A Sampling of Baltimore's Olmsted Parks
Tour Description
Take this tour to explore some of Baltimore’s green spaces that continue to showcase the Olmsted Brothers' visionary landscape designs!
Not until 1904 did Baltimore adopt a comprehensive park plan for the region. That year, landscape architects Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. and John Charles Olmsted published "The Report Upon the Development of Public Grounds for Greater Baltimore," which stressed the need to treat parks as a connected system of green spaces. The Olmsted Brothers plan, practical and visionary, has continued to steer Baltimore’s parks for over 100 years.
Locations for Tour
Carroll Park
Carroll Park is Baltimore's third oldest city park and was originally part of the enormous Mount Clare plantation owned by Charles Carroll, Barrister in the mid-eighteenth century. The park was the site of Camp Carroll during the Civil War and,…
Patterson Park
For almost two centuries, Baltimore’s Patterson Park has preserved its historic integrity while serving the recreational needs of an urban population with varied cultural, ethnic, and economic backgrounds. The dramatic geology, topography, and…
Clifton Park
Clifton Park is Baltimore’s fourth oldest country landscape park after Druid Hill, Patterson, and Carroll Parks. Around 1800, Baltimore merchant Henry Thompson purchased the rural property and began transforming the farmhouse into a federal style…
Latrobe Park
In south Baltimore, Latrobe Park still has traces of Olmsted design elements. Originally only 6 acres in size, this park was created to serve the working class neighborhoods on the Locust Point peninsula. Unlike much larger plans for Patterson and…
Wyman Park
Today, Wyman Park is a complex of highly-contrasting park spaces, half-hearted links, and a variety of associated urban edges. The 1904 Olmsted Brothers report singled out the Wyman Park section with its “old beech trees and bold topography” as “the…
Hilton Parkway
More than just a road, Hilton Parkway was inspired by the advice of renowned landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. and is a testament to the transformative investment of the New Deal in Baltimore.
In the 1930s, the Gwynns Falls blocked…
Ellicott Driveway
Ellicott Driveway was built on top of the millrace that once carried water to Three Mills operated by the Ellicott Brothers near Frederick Road. In the 1800s, twenty-six gristmills along the Gwynns Falls and others on the Jones Falls and Patapsco…