Thanks to Baltimore Heritage intern Elise Hoffman for researching and writing this post on the history of the Harlem Theatre. This post is cross-posted from the Friends of West Baltimore Squares blog.

The Harlem Theatre, now known as the Harlem Park Community Baptist Church, is a local landmark on the western edge of Harlem Park– one of the city’s most extravagant African American movie theaters with a unique “celestial ceiling” featuring “twinkling electrical stars and projected clouds.” Built in 1902 as the home for the Harlem Park Methodist Episcopal Church, after they out grew their previous building, the structure still retains its ornamental Romanesque style with arched doors and windows made of rough blocks of Port Deposit granite.

Image courtesy the Maryland Historical Society, B1617

Harlem Park Methodist Episcopal Church did not remain in the area long however. After the building opened in 1903, two destructive fires — in December of 1908 followed by an even more severe fire in 1924 — led the congregation to sell the building and move out to a new church at Harlem and Warwick Avenues at the western edge of the developing city. At the same time the neighborhood began to transition from a largely segregated white to a predominantly black community, a change that almost certainly influenced the white congregation. In 1928, the congregation sold the church to Emanuel M. Davidove and Harry H. Goldberg, owners of the new Fidelity Amusement Corporation, established to build “a 1,500 seat motion picture theatre for Negroes…to be known as Harlem Theatre.”

The company hired architect Theodore Wells Pietsch, a notable Baltimore architect who also designed Eastern High School and the Broadway Pier. Pietsch took the property’s history into consideration when designing the new building: the theatre was made fireproof through the use of steel and concrete, and a fire extinguishing system was also included in the building’s design. Pietsh’s new design had an elaborate Spanish Mission theme described at the time as one of most elaborate designs on the East Coast and promoted as “the best illuminated building in Baltimore.” The bright façade included a 65-foot marquee with 900 50-watt light bulbs illuminating sidewalk underneath, “tremendous electric signs” around the marquee, and a forty-foot tall sign that could be seen from two miles away.

In October 1932, the owners organized a celebration to open the theater “in a blaze of glory” drawing jubilant crowds of 5,000 to 8,000 people. The jubilant scene was described by a journalist:

“The blazing marquee studded with a thousand lights made the entire square take a semblance of Broadway glamour. The marquees illuminated the entire Harlem Square which was crowded with those who lined the sidewalk unable to gain admittance.”

Over the next forty years, countless numbers of Baltimore residents enjoyed the theatre’s “cavernous three-story high ceiling, a balcony, carpeted floors and thick cushioned seats” and “celestial ceiling with twinkling electrical stars and projected clouds that floated over movie-goers’ heads.” The Harlem Theatre also hosted events supporting the broader community, such as a free “Movie Jamboree” in 1968 for the children of Baltimore workers donated by the theatre’s then-manager Edward Grot, and midnight shows to raise money for the local YMCA. Unfortunately for the Harlem, as movie theatres that previously discriminated against black customers began to desegregate in the mid 20th century, their business declined. By the mid-1970s, the Harlem Theatre had closed.

The building took on a new life in 1975 when Reverend Raymond Kelley, Jr. purchased the old theater and turned it into the Harlem Park Community Baptist Church dedicated on July 6, 1975. The building has been refurbished– the congregation traded in the old theater seats for pews and removed the large marquee–but much of the original historic character remains intact. Of course, the story of the Harlem Theatre also remains in the  memories of thousands of Baltimore residents and we hope you can share your stories with us in the comments.

Do you want to share your photos or stories of West Baltimore landmarks? Please get in touch with Eli Pousson at pousson@baltimoreheritage.org or 301-204-337.

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The markings of Baltimore’s Civil War heritage are all around us, from downtown landmarks like President Street Station, to military buttons, ceramic ware, and bits of metal of every variety that lie literally under our feet. To help commemorate the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the Civil War this year, please join Baltimore Heritage and the Friends of West Baltimore Squares on July 9 as we dig into the history of Civil War-era Baltimore with an archeological investigation in Lafayette Square. We’re not sure what we’ll find under the topsoil, but we do know that the Square was the site of Lafayette Barracks during the civil war, a military camp and hospital that housed 1000 people strong. With support from the Archaeological Society of Maryland, the Maryland Historical Trust, and the local community, we are conducting an archaeological investigation of Lafayette Barracks, the military camp and hospital located in the park during the Civil War. Please stop by to talk to the archeologists, learn about urban archeology, and West Baltimore’s Civil War history. Throughout the afternoon, we will be offering walking tours, exhibits on the architectural history of the Square, and even grilled hotdogs!

Civil War Archeology in Lafayette Square

Saturday, July 9, 2011
Lafayette Square Park (West Lafayette Avenue & North Arlington Street)
11:00 AM to 3:00 PM
Tours, talks, and exhibits throughout the day and hotdogs at noon. On-street parking available. to look up directions, use 1100 W. Lafayette Avenue, Baltimore 21217.
RSVP Today!

From 1861 through 1865, as the United States were split by civil war, Lafayette Square in West Baltimore became a bustling military encampment and a rich scene of Baltimore’s Civil War life. Originally known as Camp Hoffman–named for Henry W. Hoffman, collector for the Port of Baltimore–the camp housed at least five Maryland Union regiments as well as troops from New York and other northern states. The Camp, including a hospital, sutler’s store, kitchen and parade grounds, served as a rendezvous point for Maryland and Delaware Union troops with as many as to 1,000 soldiers preparing for active duty at a time. In the blocks around the camp, one could find military bands marching down to Jarvis Hospital on Baltimore Street, drunken brawls at local bars between soldiers and civilians, deserters escaping through Druid Hill Park shot down by cavalrymen, and escaped slaves from the Eastern Shore taking refuge with Union troops before seeking freedom to the north. John Scharf, Baltimore’s foremost historian during the late 19th century, described Lafayette Square in 1865 as “filled with ugly wooden sheds, swarming with rough troops, while not one of the elegant mansions now surrounding it had been reared.”

Our archaeological investigation, led by archeologists Brandon Bies, MAA and Dr. David Gadsby, seeks to learn more about people who lived and worked at Lafayette Barracks during the Civil War by searching for any artifacts or surviving physical evidence that they left behind. With a dozen trained volunteers, our team will use metal detectors to search out metal artifacts, such as buttons or bullets, and open up a small area of excavation to search for the remains of Camp Hoffman. Stop by on July 9 to learn more about West Baltimore’s Civil War history and the process of historical archeology. We’ll be leading short walking tours every hour, sharing exhibits on the history and community of Lafayette Square, and hosting the Baltimore Civil War Museum with exhibits on archeology at President Street Station. Please RSVP if you’re planning to join us! Questions? Contact Eli Pousson at pousson@baltimoreheritage.org or 301-204-3337.