B. has more than 200 churches, three universities, a number of colleges, and many charitable and beneficial institutions, among which are the Bay View asylum: the Spring Grove asylum; the Maryland institution for the blind; the Sheppard asylum for the insane, endowed with $1,000,000 by Moses Sheppard; the Peabody institution, which received over $1,000,000 from George Peabody; the Hopkins hospital, endowed with $2,000.000 by John Hopkins, free without regard to color or condition. The Johns Hop kins university (which see) is a new institution, magnificently endowed, giving oppor tunity for post-graduate study, and advanced scientific and gradually develop ing its various courses of study on a far-reaching plan. There are about 125 public schools, with 80.000 average attendance. The most notable building in B. is the new city hall, occupying an entire square of more than half an acre; 355 ft. long, in renais sance style; the outer facing of the walls, the portico, and all the ornamental work of white Maryland marble; the inner walls and floors of brick; four stories high, sur mounted by a mansard roof of iron and slate, with a dome and tower of iron, rising 240 ft. from a marble base. The interior is very elegantly furnished, and the whole cost was $2,600,000. It is said to have been built entirely within the original estimate of expense. The Peabody institute was incorporated in 1857; one wing of the building, near the Washington monument, is completed. It is faced and ornamented with white ,marble, and is simple, but massive and imposing in style. It contains a library of 56,000 volumes. and halls for lectures, concerts, etc. The custom-house is a fine edifice, 225 by 141 ft.; the principal room is 53 ft.' square, and is lighted by a glass dome, 115 ft.
above the street. On the four sides are colonnades, each column being a single block of Italian marble.
B. is supplied with water from lake Roland (fed by Jones' Falls), an artificial pond 8 m. n. of the city, with a capacity of 500,000,000 galls. There are three other reser voirs, with an aggregate storage of as much more. There are also numerous small springs and fountains in the city. Of a number of public squares, Druid Hill park, of 700 acres, in the extreme n.w. of the city, is the chief, and possesses wonderful natural beauty, including forests, lakes, lawns, and about 25 m. of carriage drives.
As a manufacturing city, B. takes high rank in ship-building; in products of iron, wool, copper, cotton, and pottery; in distilling, tanning, saddlery, the making of agricultural implements. etc. Near the city is clay for bricks, which is not excelled by any known in the world, and more than 100,000,000 B. bricks are made and sold annually. The largest iron-rolling mills in the United States are the Abbott works, in the e. section of the city. As a flour market, B. is an important center; and it is also prominent in exporting tobacco, and other products. One of its features is the oyster trade. The oysters are taken from Chesapeake bay in immense quantities, canned, and shipped to all parts of the world.
In order of popdlation, B. is the sixth city in the United States. Its progress as shown by the census has been rapid. 1790, 13,503; 1800, 26,514; 1810. 35,583; 1820, 62,738; 1,30, 80,625; 1840, 102,313; 1850, 169,034; 1860, 212,418; 1870, 267,354.