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The Maryland Curiosity Bureau

What’s The Story With Fort Armistead Park?

By Aaron Henkin
Published June 1, 2022 at 12:11 PM EDT
The view from the top level of Fort Armistead. The fort is hidden away in the woods at a neglected park in Hawkins Point, South Baltimore. (Photo credit: Carmen Brock)
The view from the top level of Fort Armistead. The fort is hidden away in the woods at a neglected park in Hawkins Point, South Baltimore. (Photo credit: Carmen Brock)

It’s covered in graffiti, overgrown by the forest, and neglected by the city, but Fort Armistead was once a state-of-the-art coastal defense installation. Why was this place built? Whatever happened to it? What’s going on there now? Is it true that you can find tunnels into it? And what’ll you discover if you venture inside?

By the way, check out Baltimore Heritage's Five Minute Histories video about Fort Armistead Park!

A radar-guided artillery gun was once mounted here. The guns at Fort Armistead were never used, and they were eventually removed and shipped overseas during World War II. (Photo credit: Carmen Brock)
A radar-guided artillery gun was once mounted here. The guns at Fort Armistead were never used, and they were eventually removed and shipped overseas during World War II. (Photo credit: Carmen Brock)
This tunnel leads to the interior of the fort. (Photo credit: Carmen Brock)
This tunnel leads to the interior of the fort. (Photo credit: Carmen Brock)
Aaron Henkin finds his way by flashlight through the tunnels below the fort. (Photo credit: Carmen Brock)
Aaron Henkin finds his way by flashlight through the tunnels below the fort. (Photo credit: Carmen Brock)

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The Maryland Curiosity Bureau Maryland Curiosity BureauPodcast CentralWYPR PodcastBaltimore HistoryBaltimore Recreation and Parks
Aaron Henkin
Aaron creates and produces original radio programs and podcasts for WYPR. His current project is The Maryland Curiosity Bureau. Aaron's neighborhood documentary series, Out of the Blocks, earned the 2018 national Edward R Murrow Award. His past work includes the long-running weekly cultural program, The Signal, and the Smithsonian Folkways Recordings series, Tapestry of the Times. Aaron's stories have aired nationally on NPR's Morning Edition and All Things Considered.
See stories by Aaron Henkin