Highlandtown, Baltimore

Highlandtown is a neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland, United States.

The area currently known as Highlandtown was established in 1866 when the area known as "Snake Hill" was established as a village outside of the Baltimore city limits. The first settlers of the community were primarily German Americans. In 1870 residents renamed the neighborhood "Highland Town" because of the views it offered over the city. The neighborhood was made part of Baltimore city in 1919.

The neighborhood today is bounded by Haven Street to the east, Baltimore Street to the north, Ellwood to the west, and Eastern Avenue to the south. The long stretch of Eastern Avenue that runs through the neighborhood is notable as the Highlandtown's main commercial thoroughfare. The area has been designated as a "Main Street District" by Mayor O'Malley, seeking to promote commercial revitalization through economic incentives from the National Main Street Program.

Highlandtown is one of Baltimore's traditional blue-collar neighborhoods, and for this reason was designated as part of the Patterson Park/Highlandtown Historic District in the National Register of Historic Places. [ [http://baltimorecity.gov/government/historic/districts/pattersonpark.php Patterson Park/Highlandtown Historic District] ] In Baltimorese the neighborhood is pronounced "Hollantown". Historically one of the city's main commercial and industrial hubs, the neighborhood suffered a period of decline beginning in the 1970s as the manufacturing sector declined.

Modern Highlandtown is in transition. The Polish, Italian, and Irish population are being augmented with a growing Latino community. The headquarters of the Baltimore Science Fiction Society can be found on the northern edge of Highlandtown.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 2,820 people residing in the neighborhood. The racial makeup of Highlandtown was 77.5% White, 11.9% African American, 2.1% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 5.5% from other races, and 2.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 11.2% of the population. 67.8% of occupied housing units were owner-occuped. 14.5% of housing units were vacant.

52.0% of the population were employed, 5.0% were unemployed, and 42.7% were not in the labor force. The median household income was $28,813. About 14.8% of families and 18.6% of the population were below the poverty line.

Hallmarks

Our Lady of Pompei Church, Patterson Park, Creative Alliance at the Patterson, the new Southeast Anchor Library, Matthews Pizza, Santoni’s Market, Eastern House, G&A, John’s Groceries, Filippos Pizzeria, Spartan’s Pizzeria, The Baltimore Trophy House, North Pole, Bolewicki's Appliances, Gaffney's, Jacob's Athletic, The Markets at Highlandtown, Stella's Bridal, Tuxedo Zone, Hoehn's Bakery, Law Office of Dennis E. Cuomo, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Abbott Memorial Presbyterian Church, Salem United Methodist Church, Nazareth Lutheran Church, Archbishop Borders School (formally known as Our Lady of Pompei School), Highlandtown Middle School, Baltimore Science Fiction Society, DiPasquale's Deli and Marketplace, [http://www.laughingpint.com The Laughing Pint]

References

External Sources

* [http://www.healthyneighborhoods.org/pages/southeast.html Healthy Neighborhoods: Southeast Baltimore]
* [http://www.highlandtown.com/ Highlandtown Community Association]
* [http://www.southeastcdc.org/ Southeast Community Development Corporation]
* [http://www.gohighlandtown.com/ Greetings from Highlandtown]
* [http://www.highlandtownarts.com/ Highlandtown Arts]
* [http://www.mainstreet.org National Main Street Program]
* [http://censusprofile.bnia.org/Highlandtown%20Demographic%20Profile.pdf Demographics from Neighborhood Indicators Alliance]