​BALTIMORE, MD (June 12, 2024) – Members of the Morgan Park Improvement Association hosted a celebration today for the formal unveiling of a new roadside historical marker honoring the historic Morgan Park Neighborhood along East Cold Spring Lane.​

The marker commemorates Morgan Park, the first planned Black suburb in Baltimore City. In 1917, Morgan State University’s 4th President Dr. John O. Spencer envisioned the 27-acre residential subdivision as a community for Black faculty and professionals barred from purchasing homes in white neighborhoods by Jim Crow segregation laws.

“My primary motivation for seeking a state historical marker for Morgan Park was the potential loss of our neighborhood’s legacy,” said Leonore Burts, Co-chair, Morgan Park Improvement Association, History Committee. Burt’s parents purchased their Morgan Park home from W.E.B. DuBois, renowned educator, author and civil rights activist of the 20th century in 1949. “Homes of notable residents, who have died or moved, were being sold to families and individuals who were unaware of the rich heritage of the community and its significance to local and national history. The marker addresses our equal concern that young Morgan students learn of our legacy and appreciate their connection to our community.”​

Known as a community of educators, other notable residents included scholars and activists such as Carl J. Murphy, the transformational publisher of the Baltimore Afro-American newspaper and Rebecca Carroll, the first African American woman to earn a ​doctorate from the University of Maryland College Park and the first African American woman Deputy Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction for Baltimore City Public Schools.

The Morgan Park Improvement Association nominated the site to the Maryland Roadside Historical Marker program, which educates the public on Maryland history. The Maryland Department of Transportation, in partnership with the Maryland Historical Trust, manages the program.

Jawauna Greene, the Maryland Department of Transportation Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs and Strategy attended Wednesday’s ceremony and discussed highlighting the state’s untold stories.

“The Maryland Department of Transportation is proud to help honor the Morgan Park neighborhood’s legacy with an historical marker,” said Assistant Secretary Greene. “The Morgan Park historical marker is the latest in a series of markers that will highlight our shared history and help inform generations to come.”

A representative from the Baltimore City Mayor’s office, elected officials and local community members also attended the unveiling.

The new roadside marker is part of the effort of the Maryland Department of Transportation and the Maryland Historical Trust to increase the number of markers that highlight the state’s untold stories. Click here for more information​ on the Maryland Roadside Historical Marker program, including how to nominate a marker. Click here to search current markers​.