War Memorial Plaza

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

The Baltimore War Memorial was dedicated in 1925 for veterans of WWI and rededicated in 1977 in honor of all Maryland veterans of wars of the 20th century (Pousson, Baltimore Heritage). The plaza was also the site of a large protest and rally on behalf of the Catonsville Nine during their trial in 1968.

Images

Protesters at War Memorial Plaza (1968)

Baltimore War Memorial

Leaflet Supporting Catonsville 9

Backstory and Context

Text-to-speech Audio

On the first day of the trial, well over a thousand protestors gathered in Wyman Park, and then marched toward the War Memorial Plaza for a demonstration, gathering supporters along the way. Activists chanted “Free the Nine”, and carried signs protesting the war. All along the way, hundreds of police officers kept watch on the situation. At the plaza, speakers voiced their support for the Nine, and spoke out for antiwar and social justice causes, even as counter-demonstrators tried to provoke confrontation.

This protest was the largest antiwar protest in Baltimore during the Vietnam era (Julius, Marilyn. “Fire and Faith.” The Catonsville Nine File), and was a source of inspiration for many of the participants and onlookers.

Sources

Julius, Marilyn. “Fire and Faith.” The Catonsville Nine File, 2005. http://c9.digitalmaryland.org/index.php

Peters, Shawn Francis. The Catonsville Nine: A Story of Faith and Resistance in the Vietnam Era. New York: Oxford University Press, 2012.

Pousson, Eli. “War Memorial Building,” Explore Baltimore Heritage, accessed November 1, 2020, https://explore.baltimoreheritage.org/items/show/201.

War Memorial History, Accessed November 1st 2020. https://war-memorial.baltimorecity.gov/history.

Image Sources(Click to expand)

Photo by William L. LaForce Jr, The Baltimore Sun

Smash the Iron Cage, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Baltimore Defense Committee, http://c9.digitalmaryland.org/artifact.php?ID=DPCN001&PT=1