The daily exchange. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1858-1861, 1859-08-02

DearuS ana nlOuSulcueS anu Maldcct CttheS, "oulu
deserve well of the community. A genial and
well-written article, in an Alexandria paper, lkens
the growth of Baltimore to that of "young
"Hoosier." The value of the comparison, as
compliment, lies in its un1oubted truth. Our city
has crown with a rapidity that has surprised
even that mysterious parsonage its 'oldest in
nbabitant." There were towns of some provincial
note and ports of entry in Maryland when Balti-
more was in its swadding clothes. Some of them
are now acknowledged to be finished cities, and
others are either dwarfed into insignifcance, or
have fallen into hopeless decay. Time was
when, in quaint but comfortable mansions at
Annapolis, built of imported brick, and with in
terors lavishly carved, and panelled, and decorat
ed. the beauty and fashion of the Province were
assembled and those only were recognized as
moving in good society who stood fair in the esti-
nation of his Excellency the GOVERNOR. Annapo-
lis, at this day, is as much "a finished city,
as Venice is at the present time or was three CEN
turtles ago. The port of Joppa is a barren waste
houseless, shpless, treeess, shrubless. The port
of Havre de Grace is a small country village. No
ships of burthen now take in cargoes Of grain and
tobacco at Elkridge landing. The old rolling
road, along which the planters were accustomed
to trundle their hogsheads, filled with the Nco-
{. tan weed - is now rarely traversed, save by
the residents of the vicinity, or by strangers in
search of the picturesque. What was called the
Forest, has been converted into arabic lands. Hunt
ing Ridge where the Indians fingered the longest,
and in whose close coverts the wild deer fed, is
now crowded with suburban villas and educa-
tional institutions; and, amid all these changes
for better or for worse, Baltimore has continued TO
grow, not systematically, but steadily, sturdily,
and continuously. a century ago, twenty-five
houses of by no means the most promising APP
pearance marked the site of Baltimore town
nearly all of which were scattered about what is
now known as " the head of the BASIN" Ten
years later, Joppa, fallen from its high estate"
was deprived Of its privileges and its dignity of
County Town" was conferred upon Baltimore,
where a court house and prison, whipping post
and pillory were erected during the following year.
AT the foot of the hill on which the old court house
stood, Jones' Falls meandered through low pasture
grounds, terminating in marShy lands The course
of the stream was turned long ago, and the lower
marsh drained, and filled up and built upon but
the market which now occupies portion of the
area still indicates, by its name, the nature of the
soil upon which it was erected. In 1873, Balt-
more town numbered thousand houses, and five
thousand inhabitants It had ships and schonners
of its own, and had already laid the foundation of
a lucrative commerce with the West Indies 1t
had also organized fire company--the Mechani-
cal-four years previously for the houses were
chiefly wooden structures, and were scattered over
the hills Immediately adjacent to the harbor, or
followed the line of the river east of Jones' Falls
1t was during the year already mentioned, that
WILLIAM GODDARD issued proposals for publishing
a newspaper which, in due time, made its appear
ance and without doubt, to the great delight Of an
admring public. Its news was not indeed very
fresh, nor were its advertisements many; but it
gave the earliest tidings that could be
had at time when it took ninety days to hear
from Europe, and the journey to Philadelphia oc-
cupied three days. Two sheets of fooscap pasted
together will give the size of The Maryland
journal and Baltimore Ad0ertiser Of 1913. In
those days, we may remark, Provincial Editors
rarely troubled the world with their own
opinions, but they cheerfully admitted the lucubra-
tions of intelligent correspondents, and nearly all
of them reserved space which was known as the
'Poets Corner,n where STREPHoN was permitted
to WOO CHLOE to his hearts content, and CYNTHIA
and DIANA were passionaely apostrophised. In l77G
the Continental Congress, driven from Philadel.
phia by the advance of the British, occupied "a
'1ong chamber, with two fre-placcs, two closets,
'and two doors in JACOB FITEs building, on the
of rlya nd IN
"l79O the growing commerce of Baltimore de.
"manded and obtained Custom-House." Foul
years later we were sufficiently wealthy and metro
politan to require the introduction of oil lamp;
along the line of the principal Streets and of four
teen watchmen the former TO guide and the latter
to protect belated wayfarers. View then grow
ing apace. The close of the Revolutionary Wa
found our merchants in q condition to extend the
commercial relations and they did not fail to i'm
prove the opportunity. A few years later a con
siderable additiowwas made to the resident popu
lation by the arrival of a large number of French
refugees, who had been driven from the Island o
San Domingo, during the memorable massacre
which occurred there in 1892. In 1896 our popu
ton numbered twenty thousand, and, as mark o
respect for the wealth and intelligence of thu
people, they were invested with corporate privi
leges, and Baltimore Town became Baltimor
City, and JAMES CALHOUN was its first Mayor
The number of houses, at that time, was abou
,hirty-fve hundred the greater portion of which
were of brick, and many of them were then con-
sidered to be Handsome and elegant" OF ware
houses there were some two hundred, principally
in the vicinity of the harbor. Belonging
to the port were twenty-seven ships, one
scow, thirty brigantnes, thirty-four schooners,
and nine sloops-in all, one hundred and two
vessels, comprising, in the aggregate, thirteen thou
sand five hundred and sixty-four tons. In 1893,
the combined value of the exports and imports
amounted to twelve millions of dollars. In that
year, Philadelphia ranked as the first commercial
city of the Union New York was the second
Baltimore the third, and Boston the fourth. Oul
city then contained about one hundred and thirty
streets, lanes and alleys, but many of them still
remained unbuilt upon, the most compactly bull
portion of the city being between JONES Falls and
Howard street. A bank had been established
seven years prevously-the unfortunate Bank O
Maryland. A branch Bank of the UNITED STATES
was also established few years later in the build
ing now occupied by the Merchants Bank. There
were then in the city eleven places of public wor
ship-the Episcopaiians, Lutherans, Presby
rians, Calvinists, Reformed Germans, Nicolites
Baptists and Roman Catholics, having one each
and the Methodists two. In 1900, the population
had increased to nearly twenty-seven thousand
and, at the close of the subsequent decades, tht
Census Reports give us the following figures;
1S1o............. 46,455 1910 1O2513
182O............62,73s 1850. 9O54
1851. .SJ,620
At the present time, we may safely estimate In,
number of permanent residents in this city at two
hundred and thirty thousand and the total assessed
value of the real and personal property of the CITY
at one hundred million of dollars Instead of seven
teen churches, as in 1896, we have now about on
hundred and ten and while our foreign commerce
hasnot kept pace with our material increase in othe
respects manufacturing establishments of variou
kinds have increased within the past fifteen year
with extraordinary rapidly. tits not for us here
and at this time, to speak of the character OF GU
markets, nor have we space to dwell upon the ex
tent of our commercial operations. We designed
simply to trace roughly, the progress of Baltimor
from its earliest village aspect to its present ap