The Maryland Curiosity Bureau

Latest Episodes:

Could Baltimore City & County Ever Unite? May 09, 2022

Show notes

Listener Kate Jakuta asks, “Why isn’t Baltimore City part of Baltimore County? And could the city and the county ever join in the future?” It’s a mystery that hopscotches us through time to the founding of Baltimore Town in 1729, the rewriting of the State Constitution in 1851, and a sly ballot referendum in 1948, which adds up to an unfortunate result for the city. While other US cities continue to grow by annexing land from surrounding counties, Baltimore’s city/county line has been frozen in place for more than 70 years. Is there a way to unbind the city? And is there a political will to make it happen?

This episode we hear from:

The Villena family, whose house is bisected by the city/county line

Matthew Crensen, Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Johns Hopkins University, and author of Baltimore: A Political History

Ron Cassie, Senior Editor and Political Reporter at Baltimore Magazine. Check out Ron’s article, How To Fix Baltimore

Don Hutchinson, former County Executive of Baltimore County

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What’s With That Random Simon Bolivar Statue? Apr 29, 2022

Show notes

There’s a tiny park in Baltimore’s Guilford neighborhood that’s home to an improbable monument. It’s a bronze bust of Simon Bolivar, who liberated Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia from Spanish colonial rule. Questions abound: Who made this thing? Was it a gift? Who was it from? How and why is it here? And what message should we take from it? Get ready for a trip down a historical rabbit hole that spans centuries, from the Colonial Era to the Cold War.

In this episode, we hear from:

Public historian Aimee Pohl, who's written an article about the statue and produced a video feature on the subject for Baltimore Heritage.

Christy Thornton, Assistant Professor of Sociology and Latin American Studies at Johns Hopkins University

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What is Dr. Gloom’s Crypt of Curiosities? Apr 18, 2022

Show notes

Listener Stacy Gilbert wandered into a shop called Protean Books & Records, and she found a weird little room in the back. A sign read, Dr. Gloom’s Crypt of Curiosities. She pulled aside the curtain, and when she stepped inside, she was fascinated by the otherworldly oddities on display. This week, we introduce Stacy to the crypt’s proprietor, we remember Baltimore’s now-shuttered American Dime Museum, and we head up to Havre de Grace to check out a mysterious soon-to-open spot called, First Call Paranormal and Oddities Museum.

In this episode, we hear from:

Chris LaMartina of Dr. Gloom’s Crypt of Curiosities

Dick Horne of The American Dime Museum

James Taylor of the forthcoming First Call Paranormal and Oddities Museum

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Where is Baltimore’s Gayborhood? Apr 11, 2022

Show notes

Baltimore’s Mount Vernon neighborhood has been the epicenter of the city’s gay community for decades, but clubs and bars there have been closing while a new scene has emerged in the neighborhoods of Old Goucher and Station North. This episode, we talk with Boomers, Gen Xers, and Millennials about the past and present of gay life in Baltimore.

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What’s Baltimore’s Negro Leagues baseball history? Apr 04, 2022

Show notes

Listener Andrew Cosentino wanted to know more about Baltimore’s chapter of Negro Leagues baseball history, so we caught up with Ray Banks of the Hubert V Simmons Museum of Negro Leagues Baseball, to learn about the Baltimore Elite Giants and The Baltimore Black Sox. And sportswriter Charlie Vascellaro helps us track down a historic ballfield in Druid Hill Park where some of the earliest games were played.

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What's the story behind Old Bay? Mar 28, 2022

Show notes

Listener Joanna Reed wanted to know how the crab seasoning, Old Bay, got started and how it became such a Maryland icon. So, food writer Jen Wheeler joins us this episode to tell the story of how a German Jewish immigrant made his way to Baltimore and ended up creating the best thing to ever happen to shellfish. We pay a visit to the inventor’s original spice grinder. And we try to get the McCormick spice company to reveal what’s actually in the secret mix.

In this episode, we hear from:

Food writer Jen Wheeler

Baltimore Museum of Industry Executive Director Anita Kassoff

McCormick Chief Marketing Officer Jill Pratt

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Baltimore’s Sister Cities: Where are they? And why them? Mar 21, 2022

Show notes

Listener Josh Dix’s question about sister cities takes us down a historical rabbit hole to a moment in Cold War history when President Eisenhower announced a new ‘citizen diplomacy’ initiative to build relationships with cities abroad. Sister Cities International has been operating ever since, and today, Baltimore has nine sister cities around the globe. Take your seats for a very cosmopolitan episode.

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Who’s behind those wire sculptures dangling on traffic lights? Mar 14, 2022

Show notes

Is it graffiti? Sort of. Is it illegal? Pretty much. Does it make people smile? Almost always. If you’re stopped at a traffic light in Baltimore, look up and you might see one of his wire sculptures hanging from the cable across the intersection, backlit by the sky. Street Artist Reed Bmore has been putting up these little artistic winks for a decade now, and this episode, we talk with him at his home studio about how & why he does what he does.

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Who are The Nighthawks? Mar 07, 2022

Show notes

It turns out The Ravens aren’t the only pro football team in town. For 15 years now, the Baltimore Nighthawks have been repping the city in a hard-hitting national league where the teams compete in high-level, full contact, tackle football: The Women’s Football Alliance. This episode, we meet the Nighthawks players and coaches who are blazing a trail for women in America’s last ‘men’s only’ sport.

Who you’ll hear from:

Breona Brewer, Nighthawks Wide Receiver, Free Safety, Kick/Punt Returner

Alisha Owensford, Nighthawks Linebacker & Running Back

Amanda Eich, Nighthawks Wide Receiver, Defensive End, and Long Snapper

Tanya Bryan, Nighthawks owner (and Strength & Conditioning / Special Teams Coach)

Keith Kahan, Nighthawks Head Coach

Lisa King, Commissioner of the Women’s Football Alliance

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What’s with the rat bumper sticker? Feb 28, 2022

Show notes

How did the rat become Baltimore’s unofficial mascot? Who’s behind this ubiquitous image? Why is it so popular? And what exactly is it supposed to mean as a symbol?

This episode, we meet:

Matt Fouse, rat hunter and founder of Ratczar

Toya Sykes-Coates, Chief of Property Management and the Baltimore Department of Public Works and previous head of Baltimore’s Rat Rubout Program

Dawn Biehler, Associate Professor of Geography and Environmental Studies at UMBC and author of Pests in the City: Flies, Bedbugs, Cockroaches, and Rats

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.