A Modern Past

Jon Kaplan and Joel Pearson are die-hard urban dwellers. But after 13 years of living on the 15th floor of a condo in central Baltimore, they craved natural light and a touch of green.

The outdoor space "didn't have to be large, but preferably more than just a token wooden deck," Pearson said. "It is very difficult to find this in the city."

Then they discovered one of Baltimore's best-kept secrets: Bolton Square, a mid-century townhouse complex whose 35 red-brick units surround a private grassy ellipse. It was like an oasis, recalled Pearson, an architect who was quick to appreciate the minimalist beauty and practicality of the enclave's award-winning modernist design, by D.C. architect Hugh Newell Jacobsen.

"The floor-to-ceiling windows make our 1,400 square feet of living space seem much larger than it is," he said. "The floor plan is similar to a typical Baltimore rowhouse, but our home is flooded with natural light from both sides and from skylights above. The open first-floor plan with extended views beyond to our semiprivate garden patio makes us very happy."

That's a sentiment shared by their neighbors, who are celebrating the development's 40th anniversary today by opening the grounds to the public for house-and-garden tours, presentations and a reception.

The residents have another reason to celebrate. In July, the Baltimore City Commission for Historical and Architectural Preservation bestowed landmark status on Bolton Square. Although somewhat symbolic because the surrounding neighborhood of Bolton Hill was already a historic district, the designation signifies both a trend of preserving modernist architecture and the power of good design to create and sustain a community.

"This was a unique situation because it was the first modernist structure to become a city landmark, and it was a group of properties, not just a single property owner, making the request," said Andrea Houseman, a planner with the commission. "The people who live there definitely helped convince us that it was deserving. They appreciate the design and are proud of it. Plus, if you look back at Jacobsen's work, he does a lot of regionalism, and this was one of his first works where he used traditional rowhouse proportions to create a modern home."

Bolton Square, on West Lafayette Avenue between Mason and Jordan streets in central Baltimore, drew praise from the start. In 1969, the American Institute of Architects gave it an Honor Award and The Washington Post declared that its two- and three-story "superbly elegant houses," arranged around a common private park with little wasted space, demonstrate "what thoughtful urban design can accomplish."

One thing it's accomplished is an enduring sense of community. Residents include a diverse group of young families, empty nesters, gay couples and aficionados of mid-century modern design who feel they get the best of both worlds by living in the "new houses" of an established neighborhood.

Bolton Hill is known for its tree-lined streets of three-story 19th-century rowhouses with marble steps and traditional flat facades. Queen Anne mansions and other eclectic Victorian-era structures add to the character of the neighborhood. Residents liken its significance to that of Beacon Hill in Boston or Brooklyn Heights. Blue plaques modeled after those on historic London houses proudly mark the homes of its most distinguished residents, past and present, who include F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gertrude Stein, President Woodrow Wilson and filmmaker John Waters.

Despite its storied past, Bolton Hill, like many urban areas, was suffering from middle-class flight in the early 1960s. After dismantling the trolley lines and demolishing two blocks of blighted buildings, the city held a competition to develop the parcel as middle-class housing. Baltimore-based developer Stanley Panitz recruited Jacobsen, whose work he admired and whom he knew casually because their families summered at Rehoboth Beach.

Jacobsen was already making a name for himself, having set up shop in Georgetown in 1958 after a brief apprenticeship under Philip Johnson in New Canaan, Conn., a mecca of modernist houses that are the focus of current preservation efforts.