Five Minute Histories: Little Italy

Thank you for the wonderful photos by Thomas C. Scilipoti:
4:13: Group of boys in front of shop
4:26: Nun in festival
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Ciao and welcome back to a new week of Five-Minute Histories. Today, we explore Baltimore’s fantastic Little Italy. You’ll be hungry after this one!
This is our series called "Five Minute Histories." Twice a week, we’ll record a short video about a different historic place in Baltimore and post it on our Facebook page and website.

[@garymunson1080]

My great uncle John and his sister lived next door to each other at, respectively, 222 and 220 South High Street. Uncle John was often called the Mayor of Little Italy. It was from his third floor window that movies were projected onto the white screen across the street. My son and I visited him from New Jersey not long after he turned 100. He was sitting in a chair that was next to his bed. Since there was no other place to sit, I sat on his bed and I broke his glasses. I tried to repair them without success. The following week he died (hopefully not because of the glasses). The very day he died, I just arrived at work, and as I reached into my shirt pocket to retrieve my glasses, I found them broken.

[@dianavalek5233]

Karma! ,Way to go Great Uncle John! Thanks for sharing.

[@montibify]

This is my new favorite youtube channel. I hope to be able to watch all of them.

[@baltimoreheritage1006]

Thank you so much for watching!

[@levilam522]

Haven't been in that area since 76 and all the tall ships were in from all over the world..

[@crustycobs2669]

Great history and narration. Thanks

[@Lukes410]

Great video! Could we get some videos on some famous Baltimoreans!?

[@mauriceee1434]

Your site is just so interesting. I love Baltimore architecture. How about Baltimore City College high school. Mainly the castle on the hill building.

[@shortliner68]

Little Italy is also tied in with another part of Baltimore's history. In 1816 the first gas utility in the US was started by Rembrandt Peale to light the streets of Baltimore using manufactured gas. The first lights were installed in 1817. Little Italy was the last neighborhood in the city to have gas street lamps. The last lamp at Fawn Street and Slemmers Alley was replaced with an electric lamp in 1957...140 years after the first one was installed on a city street. A commemorative gas lamp was re-installed at the corner of Holliday and East Baltimore Street in 1997.

[@baltimoreheritage1006]

Wow--we didn't know Little Italy was the last to have the lamps!

[@wendyx2489]

Oooo do history of st Michaels church on wolf and Lombard !!!! Pleeease I can’t believe they turned it to a brewer 🤕

[@baltimoreheritage1006]

We already did it! kzbin.info/www/bejne/pHKql2SvnNqhpJo

[@alessandradagostino6528]

❤

[@philminion3675]

Marias was the reason they added color to formstone. Before her formstone was gray but she wanted color so they figured out how to ad color watch the documentary little castles

[@97dundalk]

@: 2.24 the picture is my grandfather and my ancestors

[@christiangerard1]

oh really cool, i paused at that picture just to kinda take stock of the family. Those two gentlemen are twins right? Do you have a direct grandparent in the picture?

[@jessiegutierrez2506]

Hello from Myrtle beach Mr Frank Ricco say hello out there in Baltimore to the people in Baltimore county, if any one can take a tour of city college and the pool ,he used to swim in he would love to see a video of the school Thank you Frank Sandro Ricco "Frankie"

[@darlenequinn193]

Are you related to Johns Hopkins from the hospital and university history?

[@baltimoreheritage1006]

Distantly related!

[@darlenequinn193]

@@baltimoreheritage1006 Just unusual for the name John to have an s at the end.

[@levilam522]

You missed Housner's, was a great restaurant... gone a while...

[@UncleSam-USofA]

Great food, too much crime now for visit there

[@jakealden2517]

Another great video. Thank you. Unfortunately, this once-proud community is fading fast, so enjoy Little Italy while you can. When the mobs tossed the Christopher Columbus statue into the harbor, and the Little Italy community curled into a ball, I knew it was over.

[@ctbt1832]

Monkey roll and then he said colorful place 🤔

[@kevinkiss3340]

Nancy Pelosi a IND alumni. It’s a shame all the $$$ she has couldn’t keep the school going helping out young girls.