District History
In 2002, Station North Arts District became one of the first state-designated arts and entertainment districts in Maryland. The creation of the district was led by a group of artists, many of whom still live and work in the area today. Below is a collection of independent projects and research that documents the history of the area before it was designated as an arts district, as well as what has happened in the twenty years since.
AREA 405
405 - 417 East Oliver Street was built as a factory in 1848. The building now houses 40+ artist studios and the Station North Tool Library. In March 2022, Area 405 was jointly purchased by Central Baltimore Partnership and local developer Ernst Valery to preserve nearly 70,000 square feet of affordable artist studio space. The building had been jointly owned and operated by a group of artists since 2003.
The Copycat Project
Historically rented as artist studios and housing, the Copycat building has served as a landmark in the Baltimore arts community. Take a look at The Copycat Book and short video documentary, published in 2012, and learn about its history.
DUOX4Odell’s: You’ll Know If You Belong
In spring 2017, Wickerham & Lomax presented an art exhibition DUOX4Odell’s You’ll Know If You Belong — “an ode to the legacy of Odell’s, the legendary nightclub that still stands today as an aberration of its former self.” In 2022, the newly restored building reopened as the new home for arts education organizations Arts for Learning and Code in the Schools.
The Cork Factory
University of Baltimore Oral History Collection
The artists who collectively who collectively own the Cork Factory building led the initiative to create Station North, Baltimore’s first arts and entertainment district. Interviews were conducted between October 2012 and July 2013 with artists and residents of the Cork Factory warehouse at 1601 Guilford Avenue.
Greater Baltimore Asian Community History
This collection explores the story of the Charles North neighborhood, a part of Station North, as Baltimore’s first unofficial Koreatown. This history inspired the Towson Asian Arts and Culture Center and Central Baltimore Partnership to launch the annual Asia North Exhibition and Festival, which takes place each spring. Students continue to research and illuminate the area’s community history.
The Crown and Jong Kak
For the 2022 Asia North Festival, community researcher Suzy Schlosberg created this site to document the oral history of two restaurants, celebrating two crossroads of food and art in Baltimore's Koreatown.