The Maryland Curiosity Bureau

Latest Episodes:

Who Removes The Graffiti In Baltimore? Jan 02, 2023

Show notes

They’re a tiny team. But they’re undaunted by the magnitude of the task at hand. Eric Ford and Tony Clark have been working together for more than twenty years on Baltimore’s graffiti removal unit, remediating the city’s graffiti problem, one service request at a time, free of charge. Aaron Henkin and Baltimore Banner reporter Hallie Miller spend a day on the job with the guys, and they ask: What’s it like to do a job you know is going to get undone, over and over again?

In this episode, we meet:

Eric Ford, Tony Clark, and Yolanda Cason of Baltimore’s Graffiti Removal Unit

Mixed Media Artist Kristin Fuller

Baltimore Banner reporter Hallie Miller

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What's The History Of Rheb's Candies? Dec 19, 2022

Show notes

A ton of sugar a week. That's what it takes to fuel this longtime Baltimore family business. Rheb's Candies has been crafting homemade chocolates for four generations. During the holidays, there's a line of customers out the door and down the block. This episode, we get a golden ticket to visit the rowhouse-basement factory where the magic happens.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Who Was Myrtle Hazard, And Why Is There A Ship Named After Her? Dec 12, 2022

Show notes

This episode takes on a question from a far-from-home listener. Robert Cusworth is from Maryland, he’s in the US Coast Guard, and he’s currently stationed in Guam. He noticed that one of the ships in the fleet out there is named USCG Cutter Myrtle Hazard. (Cool name, right?) Well, he heard the ship’s namesake was originally from Baltimore. So, who is Myrtle Hazard? And why is there a Coast Guard ship in Guam named after her?

In this episode, we hear from:

Robert Cusworth, USCG Petty Officer stationed in Guam

US Coast Guard Historian William Thiesen

Lieutenant Jalle Merritt, Commanding Officer of the USCG Cutter Myrtle Hazard

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What’s The Controversy With The Roland Water Tower In Hoes Heights? Dec 05, 2022

Show notes

Have you seen that Rapunzel-looking brick tower next to the Hoes Heights neighborhood in North Baltimore? It just got restored, and everyone agrees it looks beautiful. That’s pretty much where the good feelings end. Now there’s a bitter argument over what’s going to happen to the little plot of land around the tower. Some folks want a park. Others want access roads. Baltimore Banner reporter Jasmine Vaughn-Hall joins the podcast to unpack how a seemingly innocent planning project has reaggravated some long-standing racial wounds in a historically Black neighborhood.

In this episode, we hear from:

Baltimore Banner reporter Jasmine Vaughn-Hall

Baltimore Brew reporter Fern Shen

Claire Agre of Unknown Studio

Hoes Heights Action Committee members Joanne Kent, Eleanor Matthews, Teri Logan, Hana Morford, and Kitsy Lee

Friends of the Roland Water Tower member Michael Falk

Baltimore City Council Members Odette Ramos and James Torrence

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Who Are The Marching Ravens? Nov 28, 2022

Show notes

It’s a not-so-secret weapon that gives The Ravens their home field advantage: Baltimore’s Marching Ravens are a massive musical hype machine that brings hometown crowds to their feet with the Ravens Fight Song. They’re more than a hundred members strong. Their halftime show is a spectacle of uniform precision. And their musicianship is awe-inspiring. But who are these people? How did this band come to be? And is it true that they helped save football in Baltimore?

This episode, we meet:

Band President John Ziemann

Music Director Dan Fake

Band members Nathan Beans, Gigi Kwik Gronvall, Kim Smith, and Brooke Coleman

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why Are There So Many Deer Everywhere? Nov 21, 2022

Show notes

They’re wandering through yards, snacking on gardens. They’re hanging out in neighborhood parks. They’re strolling down the middle of the streets. Deer are everywhere. Or at least it feels that way if you live up and down the Baltimore DC corridor. Is this normal? Banner reporters Hallie Miller and Liz Bowie have been reporting on the state’s deer population, and they join us this episode to answer the question: Why are the deer surrounding us, and what we should do about it?

In this episode, you’ll hear from:

Baltimore Banner reporter Hallie Miller

Baltimore Banner reporter Liz Bowie

Carrie Engel, Greenhouse Manager at Valley View Farms

George Timko, Deer Project Co-Leader at the Maryland Department of Natural Resources

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What’s With The Abandoned Coffin Of Mathilda Lorenz? Nov 14, 2022

Show notes

It just appeared one day, inexplicably. An empty coffin, nestled in the woods on the bank of Stony Run Creek in Wyman Park. An engraved nameplate read, “Mathilda Lorenz, died July 26, 1882, aged 18 years, 2 months, and 1 day.” The neighbors were baffled. And then, a few weeks later, just as strangely, the coffin disappeared. Baltimore Banner reporter Julie Scharper became obsessed with this stubborn local mystery, she followed a winding trail of breadcrumbs, and she joins us this episode to reveal what she’s discovered.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What’s The Story With Fort Armistead Park? Jun 01, 2022

Show notes

It’s covered in graffiti, overgrown by the forest, and neglected by the city, but Fort Armistead was once a state-of-the-art coastal defense installation. Why was this place built? Whatever happened to it? What’s going on there now? Is it true that you can find tunnels into it? And what’ll you discover if you venture inside?

By the way, check out Baltimore Heritage's Five Minute Histories video about Fort Armistead Park!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How Did Jousting Become Maryland’s Official State Sport? May 24, 2022

Show notes

Our quest takes us to a ring-jousting event hosted by the Maryland Jousting Tournament Association. Then we venture into a forest to find the ruins of a Gothic mansion where the state’s first official joust was held.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What's The Deal With Pit Beef? May 16, 2022

Show notes

This week’s listener grew up in Maryland, and he always just assumed there were roadside pit beef stands across the whole country. Not so! Pit beef is a hyper-regional food tradition rooted in Baltimore’s industrial past, and we head out to explore the origins and permutations of this local delicacy.

In this episode, we hear from:

Simone Phillips of the food blog, Charm City Table

Allison Robicelli, who wrote the Washington Post article, Here are 11 of the best places to enjoy pit beef – Maryland’s answer to barbecue

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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