| In the 1890s Edward H. Bouton and the Roland Park Company developed a residential neighborhood in northwest Baltimore, now known as the Roland Park Historic District. Roland Park was one of the most successful and highly emulated planned streetcar suburbs. It was Baltimore’s first residential development where deed restrictions governed the use of property and established common responsibility for the maintenance of the area. The architecture of the community typifies the romantic tastes of the turn of the century, with many examples of the Queen Anne, English Tudor, Georgian and Shingle styles. On the west side of Roland Avenue just north of Upland Avenue, one of the country’s first shopping centers was built, in the English Tudor style.
The eastern portion of the development was planned in 1891 by City Beautiful designer George E. Kessler, while the western portion was laid out in 1897 by landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. Today, the district is often studied by students of planning for its emphasis on the proper use of the natural topography to enhance the community. The Roland Park Historic District is located between Belvedere Ave., Falls Rd., 39th St. and Stoney Run, northwest of Johns Hopkins University on University Parkway. The houses within the district are primarily private residences not open to the public. |
Roland Park Historic District Photo by Eleanor Meeker, National Register of Historic Places |