Vol. 18 • No. 2 April 2018

Discussion Group: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wpca-md www.wymanparkcommunity.org1

In 2015, a movement was initiated to rededicate a section of Wyman Park Dell to Harriet Tubman. Tubman, who was born in slavery in Maryland and later escaped to freedom, is known for her activism in helping others escape via the Underground Railroad. There’s a natural grove in Wyman Park Dell with trees that are over 100 years old. Officials and community members felt that it was a natural and appropriate place to honor Tubman. Council member Mary Pat Clarke sponsored the bill in the City council to rename the grove. It took over two years to get to this point, but after the removal of the Lee-Jackson Monument that stood in the Wyman Park Dell since 1948, Mayor Catherine Pugh signed the renaming into law in February and the dedication was planned. “We really wanted to have this dedication on March 10th,” said Clarke. “We don’t know the date of Harriet Tubman’s birth, so we chose the anniversary of her death.” Thus, the wooded southwestern plateau at Howard Street and Art Museum Drive was dedicated as the Harriet Tubman Grove on Saturday March 10th, the 105th anniversary of Tubman’s death. This event was organized with the support of Council Member Clarke, Dr. Leah White of Greater Faith Baptist Church, and Baltimore City Recreation and Parks. A diverse crowd of some 200 people attended the event. “I was very impressed by the event,” said Wyman Park resident Ray Iturralde. “It was solemn and joyful. There was great diversity and energy in the crowd. It felt good and hopeful.” Wyman Park Dell is a 16-acre public park in Baltimore City. The Dell, noted for its steep enclosing slopes and a large, sweeping lower lawn, serves as an urban sanctuary. Bounded by Charles Street and the Baltimore Museum of Art, the Wyman Park Dell is a component of the larger Wyman Park, although the two are not contiguous.

The parcel was originally part of the estate of Charles Carroll, which Samuel Wyman purchased in 1839. The land was given to The Johns Hopkins University in 1902, with Carroll’s Homewood House, and the remainder of the estate was subsequently donated to the City of Baltimore as a public park. In 1904 Olmsted Brothers prepared a plan for the development of Baltimore’s public parks, which included the 194-acre Wyman Park. Much of the park capitalizes on the mature vegetation and dramatic topography that flanks the Stony Run stream valley. In contrast, the design for the sixteen-acre, teardrop-shaped Dell (developed by Olmsted Brothers in 1911) comprises a sunken expanse of lawn encircled by a wooded slope,

which buffers it from its urbanized surroundings. Local stone was used to

create dry-stacked retaining walls and grand stairs descending upwards to the surrounding streets. Arcing paths provide access throughout—and sweeping views of—the park. In 1917, the Baltimore Museum of Art relocated to its present location northwest of the Dell. (continued on p. 2)

Mark your Calendars! WPCA General Membership Meeting

TUESDAY, APRIL 3rd at 7p.m. Keswick Multi-Care Center, 700 W. 40th St.

• Stony Run Restoration Update Guest: Craig Huntley, President, Friends of Stony Run

• Update on neighborhood safety• JHU Proposal for University Police Force

APRIL3

Mary Pat Clarke opening the dedication ceremony on March 10th

Harriet Tubman Grove at Wyman Park Dellby Nina Wendt

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Vol. 18 • No. 2 April 2018

Discussion Group: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wpca-md www.wymanparkcommunity.org2

Harrient Tubman (cont. from p. 1) This, combined with the expansion of the Johns Hopkins campus, further isolated the Dell from the larger Wyman Park. It is not known if a statue will be placed, but there will be signs marking the Grove. The Friends of Wyman Dell will plant new trees, which as Clarke says, “will be new and growing, thus preserving Tubman’s legacy in what has become such a peaceful place in Baltimore.” “Tubman would feel at home in Wyman Park Dell,” Clarke said. All who attended the dedication would certainly agree. Sources: https;//www.friendsof-wymanparkdell.org, https://bcrp. baltimorecity.gov/, WMAR-TV2 News

President’s Message Greetings Neighbors!

Welcome to springtime in Wyman Park. Now is a great time to get out walking. While you are at it, why not bring a bag to pick up trash that the heavy March winds have blown about our neighborhood and the Park. Thank you for doing your part to restore and maintain Wyman Park in its natural state for all to enjoy.

See you around the Park while walking my dog Lenny!

Jack Boyson WPCA President

Join the WPCA E-mail Group in 3 Easy Clicks!

 

1.    Go to wymanparkcommunity.org2.    Select ‘Communicate’3.    Join from that page 

Community Calendar

April 3 WPCA General Association Meeting

April 7 Project Cleanup: Stony Run/Wyman Park 9 a.m. – Noon Meet at Craycombe & Tudor Arms Avenue Gloves, supplies and refreshments will be provided

Mid-April Residential Parking Permits: Online purchase begins for existing permit holders only (should receive email) Visit https://pabc.thepermitstore.com Look for full purchase details in the May issue

May 8 WPCA General Association Meeting

Vol. 18 • No. 2 April 2018

Discussion Group: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wpca-md www.wymanparkcommunity.org3

The WPCA gratefully acknowledges MD Nautical, Robert Davis and Theresa Abel for assistance with production of the WPCA newsletter.

Meet the People Who Deliver WPCA

Newsletters Ed. Note: This is the first in a series to introduce the people who deliver the WPCA newsletters.

Lynn Silverman Before moving to Baltimore in 1999, Lynn lived in Britain and Australia where she taught photography for a number of years. She still uses a darkroom for making black and white prints, which have been shown internationally. Lynn currently teaches photography at the Maryland Institute College of Art. The attraction of Wyman Park/Hampden was immediate with its access to shops, a park, and great neighbors. “Delivering the newsletter is good exercise and a chance to say hello to fellow residents on my beat,” she says. Something you might not know about Lynn: She enjoys exchanging news and gossip over a monthly potluck meal with a group of knitters who live in Wyman Park. Lynn delivers to the 3400 block of Keswick Rd..

Katherine Birnie Katherine lives on Beech Avenue, and is ably assisted in delivering the newsletter by her husband Wayne and their dog Bodhi. “We all love living in Wyman Park, where we moved three years ago, from the western side of Hampden,” she says. They can often be found walking along the trail in Wyman Park (Bodhi's favorite neighborhood activity), or walking through the neighborhood to the Charmery (Katherine's favorite activity). Katherine works in land conservation and wetland/stream restoration and volunteers with the Appalachian Mountain Club. Wayne is the Latin teacher at the Bryn Mawr School and volunteers with the Big Brother Big Sister program. Something you might not know about Katherine: She and Wayne took their (belated) honeymoon hiking the Arctic Circle Trail in Greenland this past summer. Katherine delivers to the 3900 block of Keswick Rd.

Marta Zahalak Marta emigrated to USA from Ukraine and moved to Baltimore from St. Louis six years ago. “I enjoy living in a community that respects diversity and is considerate about our environment.” she says. Marta scuba dives to survey the fish population in our seas. Her most recent Dive Adventure was in Hawaii, on a live-aboard excursion, with other citizen scientists engaged in marine conservation. You may have seen her in Wyman Park, walking Jacques, a Pomeranian foundling she found abandoned in Patterson Park. Something you might not know about Marta: She loves to dance the Argentine Tango. Marta delivers to the 3800 block of Beech Ave.

Vol. 18 • No. 2 April 2018

Discussion Group: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wpca-md www.wymanparkcommunity.org4

Editor: Nina Wendt

Design/Layout: Anh Thu Cunnion

The Wyman ParkCommunity Association, Inc.

Jack Boyson, President

Directors

Luke Ackerman ’20

Larry Caudill '18 

Fanny Fonseca-Becker '20

Lexy Martinez '20 

Paul McCoy, '20 

M. Elaine Parker, ’18

Andrea Rackowski  '19 

Matt Reinhart ’19

Donna (Jinx) Schwartz, ’18

Carol Smith ’19

Lura Warren, Emerita

Nina Wendt, ’19

Sue Ellen Wheatley  '20

Vice Presidentposition open

Ashley Costello, Secretary

Gayle Springer, Treasurer

Joe Leatherman, Parliamentarian

Wyman Park Community Association

Membership & DuesOnly $10 gets your entire household membership in

WPC. Support your community association! All memberships valid through 9/30/18.

There are now two ways to join!

1) PayPal or Credit Card: visit www.wymanparkcommunity.org; or

2) Mail a personal check made payable to “WPCA” along with your name, address, phone number, and mail to: Gayle Springer, Treasurer, 3937 Keswick Rd., Baltimore,  MD 21211

Senior HappeningsAction in Maturity (AIM)

700 W 40th Street410-889-7915

Mother’s Day Tea Wednesday, May 2nd at 10:30 a.m.

Lyric Opera Company performing Broadway musical selections. Menu: Tea, finger sandwiches, and petite

desserts. Event includes raffle baskets, and best hat and tea cup contests.

Continuing Classes

New WPCA Board Member:Fannie Fonseca-Becker

Fannie, a recently retired Hopkins Faculty member, spent over 30 years assessing the impact of public health programs in Africa, Central & South America as well as in 26 different US states. A native of Colombia, she lived for 17 years in Bogota, 12 years in Brussels, Belgium, with several years in Washington DC, Atlanta and finally Baltimore where she and husband Stan have loved living in their Tudor Arms home since 1991. Something you might not know about Fannie: She has been a vegetarian most of her life and enjoys creating new recipes using the vegetables and culinary herbs from her backyard garden.

Active Yoga Monday at 10 a.m. Keswick Library $3 per class Chair Yoga Mondays 11:30 a.m. Wednesdays 10 a.m. Keswick Library $3 per class Line Dancing Tuesdays 10:30 a.m. Keswick Assisted Living $2 per class

Quilting Wednesdays 9:30 a.m. AIM Office Free Chair Exercise Fridays at 10 a.m. 3939 Roland Ave Social Room, Free Evening Yoga *NEW* Fridays at 5:30 p.m. Keswick Library $3 per class

UPCOMING

2018WPCA MEETINGS

APR 3MAY 8

KESWICK MULTICARE

CENTER 700 W. 40th St.

7 O’CLOCK P.M.