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Westminster Hall & Burying Ground

4.7 (13 reviews)

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Stacy A.

Fun place to visit right in the middle of Baltimore. Not being from around this area, the Poe grave is definitely a place to visit. Even though there the main attraction is Edgar Allen Poes grave, there is a lot more to see. Beautiful and old Graves to look at. Its not the cleanest place, with many empty beer and liquor bottles strewn everywhere. Definitely worth the drive

Karen P.

very interesting site. Guided tour was very informative. Held every first Saturday of the month. Highly recommend the 2nd tour - less crowded.

Vikki D.

A small cemetery, mostly accessible (a church was built over it to sidestep city planners that wanted to keep digging up graves to repurpose land) by foot. Beware the mud puddles on a rainy day. The eccentric mix of tombs and stones reminded me of New Orleans. There are plaques everywhere to enlighten visitors, and two of Poe's headstones (his city monument and his original grave that initially lacked a marker).

His tomb
Iris H.

Who knew the westminster was this close to downtown. My friends and I went here while waiting for our take out order. It holds the grave site and memorial for Edgar Allen Poe along with many other founders and revolutionary war leaders for Baltimore. In non COVID times they have tours inside of the catacombs but for now you can tour the grounds. There's a lot of cool history and notes about the church you can read about throughout the church turned cemetery turned church. If you're in the area it's a fun short trip to make.

Carissa K.

Baltimore Trip #3 Westminster Hall (WH) was built in 1852, 60 years after the burying ground was established, and known as Westminster Presbyterian Church. It's popularly known as the burial site of Edgar Allan Poe. "This restored historic church features stained glass windows, an 1882 pipe organ, cathedral ceilings and raised balconies" (http://goo.gl/YKhJwm). Unfortunately, the grounds were closed the day we arrived so make sure you call first. Here are some more info: *WH was declared a national historic district in 1974, and the church disbanded in 1977. It was then taken over by Westminster Preservation Trust, Inc., and renovated in 1983. *"Public guided tours are offered on the 1st and 3rd consecutive Friday (at 6:30 p.m.) and Saturday (at 10 a.m.) of each month April - November, if enough people sign up. Reservations are required and a total of at least 15 people need to be signed up in order to run the tour. Fees are $5.00 for adults and $3.00 for children (12 and under) and seniors (60 and up)" (http://www.law.umaryland.edu/westminster/tours.html). *Annual Halloween Tour (that would be a blast! Here is a flyer from last year's: http://goo.gl/smHzG2) *"The site has been used in an episode of "Creepy Canada", with paranormal investigators from BSPR discussing its possible haunting" (Wikipedia.org) *WH can be rented for weddings, receptions and events; it can hold up to 250 guests. *The exterior has an Early Gothic Revival appearance.

Edgar Allan Poe Grave Marker
Maggi R.

Our thanks to Doors Open Baltimore for the opportunity to tour Westminster Hall Burying Ground and the Catacombs; it has been on our bucket list for a long time. Lucy, our guide, was a wealth of information; all interesting and entertaining. Most people will know this place because this is where Edgar Allen Poe is buried. His grave is just as you enter the graveyard at the corner of Fayette and Greene Street. The graveyard was established in January 1787 by the First Presbyterian Church of Baltimore. It was called a graveyard and not a cemetery because people were buried immediately right after their death because of the diseases they died from. Here you will find a "who's who" of wealthy Baltimoreans buried here. It is hard to believe that this graveyard was built outside of the city limits at the time. Take your time and walk around the entire graveyard and read some of the inscriptions. The last body buried here was in 1943. In 1977, the property was transferred to Westminster Preservation Trust, a non-profit formed by University of Maryland School of Law faculty to preserve and restore the historical resources. Westminster Hall has been restored and features stained glass windows, an 1882 pipe organ, cathedral ceilings and raised balconies. When they built the church, they had to build piers between the headstones and crypts, forming a foundation for the church above existing plots. This created European-style catacombs underneath the structure, one of only a handful of intentional catacombs created in the US. The catacombs were the most interesting part of the tour for us. It was dark, dank, and spooky. A shallow path is cut in the dirt between vaults and tombs, giving us an unusual and memorable experience. There are rumors of a grave robber that would sell the bodies to the medical students at the hospital. It is fun to think that their souls haunt the catacombs even today. Today, Westminster Hall can be rented for concerts, weddings, dinners and special events. The cemetery is open to the public from 8 a.m. to dusk daily. Tours of Westminster Hall and catacombs are available by reservation.

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Even though there the main attraction is Edgar Allen Poes grave, there is a lot more to see.

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Fells Point - 01.20.25 Brown's Wharf

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** 5 Year Review Update **…read more Fells Point continues to be great for the most part. Quality restaurants and boutiques, gorge water views, some of the coolest folks you'd ever meet. Some establishments have left, some have joined. The crowds stay heavy. Sadly lately, the crime has increased making it sometimes difficult to enjoy. Parking is gawd awful, but worth the hustle. I pray this area improves as Baltimore City deserves this.

Historic waterfront neighborhood [Baltimore MD]…read more Did some research while looking for places to visit in Baltimore and bookmarked this neighborhood. Fell's Point is located along the north shore of the Baltimore Harbor and just less than 10 miles from our hotel... we made our way here on MLK Day. Surprisingly, not all the businesses were closed on a holiday. We arrived around 10:30a and found parking. There are a few options for parking including metered parking and convenient lots and garages. We found an open spot on Thames Street. Fell's Point is beautiful as it was once a bustling shipbuilding port. We walked the snowy sidewalks and enjoyed the views of the wharf. Fell's Point is a historic waterfront and one of the oldest neighborhoods in Baltimore. It has served as the home to jazz singer Billie Holiday and abolitionist Frederick Douglass. I loved the cobblestone streets with many waterfront restaurants and bars and the local cute boutiques shops. We had brunch at Barcocina and did some window shopping at the cozy shops. We also shared a pastry purchased from Pitango Bakery Cafe located right there at the waterfront. Review #3664

Saint Anthony Italian Festival

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We stopped by the Italian festival on Saturday afternoon to see what was happening after driving…read moreby! So glad that we stopped in, there was so much to take in! The live music and dancing was so fun, there were even hula hoops all around! We tried fresh pizza slices, salads and the best calamari I've ever had with a lemonade and Italian iced tea to wash it all down. As someone who is not Italian, it was super cool to stop in and enjoy pieces of Italian culture and support an awesome Baltimore community! We will definitely be back next year!

Italian Festival in lil' Italy in Baltimore provides a wonderful experience for us who are not…read moreliving in Baltimore and want to get out of bubble of the usual, mundane things. It has free parking, free entertainment, visit to a National Historic landmark (1881 ornate Italian style church), a lot of great vendors and amazing foods. The "gladiators" pass you by on your way to watch a game of bocce ball. People are friendly as this is a block party festival that gives you a feeling that you are one big family. Very easy to start conversation and harder to end it. I learned today that the meat is not what makes calzone but the dough that hosts the meat inside. The meet was good but the dough was memorable. Speaking about the dough - how about delicious sweet fried dough for $3 that is impossible to finish by one person - even if you are a true Italian. I was advised by two elderly Italian ladies, "take real sugar because the powder sugar is too messy, and have sugar on both sides." I am sorry that I did not try meatballs but I can testify that calzone and pizza were the first class and worth the trip. I am very tempted to repeat the experience on a similar event - August 19 and 20, 2017 - this time just a saint will be different (St Gabriel in August).

Westminster Hall & Burying Ground - venues - Updated May 2026

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