Bolton Hill

Baltimore is made up of tons of little villages. Bolton Hill is one of the most charming in my opinion. Others would fight for this title saying Fells Point, Mt. Vernon or Federal Hill should win, and rightly so. It's a tough call. But Bolton Hill has an old world elegance and is also tucked away off the beaten path. Whereas, Mt. Vernon shines in its glory on Charles Street, this fact makes it busy with traffic and street noise. Bolton Hill is quiet and reserved from what I can tell.

Memorial Episcopal, our church, has been around for 150 years. The stones look like the same ones at Stone Hill. So has Druid Hill Park which is just up the street from Bolton Hill. F. Scott Fitzgerald, the Cone sisters and even Woodrow Wilson lived here.

There is a great video at the BMA that shows the Cone Sister's apartments. Scroll down to the bottom of this link.

Francis Scott Key Memorial

Don't you love the Greek Key on the left knob? 

The streets are made up of row houses. Large, large row houses compaired to the skinny kids down in Georgetown.

Some of our best friends live in Bolton Hill. James and John went to Christ Church, Georgetown. The first Sunday I went to Memorial I saw John in the choir and burst into tears. I said, "You all are supposed to be in London." And he looked at me like, "What are YOU doing in Baltimore?" Our Stone Hill neighbor who shares our wall invited us to this church. It was so amazing, of all the churches in Baltimore, to see people we actually knew who went to the first one we visited. Small world, smaller Baltimore. Aren't their kids beautiful?!!!

When we stepped into James and John's home for the first time we were overcome by how wide it was and how tall the ceilings were. Back in the day you were taxed on the width of the street side of your home in Washington, DC. Literally, it was measured by the front of the house on the street. No wonder there are so many teeny, skinny houses down there. And Georgetown was built around the 1790's. Bolton Hill was a few years later from about 1850 to 1900. You can get a lot more house for your dollar up north y'all. So come and join us DC pals!!! 

There is a Light Rail Station down the street for UMBC and MICA students to get downtown and out of town easily. I adore this painted bridge on Howard Street.

The Brown Center

There is a charming bistro called b. down the street from our church.

I'm hoping to use the restaurant for a special event in November.

I love the simple b. logo.

We've never eaten here but the brunch looked delicious when I stopped by to introduce myself to the manager.

These are salted Cod Balls. I'm looking forward to going back.

The Festival on the Hill is Saturday, October 9th and is filled with food and music. It's a fun opportunity to see this section of town in all of its glory.

We are so thankful to Guy and Pam, our Stone Hill neighbors, who invited us to Memorial Episcopal when we first arrived in 2008. What an incredibly welcoming place with diversity, charm and a great outreach program. E. is really involved in the Samaratin Community and I have just dipped my toe back into the youth ministry bucket. Looking forward to meeting more parishioners as we get involved. Mother Martha even has a great blog! And each year the church puts on a musical in the spring.