Democracy Rising: The Monuments of Baltimore, 1809-1842

Abstract

On July 4, 1815 the citizenry of Baltimore, Maryland laid the cornerstone for what would become the first Washington Monument. A few months later, just a few blocks away, ground was broken for a second monument, called the Battle or the Baltimore Monument, which celebrated the ordinary citizens and soldiers who died defending the city during the War of 1812. These two monuments expressed rival political ideologies and reflected the clashing interests that hovered around them in urban space. It was the Battle Monument, rooted in more local, plebian, and essentially urban political culture, that came to best represent democratic ideals and to anchor them in the public space where they could be put into practice.