Baltimore’s World War I memorial is falling apart
Nearly 100 years after World War I, Baltimore’s memorial is badly deteriorated, and going ignored. As of now, nobody has plans to fix it.
Grove of Remembrance with pavilion in background. All images from the author unless otherwise noted.
The National Service Star Legion planted the
One other tree that went up as part of the original grove was for Baltimore. Once the United States entered the war in April of 1917, Maryland provided 50,000 troops. Most were from Baltimore, and they served largely in eastern France.
In 1992, Baltimore Sun reporter Jacques Kelly wrote:
Baltimoreans filled the ranks of an infantry regiment, the 313th of the 79th Division. Its Company A was mostly East Baltimoreans; Company F drew heavily from the old 10th Ward, a section south of Green Mount Cemetery. It was known as the Irish Fusileers. There were favorite companies from neighborhoods in South, Northwest and West Baltimore. Many never came home.
The Grove of Remembrance also has a stone pavilion honoring Merill Rosenfeld, a Johns Hopkins graduate who died during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. The site is next to the Maryland Zoo and adjacent to the Jones Falls Trail.
Inside the Edward L. Palmer Jr designed pavilion.
The pavilion was designed by Edward L. Palmer Jr., an 1899 graduate of Johns Hopkins. Palmer was also the designer of many significant residences in Roland Park, Guilford, and Gibson Island. With his partner, William D. Lamdin they designed over 200 houses and dozens of buildings including the Second Presbyterian Church in Guilford and the twin-domed Saint Casimir Church in Canton. Using old world charm, Palmer and Lamdin are credited with building some of the most graceful and distinctive homes and buildings in Baltimore.
The Grove of Remembrance is in bad shape, and it’s unclear who should fix it
At Palmer’s pavilion, wood beams are rotting, rain gutters are falling over, the iron work is rusting, the benches have been destroyed, the mortar supporting the stone structure needs repointing, and the signature slate roof needs repaired. There also aren’t any flags on the flag poles, which need a fresh coat of paint.
And while the tree grove itself has glorious oaks that are nearly a century old, there’s quite a bit of trash scattered around the memorial site.
Fixing these problems won’t cost millions of dollars, but it will mean needing some money, and a capable project leader, which isn’t all that easy to come by.
Many years of neglect are taking their toll on the memorial site.
The Grove of Remembrance is in Druid Hill Park, but Baltimore’s Park and Recreation Department is woefully short of money.
“There are no plans in place,” said Deputy Director Bill Vondrasek recently. “We would welcome outside funds to help renovate the structure.”
Friends of Druid Hill Park is an organization comprised of volunteers that are mostly engaged with programming events, so capital project fundraising is probably beyond their current scope. Billionaire David M. Rubenstein, the son of a Baltimore postal worker, is interested in historical sites and has donated millions to sites around Washington, including 7.5 million toward fixing Washington’s Washington Monument. Maybe he has interest in being a benefactor for historical sites in Baltimore? Governor Hogan recently appointed a World War One Centennial Commission to develop activities and events for the war’s 100th anniversary. Maybe that group could lead the project. One other option might be having the Maryland Zoo helping with day-to-day upkeep.
The plaque in front of the Oak honoring the sacrifice of troops from Washington.
Nearly a hundred years after one of America’s bloodiest wars, this memorial site is forgotten and neglected. Now that we’ve arrived at World World I’s centennial, perhaps we’ll find a way to restore the site and honor those who sacrificed.