Baltimore’s Historic Hotel and one of it’s creepiest. My granddad was the Associate Treasurer for years.
Designed by William Lee Stoddart, a Columbia University graduate, the Lord Baltimore Hotel opened in December of 1928 on New Years Eve. WBAL (yes the radio station was around in 1928) broadcast the festivities which included Maryland’s governor, Baltimore’s mayor and a descendant of the actual Lord Baltimore family. Built in the French Renaissance style, it sits at 20 West Baltimore Street, just one block over from Charles Street at the corner of Baltimore and Hanover Street. It is considered the last high-rise building to be built in Baltimore using a classical details and the one of only four buildings in Baltimore with a distinctive roofline. It’s copper mansard roof is now a wonderful aged green. High tech amenities at the time included a radio in every room.
The Lord Baltimore was built to replace the Caswell Hotel, an eight story hotel built in 1905 after the devastation of the Baltimore Fire in 1904. Its owner, Harry Busick, needed a larger hotel and subsequently hired Stoddart who provided him with the largest hotel in Maryland at the time, with 700 (with renovations – this was reduced to 600 and further renovation reduced it again to 440) guest rooms. There is a ”crown” that sits on top of the 19th floor that contains 4 penthouses. Standing 22 stories high, with brick veneer over a steel frame, some consider it the architect’s finest hotel.
The Caswell Hotel – about 1911 – from a postcard.
Because it was built at the beginning of the depression and was the tallest building in Baltimore, it sadly became the place for suicides during those years (1929-1932), with over 20 documented jumps from the the building. While I could only find 11 listed in the Baltimore Sun, I don’t doubt there were more. With elevator access to what is now the LB Skybar, an outdoor space on the 19th floor, jumpers would have found it very easy to make their way to the edge of the roof. After my grandfather began working there as the night auditor, per my grandmother, one of the jumpers actually landed on the hood of his brand new car, completely destroying it. It is because of these tragic events that the hotel has become known as Baltimore’s most haunted. Between an elevator that hovers near the 19th floor, sightings of a young girl with a red ball both in the ballroom and on the 19th floor, people reporting being touched in the elevator and lobby by unseen hands, folks complaining of an unseen “presence” in their rooms, especially on the 8th floor, tv remotes that disappear, handprints on penthouse walls that won’t go away, it has also earned a spot as one of the top 10 most haunted places in the US. Hotel staff has nicknamed the young girl “Molly” but despite this, she is known to chase folks and two employees resigned as a result. The hotel’s ghosts are so well known that in September 2018, it participated in the world’s largest ghost hunt. And no, despite the tv shows with people who know nothing about the hotel or its history, Al Capone did not kill Molly.
The hotel has a 2-story lobby which gives you the sensation of stepping back in time the second you enter through the brass revolving door. Between the columns, the handblown Venetian glass chandelier (handmade by Murano artisans), the iron work on the second floor mezzanine, the classical artwork, and the decor (which includes a grand piano), the lobby is a glamorous spot which hearkens back to the 1920’s. The 1928 Calvert Ballroom features the three original Baccarat chandeliers and the dining room (now called the French Kitchen) walls are covered with replicas of the Versailles mirrors. There is even a two-story Speakeasy, discovered in 2013 when renovation was being done. It had been converted into a closet of sorts after prohibition ended in 1933. In fact the Sun reported 700 people at the hotel on April 7 waiting for midnight. A party then ensued and not a soul was arrested apparently.
When Harry Busick died accidentally in January 1930, his sons (Morton, Nelson and Howard) took over the management of the hotel, and it became a very popular place, especially for celebrities. With over 20,000 square feet of event space, it became the center of Baltimore’s social scene, with the hotel hosting dinners, banquets and other social activity. It still Amelia Earhart and Babe Ruth visited, as well as dozens of others. Carol Channing became a regular. Olivia De Havilland stayed while doing press for “Gone With The Wind”.
In 1958, the Busick boys defied the city ordinance of 1911 which refused entry of African-Americans into the hotel as guests. Prior to that, the hotel manager had refused to admit African-Americans but following Brown vs. The Board of Education and some lobbying by Mayor McKeldin, the hotel owners finally decided to tell the Baltimore City Council to get bent and began admitting people of color. Baltimore hosted the All-Stars game and 6 black ballplayers registered as guests. They included Hank Aaron, Willie Mayes and Jackie Robinson. By the 60’s when policies really began to change, the hotel rented space to George Wallace, the Presidential Candidate. When they realized that he was running on a segregation platform, they chased him out, refused to let his team stay and he was relegated to a hotel in Towson. By 1965, Martin Luther King, Jr. had stayed at the Lord Baltimore and held a press conference for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Mayor D’Allesandro (Nancy Pelosi’s brother) gave him the keys to the city.
The Busick brothers sold the hotel in the late 60’s and the new owners went bankrupt. Granddad followed the Busick boys over to the Emerson Hotel and then retired. The hotel changed hands a few more times before it closed in 1982, needing a major renovation. A local developer bought it the following year and had completed renovations by 1985, but by 1987, he too was bankrupt. The FDIC bought it from trhe bank and it became part of the Radisson Hotel chain for a while and was known as the Radisson Plaza Lord Baltimore. By 1992 it had been sold again to Universal Equities and then to Davidson Hotel who turned it into a Hilton. In 2001 it was rebought by Radisson and again became the Radisson Plaza Lord Baltimore. The Rubell family bought it in 2013 and thanks to their investment in the property, it has won numerous awards as an independent hotel.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, the Lord Baltimore opened its doors in May 2020 as a Triage, Respite and Isolation Center for people in Baltimore City and helped to provide quarantine and isolation to over 3000 people who could not otherwise isolate at home. The room and food were provided free of charge for the length of stay which was normally about 10 days. Onsite medical staff and nurses were there to provide triage and evaluation services.
It is on the National Register of Historic Places and belongs to Historic Hotels of America. I think my granddad would be very very proud.
Sources
https://www.historichotels.org/us/hotels-resorts/lord-baltimore-hotel/history.php
https://explore.baltimoreheritage.org/items/show/414
https://www.lordbaltimorehotel.com/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_Baltimore_Hotel
The Baltimore Sun
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Lee_Stoddart
Personal knowledge of Sanford N. Glenn as relayed to Suzanne DeVier
Personal knowledge of Marjorie Glenn DeVier as relayed to Suzanne DeVier
https://www.wbaltv.com/article/ghosts-walk-halls-of-lord-baltimore-hotel-manager-says/7716969
Lord Baltimore Hotel, Baltimore, Maryland
https://coronavirus.baltimorecity.gov/isolation-assistance-tri-center-lord-baltimore-hotel-0
Baltimore Through My Eyes 