ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries 170 son C o m m itte e c h a ire d by Jo an C h a m b e rs, to m ake contacts w ith other higher education associa­ tions and to w ork cooperatively in bringing lib ra ri­ ans into the m ainstream of academ ia. ■ ■ Baltimore ’86 Baltimore epitomizes “Energiesfor Transition.” resent day Baltim ore is changing dram atically P in its race to prepare for the electronic, high-tech future to w hich the B altim ore-W ashington corri­ dor seems destined. T he planning com m ittee for the F ourth N ational ACRL Conference is just p u t­ ting together the program , bu t it is not too early to think about visiting Baltim ore and its environs. Baltim ore is a city of the future, b u t its past is still visible to the casual observer. The energy of B alti­ m oreans has fueled a succession of u rb an transfor­ m ations over the city’s long history. Hence, Balti­ m ore epitomizes the them e chosen for the ACRL C onference, “Energies for T ran sitio n ,” w hich is to be held at the Convention C enter April 9 -12,1986. H isto ry T he C ity Leaders are fostering attem pts to learn from the past and to preserve outstanding achieve­ ments of earlier times. Baltim oreans recognize the tru th of w h at John Dos Passos said of this city in 1968: “Some day the prim e movers who decide our destinies m ay come to understand th a t the charac­ ter of a city as a fit place for m en and w om en to live depends on the survival of intriguing vestiges of the p a s t.”1 W itness four inner-city archaeological digs in re­ cent m onths and the $11 million late 1970s restora­ tion of the 1875 C ity H all w ith its m agnificent ro­ tu n d a and dome. O nly a ham let in 1750, by the early nineteenth cen tu ry B altim ore was considered a large city. From m id-century to the end of the nineteenth cen- LJohn Dorsey and James D. Dilts, A G uide to Baltim ore A rchitecture (2d ed., Centreville, Md.: T idew ater, 1981), p. xv. tury, Baltim ore doubled its population again. One can now easily spot from atop Federal Hill or the W orld T rad e C enter the geographical features— the Piedm ont fall line to the W est and the sheltered harb o r on the E ast—w hich provided the energy7 and outlet for B altim ore’s productivity. The city’s m aritim e and industrial heritage is depicted well in the Baltim ore Museum of Industry, one of the new ­ est of our city’s forty plus museums and galleries. C alled the northernm ost Southern city in the country, B altim ore shared in the strengths of both regions. In the thriving nineteenth century, three of the four Baltim oreans who gave their names to w orld-renow ned city institutions w ere Yankees. Enoch P ra tt (of library fam e), born in M assachu­ setts, augm ented his already considerable fortune by controlling the horseshoe and mule-shoe busi­ ness during the Civil W ar. By 1830 George Pea­ body, also from M assachusetts, was the senior p a r t­ ner of the largest m ercantile house in the country. In 1857 he set about creating the Peabody Conserv­ atory, long the center of B altim ore’s musical life, and the Peabody L ibrary, now u nder the control of Johns Hopkins University. Hopkins was the native M arylander of the four, while the other Yankee was W illiam T. W alters, originally from Pennsyl­ vania, whose collecting penchant eventually re­ sulted in the W alters Art Gallery. T he Peabody is one of the cornerstones of M ount V ernon Place, the sq u are su rro u n d in g R obert M ill’s m o n u m en t to G eorge W a sh in g to n , fin ish ed in 1829. M ount V ernon and nearby beautiful squares were hom e to m any prom inent families, some of old M aryland stock. Baltim ore looked to the South for guidance in the m atters of cookery, hospitality, and the so­ cial conventions gen erally . H en ry Jam es once called these squares of M ount Vernon “the parlour 171 Cr: Baltimore Convention Bureau B a ltim o re’s In n er H arbor. of B a ltim o re .” T h e q u alities of gracious living, p rid e in tra d itio n , an d com fortable fo rm ality sug­ gested by Jam es’s p hrase still p erm eate m uch of life in B altim ore. Modern transformations B altim ore has needed its energy, for it has h a d to v irtu ally recreate itself tw ice in this century. It quickly recovered from th e disastrous fire of 1904, w hich destroyed 2,000 buildings over 140 acres in th e h e a rt of d o w n to w n . B altim ore’s m o d ern re n ­ aissance started in th e early 1960s w h en C harles C en ter becam e th e h u b of th e d o w n to w n , w ith th e cu ltu ra l center n o rth of it, th e shopping center to th e w est along H o w a rd Street, and th e financial an d governm ent center to th e east. In the 1970s th e redevelopm ent spread to th e south in connection w ith th e C onvention C en ter an d boom in e n te r­ ta in m e n t, shopping, an d hotel construction near the h a rb o r. M ore th a n a dozen hotels have been finished recently or are u n d er construction, and th ere is a four-fold increase in th e ra te of building new offices. This revitalization has been accom ­ plished w ith a mix of p riv ate, F ed eral, State, and C ity m oney. T he present m ayor, W illiam D o n ald Schaefer, as a m em b er of th e C ity C ouncil in 1964 sp ear­ headed th e e n a ctm e n t of th e O ne P ercent O rd i­ nance th a t requires 1 % of th e cost of construction or renovation of C ity-ow ned buildings to be spent for th e installation of a rt in public places. Also in 1964, in response to plans to destroy dozens of his­ toric buildings in th e M ount V ernon area, th e C ity governm ent m ad e a co m m itm en t to preserve the city’s historic past by creatin g th e C om m ission for H istorical an d A rch itectu ral Preservation (C H A P ). C H A P has helped transform decaying n eighbor­ hoods in to areas of a ttra c tiv e resto red housing. T h ere are now 23 historic districts in th e city, ra n g ­ ing from sm all clusters of houses for w orkers to the m a g n ific e n t tow nhouses of B olton H ill a n d th e p la n n e d g arden su b u rb of R oland P ark. P a rt of this tran sfo rm atio n has been fostered by u rb a n hom e­ steading, for w hich B altim ore has becom e fam ous. In tersp ersed w ith housing in these districts an d geared to w alking are m any fine specialty shops an d re stau ran ts, serving a w ide v ariety of ethnic foods. Architectural ambience B altim ore boasts m an y n otable buildings w ith some of th e oldest and th e new est w ith in w alking distance of th e C onvention C enter. R ight next to th a t facility is th e O tterb e in C h u rch (now affili­ ated w ith th e U nited M ethodist C hurch) b u ilt in 1785 an d re cen tly resto red ; it is th e only 18th- c e n tu ry c h u rc h in co n tin u o u s use in B altim o re. D avidge H all of th e U niversity of M ary la n d ’s M ed­ ical School, designed in 1812 by R obert C ary Long, Sr., is th e oldest m edical school b uilding in the country. T h e city has num erous o th er o u tstan d in g 19th-century buildings designed by th e L atrobes (whose papers are being edited for p u b licatio n at th e M ary lan d H istorical Society), M axim ilian Go- 172 defroy, an d Stanford W hite. W ith in blocks of the C onference site are E d w a rd D u rrell Stone’s Sci­ ence C en ter, I.M . Pei’s W o rld T ra d e C en ter, and Mies van der R ohe’s O ne C harles C enter. F a rth e r afield, th e early 20th cen tu ry is rep resented by n u ­ m erous parks w hich follow stream valleys an d are based on 1904 an d 1926 reports from th e firm of O lm sted Brothers. Even th e latest nostalgic a rc h i­ te c tu ra l interest, a rt deco, is w ell represented by th e h ea d q u arters of the M aryland N ational Bank an d th e Senator T h eater. B altim ore is becom ing well know n for th e cre a ­ tive recycling of old buildings for new uses. O ne of th e first in th e early sixties was th e conversion of the 1896 R om anesque M o u n t Royal S tatio n by th e M aryland In stitu te , College of A rt, into classroom, lib rary , studio, and gallery space. R ecently, u n d er th e leadership of th e th e University of M aryland School of L aw , the 1852 W estm inster C h u rch has been tra n sfo rm e d in to a m u lti-p u rp o se lib ra ry read in g room , concert h all, an d lecture hall. T he grave of E d g ar Allan Poe is in the W estm inster C h u rch y a rd . Several loft factories in th e old g a r­ m en t district have been tu rn e d into a p a rtm e n ts or co n d o m in iu m s. T his also has h a p p e n e d to tw o large high schools, one of w hich is n ear th e top of F ed eral Hill. O ne of th e m ost highly an ticip ated conversions, on Pier 4 of th e In n e r H a rb o r, is the Six Flags P ow er P lan t u rb a n e n te rta in m e n t com ­ plex, w h ich w ill b len d V ic to ria n sp len d o r w ith space-age technology, an d w hich is due to open this spring. T he Pow er P la n t is next to th e acclaim ed N ational A quarium t h a t everyone visits. O ne of th e m ajo r new structures visible as one enters d o w n ­ to w n on Interstates 95 or 395 is B altim ore’s S outh­ w est Resource Recovery F acility, w hich is tra n s ­ form ing the m etro p o lita n a re a ’s refuse into energy (electricity and steam heat), instead of filling up landfills. These efforts highlight th e creativity in conserving n a tu ra l resources an d preserving the b u ilt environm ent, energizing both th e econom ic an d social fab ric of a great city. Things to do A pril is an inviting m o n th to sam ple the London- like qu ality of the m any a n d diverse neighborhoods th a t m ake up B altim ore. T he city in April is likely to have w a rm , sunny days an d crisp, cool nights. T he norm al daily m axim um te m p e ra tu re is 65, and th ere is relatively little ra in in April. T he C o n fer­ ence planners are b u ild in g some breaks into the schedule in o rder to p e rm it C onference goers to do things on th eir ow n. It w ould be w ell w o rth spend­ ing a few days before or after th e C onference get­ tin g to know B altim ore and vicinity. April in B alti­ m ore w ill provide Orioles B aseball, Blast In door Soccer, racing at Pim lico, and th e Bullets Basket­ ball at L arg o ’s C ap ita l C en ter n ear W ashington. In April of 1986 the city w ill host the seventeenth In te rn a tio n a l Film Festival. Live th e a te r is p le n ti­ ful a t C en ter Stage, th e M echanic T h ea tre, an d n u ­ m erous sm aller com panies, such as th e V agabond Players in Fells P oint, A rena Stage, an d th e Spot­ light Players. Musical perform ances ab o u n d at the L yric T h ea te r, th e Joseph M eyerhoff Sym phony H all, an d concert halls all over th e city. Besides th e large m useum s, th ere are several n o ­ ta b le sm aller ones. T he Peale M useum , th e oldest public m useum in the country, is devoted to th e his­ tory of th e city. T he Babe R u th B irthplace and M ary lan d Baseball H all of F am e, th e B altim ore S treetcar M useum , th e B altim ore an d O hio R ail­ ro ad M useum , th e E d g a r Allan Poe H ouse, an d the M encken House on U nion S quare are all close to the C onvention C enter. T he “U.S.S. C o n stella tio n ,” lau n ch ed in B altim ore in 1797 an d th e oldest U.S. w arship afloat, is docked at th e In n e r H arb o r. B al­ tim ore has a n u m b er of bookstores th a t should in ­ terest visiting librarians: th e C h ild re n ’s Bookstore in H a r b o rp la c e , K elm sco tt B ookshop, S econd Story Books, and D ru silla’s (children’s) Books in n earb y L utherville. T w o book shops ca te r to the stom ach as well as th e m ind: L ouie’s Bookstore C afe an d th e venerable P eabody Bookshop & Beer S tube— a h a u n t of M encken and Dos Passos— both on N orth C harles Street. Good eating This leads to w h a t B altim ore m ay be m ost fa ­ mous fo r— good eating. F rom long established res­ ta u ra n ts , such as H aussner’s in H ig h lan d to w n and M arconi’s, tucked aw ay on S aratoga Street, to the new est craze in eatin g (this being m esquite cook­ ery), th ere are hun d red s of places to eat in B alti­ m ore. Most tourists have h e a rd of lu n ch in g at the Lexington M arket, b u t th e Cross Street and the Hollins Street M arkets, also w ith in w alking dis­ tan ce of th e C onvention C en ter, w ould provide a m ore au th en tic taste of neighborhood life. Seafood is king in B altim ore, from Phillips H arb o rp lace R estau ran t to C onnolly’s Seafood House along the P ra tt side of th e In n e r H a rb o r to O brycki’s C rab H ouse, a m ile fa rth e r E ast on P ra tt Street. O th er unusual places to lunch w ith in w alking distance are th e d iner of D iner movie fam e, recently depos­ ited betw een th e C ity H all and th e C ity Archives, th e I n te r n a tio n a l C u lin a ry A rts I n s titu te , th e W o m en ’s In d u strial E xchange, and th e O w l B ar in th e Belvedere H otel. O r follow th e aro m a of spice to M cC orm ick & Co. on L ight Street for a to u r and th en a respite in th eir ch arm in g T ea Room . L ittle Italy , just to th e E ast of the In n e r H a rb o r, has the highest co ncentration of o u tstan d in g ethnic re sta u ­ ra n ts in th e city. But alm ost every o th er n atio n ality is represented som ew here in the city. Charm city A cadem ic lib rarian s are g rap p lin g w ith how to deal w ith high technology an d c o n stra in e d r e ­ sources w hile preserving w h a t is good ab o u t tr a d i­ tio n al collection developm ent an d user services. C om e to B altim ore in April 1986 for th e F o u rth N atio n al A C R L C onference, “Energies for T ransi- Four major publications which are now the single largest source of information on historic properties and structures in the USA Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps on microfìlm. Large-scale plans of 10,000 towns and cities from the 1860s to 1950 National Register of Historic Places on microfiche. The essential nformation through text, m aps and photographs about building , structures and neighborhoods and their historic and cultural significance i Historic American Buildings Survey on microfiche. The reco rd in text and photographs of the architecture and construction of architecturally significant buildings Carnegie Survey of the Architecture of the South on microfiche. Photographs of buildings in the eight Southern States by the famous photographer Frances Benjamin Johnston These reference works are primary sources for architectural, urban, social and local historians and for geographers, demographers, genealogists and archaeologists - and for everyone who is interested in the history of their neighborhood. For descriptive brochures, prices and sam ple microfiche, please call Linda Fox on (201) 692-1801 Chadwyck-Healey Inc. 623 M artense Avenue, Teaneck, NJ 07666 174 tio n .” W e prom ise th a t the intellectual stim ulus of th e C onference will m atch the excitem ent of B alti­ m ore, know n to its enthusiasts as “C harm C ity .” In 1986 be ch arm ed by all th a t B altim ore has to offer the m ind and th e senses. ■ ■ A closer eye on appraisals: A clarification By John R. P a y n e Assistant to the D irector H arry Ransom H um anities Research C enter University o f Texas at A ustin Public response to “A closer eye on appraisals” in the F eb ru a ry issue of C & R L N e w s , p p .52-56, in d i­ cates an uneasiness ab o u t th a t portion of the Tax Reform Act of 1984 relating to donee record keep­ ing requirem ents. Essentially this provision relates only to gifts th a t are valued over $5,000. T he actual w ording of the law reads: “if the claim ed value of such p ro p erty (plus the claim ed value of all sim ilar items of p ro p erty d o nated by th e donor to one or m ore donees) exceeds $5,000.” T he new federal regulations m ust be in terp reted th ro u g h reference to tw o separate U.S. G overn­ m ent publications: 1) T he law as described in C on­ feren c e R ep o rt on the D e fic it R ed u c tio n A c t o f 19841 w hich contains all the provisions of the Tax Reform Act of 1984; and 2) the tem p o rary Rules and Regulations as published in the D ecem ber 31, 1984, issue of th e Federal R egister.2 T h e Rules an d R egulations describe how th e new law w ill be carried out. They are considered “tem p o rary ” in order to allow for public review and com m ent. Persons w ho wish to com m ent on the Rules and R egulations are encouraged to con- 1“T he Tax Reform Act of 1984,” C onference R e­ port on the D eficit R eduction A c t o f 1984: Federal Taxes, Prentice-H all Bulletin 29 E xtra, June 29, 1984. 2F ederal Register, Vol. 49, No. 252 (D ecem ber 31, 1984). Midwest Library Service You won’t find more personal attention . . . anywhere College and university librarians: We have what you’re looking for. While Midwest utilizes state-of-the-art computer systems, we realize machines can’t do it all. So when you want to place an order, ask a question, or discuss a problem, you can call direct on Midwest’s toll-free WATS line and conduct business on a name- to-name basis with your personal customer service representative. It’s the kind of attention that Midwest has provided to college and university libraries for 24 years. Midwest Library Service 11443 St. Charles Rock Road Bridgeton, MO 63044 Call toll-free (800) 325-8833 Missouri librarians call toll-free (800) 392-5024 Canadian librarians call collect (314) 739-3100