving horse stable,
now a loft home and party facility "The Elm: A Charming Place to
Have a Party". These homes also overlook the Jones Falls Valley and
enjoy access to the river and the future site of a Greenway.
Hampden had always been an almost self-sufficient community. There was
work. There were places to worship, to recreate and to shop. Residents
could find just about everything they needed right in the stores along
36th Street, known as "The Avenue." The Avenue was the main
street of Hampden and a focal point for residents. On any Saturday night
the street was thronged with people shopping, seeking entertainment or
visiting with friends. When the mills closed completely, in the 1960's
and '70's, residents moved out of the area and the stores that were once
filled with customers became vacant.
In the early part of the 1970's, The
Avenue clearly needed a shot in the arm to help get going again. This
did not come until the 1990's when, attracted by low rents, a few
entrepreneurs with vision, opened for business. Since then the Hampden
commercial district has been on an economic upswing. Today, The Avenue
and the area in general are thriving.
Contact / Links
Mark Thistel
President
Stone Hill Community Association
732 Pacific St.
Baltimore, Maryland 21211
mark@freedomserv.com
Tel: 410-366-7008
Janine Bradley
Executive Director
Hampden Village Main Street
P.O. Box 4739
Baltimore, MD 21211
hampdenmainstreet@msn.com
Fax: 410-467-9358
Everett Noe, President
Hampden Community Council Inc.
PO Box 19957
Baltimore, MD 21211
hccpresident@gmail.com
Tel: 410-235-2516
Information courtesy of LiveBaltimore.com
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