Peale Museum

The Peale

Company type	Nonprofit museum
Industry	Museums and cultural heritage
Founded	1814
Founder	Rembrandt Peale
Fate	Reopened after restoration in 2022
Headquarters	Baltimore , United States
Area served	Baltimore, Maryland
Products	Museum exhibitions, community programs

The Peale is a community-focused museum located in Baltimore, Maryland, which reopened its doors in 2022 following an extensive five-year restoration. This institution occupies the earliest structure in the Western Hemisphere purpose-built to function as a museum.

Originally established by Rembrandt Peale, the museum operated from 1814 until 1829, after which its collection was relocated to the Baltimore Museum and Gallery of Fine Arts. Over time, the building served multiple roles: it was Baltimore's City Hall from 1830 to 1875, then became one of the city’s initial grammar schools and the first high school for African-American students between 1878 and 1887.

In 1931, after renovation, it reopened as the Municipal Museum of Baltimore. Another refurbishment took place beginning in 1978, culminating in its 1981 reopening as the Peale Museum. The Municipal Museum ceased operations in 1997, transferring its holdings to the Maryland Historical Society.

Peale’s Baltimore Museum

In 1814, artist Rembrandt Peale founded "Peale's Baltimore Museum and Gallery of Fine Arts" at 225 North Holliday Street in Baltimore. As the second son of Charles Willson Peale—the founder of Peale's Philadelphia Museum—Rembrandt opened what is recognized as the first building in the Western Hemisphere specifically designed as a museum. The Georgian-style edifice was crafted by architect Robert Cary Long, Sr.

The museum showcased portraits of prominent American figures, including works by Rembrandt Peale himself, and exhibited a complete skeleton of a prehistoric mastodon discovered by Charles Willson Peale in 1801. During the 1814 Battle of Baltimore, Rembrandt Peale and his family remained inside overnight to safeguard the museum from British troops.

Sometimes referred to simply as the "Baltimore Museum," it was overseen by Rembrandt’s brother, Rubens Peale, until 1829. The institution’s exhibitions received thorough critique from early American art critic John Neal during 1822 and 1823.

Significantly, this building was Baltimore’s first to feature gas lighting. Due to financial challenges, it was sold in 1829; its exhibits were transferred to a newly built location at North Calvert Street and East Baltimore Street. By 1834, this second site became known as the Baltimore Museum and Gallery of Fine Arts (also called Baltimore Museum Theatre).

Subsequent functions

Between 1830 and 1875, the former museum building served as Baltimore’s initial City Hall. Later, it was occupied by the city’s Board of School Commissioners and Baltimore City Public Schools. In 1878, it became Male and Female Colored School No. 1—one of Baltimore’s earliest grammar schools and the city’s first high school for African-American students. Its high school division opened in 1883 and is considered a forerunner to Frederick Douglass High School.

From 1887 until 1916, the building housed the Bureau of Water Supply. Subsequently, between 1916 and 1928, it was leased out to various retail shops and manufacturing businesses.

Contemporary museum developments

By 1928, plans called for demolition; however, the building was preserved through renovation and reopened in 1931 as the Municipal Museum of Baltimore. This restoration was directed by John Henry Scarff, a Baltimore architect and archaeologist who later played a role in developing policies concerning looted art during and following World War II.

The structure received designation as a National Historic Landmark in 1965. A significant renovation took place from 1978 to 1981, after which it reopened under the name Peale Museum. In 1985, it became part of Baltimore City Life Museums (BCLM), a network of historic sites. Following BCLM’s dissolution in 1997, its collection was transferred to the Maryland Historical Society (currently known as Maryland Center for History and Culture), leaving this original building unoccupied until public programs resumed there in 2017.

A Maryland-based organization initiated a $4 million fundraising effort in 2014 aimed at restoring the museum. This extensive restoration concluded in 2022, resulting in "the Peale" reopening as "Baltimore’s Community Museum" in August of that year.

See also

• Peale's Barber Farm Mastodon Exhumation Site

External links

• Peale's American Museum hosted by the Academy of Natural Sciences
• Peale Museum – Explore Baltimore Heritage
• , featuring an undated photograph, provided by the Maryland Historical Trust