7 Best Sights in Mount Vernon, Baltimore

Opened in 1821, the Basilica of the Assumption is the oldest Roman Catholic cathedral in the United States. Designed by Benjamin Latrobe, architect of the U.S. Capitol, it stands as a paragon of neoclassicism, with a grand portico fronted by six Corinthian columns that suggest an ancient Greek temple. Two towers are surmounted by baroque domes. The church, including 24 skylights in the dome which were covered over before or prior to World War II, was restored in November, 2006, the bicentennial of the laying of the church’s cornerstone.

Donated to the city of Baltimore in 1882 by its namesake, a wealthy merchant, the Enoch Pratt Free Library was one of the country's first free-circulation public libraries; it remains one of the country's largest. The Pratt was remarkable for allowing any citizen to borrow books at a time when only the wealthy could afford to buy them. When the collection outgrew its original fortresslike rococo structure in 1933, Pratt's democratic ideals were incorporated into the new building's grand yet accessible design. Innovations such as a sidewalk-level entrance and department store–style exhibit windows set the standard for public libraries across the country. The building is still a treat to explore. A huge skylight illuminates the Central Hall's marble floors, gilded fixtures, mural panels depicting the history of printing and publishing, and oil portraits of the Lords Baltimore. The Children's Department, with a fishpond, puppet theater, and a large selection of books, is a real gem for little ones. An audio architecture tour of the museum is available at the circulation desk.

Designed by Maximilian Godefroy in 1819, the church that year was the site for the sermon that definitively established Unitarianism as a denomination (the sermon was given by the church's founder, Dr. William Ellery Channing).

Originally built in 1893 by Stanford White for Robert Garrett, the president of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, this mansion was the largest and most expensive ever constructed in Baltimore (the neighbors objected to its size). After Garrett died in 1896, his widow, Mary, and her second husband, Dr. Henry Barton Jacobs, had John Russell Pope build an extension of equal size. A spectacular stained glass dome, designed by Louis Comfort Tiffany, is one highlight. Call ahead to book a tour.

Celebrate Maryland's history and heritage at this block-long museum. One major draw is the original manuscript of "The Star-Spangled Banner," written by Francis Scott Key. It's the centerpiece of an excellent War of 1812 exhibit that also includes guns and personal belongings of Baltimore's "Defenders," as well as the fashions of Elizabeth Patterson Bonaparte, known by contemporaries as "the most beautiful woman in 1812 America." The first floor is devoted to an exhibit about the Civil War in Maryland, which was a powder keg of Northern and Southern sympathies—the War's first blood was shed downtown, on Pratt Street. Other exhibits feature Revolutionary-era paintings by the Peale family and Joshua Johnson, America's first African-American portrait artist. Furniture manufactured and designed in Maryland from the 18th century to the present is on the third floor. A gallery of Baltimore Civil Rights photographs by Afro-American newspaper photojournalist Paul Henderson adjoins the library, which contains 7 million works that relate to the state's history.

One of the country's more beautifully designed public spaces, Mount Vernon Place is a prime spot for relaxing. It was established when John Eager Howard donated the highest point in Baltimore as a site for a memorial to George Washington. With the monument as its center, the square is composed of four parks, each a block in length, that are arranged around Mount Vernon Place (which goes east–west) and Washington Place (north–south). Benches near the monument are great for watching water calmly trickle from the fountains. The sculptures in the parks deserve a close look; of special note is a bronze lion by Antoine-Louis Barye in the middle of West Mount Vernon Place. Northeast of the monument is Mount Vernon Place United Methodist Church, a striking example of Victorian Gothic architecture. It was built in the mid-1850s on the site of Francis Scott Key's home and place of death. Free concerts are held in the park monthly in the summertime. Take a moment to admire the brownstones along the north side of East Mount Vernon Place. They're excellent examples of the luxurious mansions built by 19th-century residents of Baltimore's most prestigious neighborhood.

This Baltimore institution was organized in the 1880s as a way for destitute women, many of them Civil War widows, to support themselves in a ladylike fashion through sewing and other domestic handiworks. To this day you can still purchase handmade quilts, embroidered baby clothes, sock monkeys, and many other arts and crafts.