Historic East Towson is the oldest African-American community in Baltimore County, Maryland. Its origins date back to 1829, when the death of Maryland's 15th Governor Charles Carnan Ridgely initiated the manumission of over 350 enslaved people by the terms of his will. Some of those formerly enslaved moved to East Towson and by the 1850s, the freed people from the Hampton Estate^[1] had built a community by establishing housing, a school, small businesses and community centers.

Now referred to as Historic East Towson, this community is still home to descendants of people formerly enslaved at the Hampton Estate. Over time, the neighborhood continues to be whittled away by commercial development. The Historic East Towson community, local colleges, other grassroots organizations, and the descendants of those formerly enslaved are working to ensure their families’ bloodlines are known and respected by sharing stories and other information that acknowledges their past. An academic exploration of this history is found in Tracing Lives^[2] – an ethnographic study completed in 2020 by Cheryl LaRoche and a team of scholars in collaboration with the National Park Service.

Historic East Towson was originally inhabited by the three Native American tribes: the Piscataway Conoy Tribe, the Piscataway Indian Tribe, and the Accohannock Tribe. They each resided throughout parts of Towson and stretched alongside the East Coast in other areas. These tribes were preceded by the Susquehannock Indians, a tribe of territorial indigenous people that controlled the eastern and western shores of the Chesapeake. Smallpox, war, and colonial factors decimated the Susquehannock population.^[3]

The Hampton Estate held around 377 enslaved people at the time of Charles Carnan Ridgely’s death in 1829. Following his death, Ridgley’s son, John Ridgely, proceeded with the process of manumission for a select number of slaves based on the terms of his will. This included enslaved people between the ages of 25 to 45 for women; 28 to 45 for men; and infants under the age of two were emancipated with their parents.^[2] Ownership over the slaves who did not meet this criteria were disbursed to Ridgely’s heirs. Only 90 Certificates of Freedom have been uncovered under Carnan’s 1829 will. Many of these people were freed in 1829 with some receiving their freedom as late as 1843.^[4]

In the 1830s, manumitted people from the Hampton Mansion went on to found prominent communities in Baltimore including East Towson, Sandy Bottom, Schwartz Avenue and part of Lutherville.^[5] Though slavery would not be abolished in Maryland until November 1, 1864, free African Americans were able to purchase land before that time. Daniel Harris is credited as the first African American landowner in East Towson.^[6] On September 14, 1853, he purchased an acre of land near Hillen Road in East Towson for $187.50 from Benjamin Payne (see: Notable People).^[5] More freed people migrated to East Towson to purchase land and build homes after their emancipation. East Towson consisted of a largely Black population until around the end of World War II due to suburban development.^[5]

Three historically Black churches remain active in Historic East Towson today: St. James African Union Methodist Protestant Church, Mount Olive Baptist Church, and Mount Calvary African Methodist Episcopal Church. These historic sites are among many others in the area that the residents aim to sustain (see section: “Architecture”).^[7]

Some of the descendants of those freed from the Hampton Estate still reside in Towson, Maryland. These descendants are being recognized through ethnographic studies such as Tracing Lives.

Historic East Towson currently faces urban renewal challenges that have significantly decreased the size of the neighborhood.^[8] In 1968, Baltimore Gas & Electric bought property in East Towson and built a power substation that expanded, causing the demolition of eight historic homes and the Negro League baseball field^[5] in East Towson. In 1972, houses on Chesapeake Avenue–also known as the Great Black Way–were demolished to build the parking garage for the Baltimore County Library. In 1994, the neighborhood’s bordering land was used to build the District Courthouse, causing the removal of four more historic homes.^[9] Later in 1994, the construction of Harris Hill affordable-condominiums resulted in the razing of five more historic homes in Historic East Towson.^[10] Once a community that stretched from York Road and Bosley Avenue to North and West Towson now consists of six blocks.

In 2012, Evergreene Homes approached the Delaware-based owner of the Historic Parker House log cabin in Historic East Towson. The company offered to buy the land, which would be used to host a townhouse development plan. The owner accepted and relocated this log house to Fairmount Avenue at the eastern edge of Historic East Towson. Evergreene obtained permits for a 35-unit luxury townhouse complex which would be located one block away from St. James African Union Methodist Protestant Church.^[11]

In 2019, the Red Maple Place Project was proposed to provide affordable housing for residents in Baltimore County.^[12] The Red Maple Place Project is a planned 56-unit apartment building slated to be built on half of a 2.8 acre plot originally addressed 413 East Pennsylvania Ave in the Historic East Towson community.^[13]

As a result of these developments and a subsequent reduction in housing, residents are relocating and taking with them their knowledge of the Historic East Towson origins of enslavement in Baltimore County. The decision to sell and/or flip homes of Historic East Towson were made by some of the descendants of original residents.^[2] The remaining community– many of whom are among the elderly population– and historical sites are what is largely keeping the legacy of the neighborhood alive. To honor the community’s roots and preserve its historical markers, Nancy Goldring leads the Road to Freedom Trail project – a three-mile cycling and pedestrian greenway that uses some 13 correlating landmarks to connect Historic East Towson to the Hampton Mansion.^[14]

Daniel Harris was the first African American landowner in East Towson. On September 14, 1853, he purchased an acre of land near Hillen Road for $187.50 from Benjamin Payne.

Samuel S. Williams was an East Towson architect who built many of the homes in the community.^[5] He was also a business owner who made and sold concrete blocks to other African American builders seeking to create homes in East Towson.

Williams was an associate pastor at St. James AUMP Church for many years after being ordained in 1936. He was buried at Pleasant Rest Cemetery after his death in 1962.

Albert Cassell was a distinguished African American architect from the mid-20th century. He specialized in academic buildings, designing for universities such as Howard University and Morgan State University. Cassel was born in Towson, Maryland and later moved to New York where he attended Cornell University.

William Jones, also known as Billy Jones,^[15] played in the point forward position. In December 1965, Jones became the first African American player in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Ralph Lee is a Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC) Athletics Hall of Fame inductee. Prior to his title, he was a star high school basketball player at Towson High School, leading the Generals to the 1963 MPSSAA 2A State High School Championship.^[16] Lee’s son, Kurk Lee, went on to play collegiate basketball for Drexel.^[17]

Adelaide Bentley, Nancy Goldring’s grandmother, was born and raised in Historic East Towson. Bentley, as the president of NeTIA for nearly 30 years, advocated for the preservation of Historic East Towson. Bentley discussed the tensions between the African American community of East Towson and the White community of West Towson.^[5] She photographed daily life in East Towson, capturing an image of the first African American police officer from the Towson Area, Walter Myers. A park in Historic East Towson is named in her honor.^[18]

Nancy Goldring is a seventh generation resident in Historic East Towson and serves as an active member in the community. She is a descendant of Lucy Williams, who was formerly enslaved at Hampton. Goldring is the current president of the Northeast Towson Improvement Association (NeTIA), an organization that advocates for Historic East Towson. NeTIA’s mission is to preserve the quality of life for the present and future residents of Historic East Towson. Goldring is also a board member of the Historical Society of Baltimore County, the Baltimore County Lynching Memorial Project and NeighborSpace of Baltimore County.  

St. James AUMP Church is the oldest church in the Historic East Towson area. Its origins date back to 1861 when a group of African Americans from the East Towson community praised their God by meeting in the homes of the late James Garrett and the late Frank and Ida Scovens. These meetings went on until October 17, 1881, when members of the church purchased land on Jefferson Avenue where the church was built.^[5]

A second level was built in 1906. Each floor contained a sanctuary. The main sanctuary is located on the second level while the first level is used primarily for group meetings and banquets.

The large bell in front of the church is older than the church itself, dating back to 1845. It was originally used in another structure to announce the departure of the streetcar on York Road until St. James acquired it. The bell was fixed onto the roof and notified the start of 10 AM Sunday service. The weight of the bell caused the church roof to sag. It was taken down and placed in front of the church.^[5]

The Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad, also referred to as the “Ma and Pa” Railroad, began operation in 1901. The railroad was made up of two narrow gauge railways dating back to the 19th-century including the Baltimore & Delta Railway and the York and Peach Bottom Railway.

The Baltimore & Delta Railway, later known as the Baltimore and Lehigh Railroad, began construction in 1881. The railroad would then begin operation a year later on April 17, 1882 with trains that traveled between Baltimore and Towson, Maryland. In 1884, the railroad line was completed and connected to the York and Peach Bottom Railway which could take passengers from Baltimore, Maryland all the way to Delta, Pennsylvania.

The Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad went through Historic East Towson, parallel to East Pennsylvania Avenue, and ran directly alongside the Carver Colored High School. After the railroad ceased to exist, the railroad was replaced by the Towson Bypass.^[19] The Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad is no longer in service, but a small fragment about 3-miles long still exists which is being preserved by the Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad Preservation Society.

The building at 300 Lennox Avenue at the intersection of Jefferson Avenue in East Towson was the original Carver Colored High School opening in 1939. Its first class consisted of 44 African American students: 22 local and 22 non-local. In September 1949, the school moved from Lennox and Chesapeake Avenue to York Road. The 1954 Supreme Court ruling in Brown vs. Board of Education caused the school population to dwindle. The effects of the verdict “wasn’t felt until 1959, at which time the school closed.”^[5] Carver High School became the desegregated Towsontowne Junior High School at 938 York Road and was renamed to Central Vocational Technical High School.^[20]

The school’s latest transformation occurred in 1992 when the York Road school was renamed the George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology, a nod to its origins. The building at 300 Lennox Avenue today operates as the East Towson Carver Community Center and houses the offices of the Northeast Towson Improvement Association, Inc., a daycare, and a satellite office for Baltimore County Recreation and Parks.

The Pride of Towson Lodge (affectionately known as the Elks Home)  serves as the social hub of the Historic East Towson community, a backdrop for various celebration events, jazz concerts, crabfeasts, bull roasts, alumni and homecoming events, scholarship presentations, and memorial repasts. Throughout its existence, the Lodge and its members have demonstrated a commitment to the Towson community, with a particular focus on veterans and youth.^[21] In its earlier days, the Lodge was a site for Black entertainment: local jazz bands and musicians would play there.^[5] One of the bands included The Jimmy Smith band whose members were Freddy Barnes, William V. Norris, Donald Colbert, Jimmy Smith, and two different individuals with the last names Fletcher and Thomas. Norris and Colbert were both from East Towson.^[22] The Lodge seeks to promote the welfare and happiness of its members, foster American patriotism, and cultivate fellowship among its constituents.^[23] In recent years, the Lodge has become the home of the Historic East Towson Juneteenth Music Festival.

Many of the homes in Historic East Towson were built and designed by formerly enslaved people skilled in metalworking and architecture. The neighborhood consisted of critter and shotgun-style homes. Critter houses had thatched roofs on outbuildings.^[5] Shotgun homes had one-story layouts with three or more rooms. A home with this style can be found at 435 Pennsylvania Avenue, which was constructed between 1915 and 1917. Other noteworthy homes are 417 Jefferson Avenue, which was built by Mr. William Walker prior to 1898, and 317 Lenox Avenue, which was erected by Samuel S. Williams in 1906. Situated at 423 Jefferson Avenue, the Historic Parker House is one of the oldest structures in the region, having been constructed in the third quarter of the 1800s.