I was very much impressed with Philadelphia, little as I saw of it, but it is evidently under good municipal government, every evidence of order prevails, & the streets clean. The buildings are more after our English style than American, & streets are not so wide as New York, tho’ the main street (Market St.), is wide & imposing, & some grand architecture on it, fine stores here too. I’ve been greatly attracted by the spacious & beautiful positions these occupy & generally, if you go in or look in, they are well crowded, not always with buyers, but as I’ve said before, people who are out & no way particular to go, there they gather & I suppose like cafés at home, sure to meet some one known to them. I note here as I did in Kentucky, many muels [sic] are used for waggon purposes, great big animals they are. Glasgow tram cars used to be drawn by this class of muel [sic], and I understood they were from America. Father, when we were at Glasgow, was greatly interested by them. Here they have the overhead wires & ugly poles, bare trees shorn of bark, nothing more, & an eye sore they’ve been to me, & almost every where I’ve been in, Canada & the States. I commented on this before.
(This I am writing in the Windsor Hotel, Philadelphia, Sunday night. I left Washington at 4:20 so that I should not have such a long ride to N. York tomorrow morning.)
Well now, to Baltimore. As I said, I left Phila. on Thursday the 10th at 1:24 p.m. for Baltimore, 12 minutes late starting & arrived there 3:20. It was raining heavily when I left Phila. & continued so for nearly the whole journey. It was a pleasant ride, very, the country pretty, farming most of the way on either side & some beautiful homesteads planted here & there, apparently the homes of well to do farmers. It was a fast train & our first stop was at “Wilmington” – get your atlas – & during all that day, this city had been in a ferment. Maybe you had read reference to it: 8 negroes shot dead, many wounded, & 3 white men injured, besides great destruction[1]. I’ve kept the cutting from paper of 11th. We neither knew nor saw anything of it. At Wilmington I noticed large works on the track side. These were Pul[l]man Car Works, & we skirted the river[2] where [9:38] much shipping was visible. It was raining heavy here & all the way water was laying on the land. At Perryville, we crossed a big river. I could not ascertain its name[3], & on the southern bank of it we entered Havre de Grace, & about here the scenery, tho’ raining, was very attractive, & then we came in sight of & kept it all along to Baltimore, the water of the Chesapeake, large volumes of water way. We duly arrived at Baltimore 3:20. It wasn’t raining so heavy now. I took hotel bus, full of passengers. I’ve usually had recommendations to hotels, but I did not come across any one on this occasion, but took the bus I saw had most patrons & I judged correctly, & a very good hotel I found it, “Hotel Rennert”. In the souvenir of Baltimore sent you from there, you will see the building. I had room 35 on first floor (& here in Windsor tonight I have 425, a very good furnished room on first floor). After getting settled a bit & waiting, it fairing up, I ventured out & I made good use of the while before darkness came on. I bought the souvenir, posted it, also 4 p. cards, 1 to you & one to Mr. Nawton. It came on dreadfully wet at 7, but I had got in before then, & it so continued as long as I sat up. I got my diary a long way forwarded as I was anxious to get it posted at Baltimore, so to be certain of catching the Campania sailing with mail on Saturday from N. York, & this being the last mail sailing previous to the Majestic, in her we shall, all well, carry our own mail, I made every effort to get all that time permitted committed to the diary, & I satisfied myself & had it duly posted the following morning & enclosed a few lines of domestic detail along with it. While I was out viewing, the streets were wretchedly dirty & very uncomfortable moving about. I, however, spared not & saw much that I was pleased with. I got down as far as the basin, as it is called, the upper end of the fine waterway of the great Chesapeake. Here away lay the pleasure river craft, 3 & 4 deckers, great monsters like palaces, and there were many of them, also oyster boats. These are fine craft, very broad decked after our herring boats style, but a long way improved. They go out to the oyster trawlers & fetch the catches to market. Oh, what a business the oyster trade is in America. You’ve no idea of it, oysters & oysters to it as you’ll see from the many menu [9:39] cards I’ve gathered. Also I saw the great railway “flats” that carry loaded rail cars every where & anywhere, & this is largely done in America. On two laying in this basin, they had each 8 great cars on 4 aside, each in size equal to 3 of what we call “box” waggons. This you see every 5 or 10 minutes in N. York harbour, trains of freight being transhipped from one side to the other. I told you my experience crossing the Detroit River, Canada to States, & vice versa. Friday morning was fine, very, & I hasted out, began sight seeing at once, & went to the beautiful Mount Vernon Place, only a few minutes from Hotel Rennert, & where stands the grand monument to Washington. Depend upon it, America determines that her future generations shall know the famous men that has [sic] made their country – statues & monuments every where, & every city duplicates many of them. A very fine one of Geo. Peabody stands on one of the sides of this square, sitting in a chair, & on another side Roger B. Taney (Chief Justice) on pedestal. But what I was most charmed with was Mount Vernon Place Methodist Church, a building surpassing an absentee’s comprehension. It is reared of a greenish stone, reliefed by a dark grey sandstone, & for attraction surpasses most of the churches I’ve seen. I could not get inside. Doors were locked. Revd. Joseph E. Smith DD Pastor, 903 St. Paul’s St. Maybe some of our Wesley friends may have heard of it, & this is the reason I have scribed so much about it, for reference & my mind’s refreshment. Beautiful fountain here too, all these are on an elevation & commands a fine position, & the monument is seen from all points, & several streets lead right up to it so that as you are riding in the cars & passing some cross streets, looking up there is the monument. I took a snap looking up N. Charles St.
All around this square is the most fashionable part of Baltimore, & by a kindly man had almost every notabilities’ [sic] residence pointed out to me. How very kind all have been, offering information. Many policemen have said that they make it part of their duty to afford visitors information, & they are easily “fetched”. Any American, be he what you like – only [9:40] say that America is a fine country & you touch a spring which gives flow to all you desire or care to know. This I found out myself very soon after putting my foot on its soil – aye, Canadians too, but by no means laud the other’s country up to its citizens, they can’t stand it, no, not a single individual.
While I was breakfasting, I glanced at the morning paper & saw the SS “Elwick” had the day before arrived to load grain, & after doing the city, or what I saw interesting, I made enquiries where a grain steamer would be likely laying, & “the elevators”[4] was the direction, a long way off & down the river – could see them easily as they are so lofty, & I snapped 2, & they will be good as it was very sunny. I took a car – Charles St. car – for elevators, which is the terminus. The fort is here & a regiment of soldiers in it presently, all within a few minutes of each other. The cars, by the way, are lettered “Fort” & it is terminus proper, & here I got out. Took the snap, & in the foreground a railway pay car. You’ll see the style railway men are paid throughout the country. The car is fitted up “office” & travels sections. Fine view of harbour all the journey & I was pleased with that alone. Elwick wasn’t there, nor could she be seen. I enquired of a sailor on the Largo Bay of No. Shields, a shieldsman, had him in a moment, “Where do you come from?”, “N. Shields”, “I W. H’pool”, “kin” at once. Chief Eng. was a H’pool man, would go & fetch him. Mr. Walker of H’pool, his father has a grocery shop in Prissic[k] St. They had seen the Elwick (Ropner’s[5] I am sure she is) the night before on the other side & near the basin where I had been, but she had moved & to where they could not tell, but they pointed out the “Webster” laying lower down at another elevator. I saw her yellow funnel & black top distinctly, & had she or the Elwick been handy, I would have gone on board, sure to have seen some I would know. Mr. Walker set me back a distance & we parted. He is to look me up when he is next at home. He is often here & thinks Baltimore a very fine city.
[9:41]
He & I stood & saw several enclosures, tons upon tons of oyster shells in little mountains & near by a grindery where these are all ground for chicken food. I told Mr. Walker that H’pool folk would not believe we saw such a sight & he said it was often his experience to be disbelieved. I’ve seen in cities great 2 horse waggons loaded with shells, gathered them in from saloons. Every place & only a few doors apart you see boards outside, oysters, so & so, & all hotels serve them up, so do restaurants, & by the way, all waiters in hotels & restaurants here & south are coloured. The head waiter of both this, Windsor, & the Howard at Washington, are characters to laugh at, real [?] & in full dress look so amusing. One has specks & both are fat, & this Windsor one waddles like a duck. I’m sure I laugh as he guides you to the table. Some are very smart, but give me our English waiter, nothing like him anywhere I’ve been, & I’ve been served by a variety, I can assure you.
I ascended the roof & tower of Hotel Rennert & had a most distinct & comprehensive view of the great city, & it is a great city, no mistake. I took 2 snap shots from this altitude, maybe they will come out small, but it is the memento I prize. You see the streets converging & also running away in straight courses far beyond the eye’s compass, & over looking some grand buildings, parks & not least, the fine water way with its floating craft, & the huge elevators in the distance make altogether a very fine bird’s eye view of Baltimore. A great portion of the population must be coloured, & about the harbour the labour seems all darkie, & some rum looking phizogs[6] upon some of them. Chinamen & Japs too are to be seen about. Laundrying is their chief occupation, but the steam operation, which is everywhere, must in time do John[7] out, & he won’t adopt machinery. I left Baltimore with a very good impression. The streets were dried up & clean, all paved or granolite[8], & looked quite smart after the rain, except around the harbour where it is very throng, & there it was dirty.
[9:42]
This writing with pencil is very unsatisfactory to me, tho’ it may be better to read, but I prefer the agate. It is sharper & cleaner, & pencils soon get rounded & require repairing. Now I hear a chiming clock “chap” ¼ past 11 & I will close up, full time, as I’ve not done bad tonight. It’s still raining, I hear. I hope it will be fine in the morning. I start 10:15. This train leaves Washington at 7 a.m., due in Jersey City 12:31. As I’ve finished Baltimore, my next contribution will begin with journey to beautiful Washington.
Good night!!
[1] It seems that William confused Wilmington, DE with Wilmington, NC, where there was indeed a race riot on November 10-11, 1898. It is considered a turning point in post-reconstruction NC politics and the beginning of more severe racial segregation and disenfranchisement of black people.
[2] Delaware River. William’s great-grandson, Daniel Whitehead, grew up near Wilmington, DE, within sight of the Delaware river.
[3] Susquehanna River
[4] Grain elevators, large silos for storing grain.
[5] Ropner’s Shipping Company, West Hartlepool
[6] Phizog, noun (especially Brit) slang: The face. Etymology: 17c: shortening of physiognomy.
[7] “John Chinaman,” British slang for Chinese people.
[8] A type of construction material, composed of cement and fine aggragate such as granite. It has a similar appearance to concrete.
What a great description of Baltimore! Been waiting for this for a long time and happy William was impressed with the City.